The things you do
Climbing Snowdon in a blizzard with wind-chill of minus 15 seemed like a good idea at the time, explains Dougal Paver.
Sir Ranulph Feinnes has got a lot to answer for. I'm deep in to his riveting autobiography, 'Mad, bad and dangerous to know', and on the basis that someone nearing his mid-sixties with vertigo could climb the north face of the Eiger, I summised that I could - and should - do Snowdon.
There's more to it than that, of course. It was the first of a dozen or so training hikes that I'm organising for members of our Spanish Trek team and, as such, we weren't going to let a little bit of snow disrupt our plans. The children at Claire House deserve better than that.
Indeed, the recently ploughed roads up to the Pen-y-Pass car park hinted at moderate conditions and general passability. The rather empty car park told a different story.
I'm sure a number of you have climbed Snowdon. "There's a path: it's easy." Not in near white-out conditions with deep snow and an underlay of ice it ain't. Bloody knackering and highly dangerous would be nearer to the mark.
We were guided by the incomparable Fraser McKay, veteran of Everest and former Scottish mountain rescue volunteer. There were sections where his skills, experience and calm authority were just the ticket, I can tell you: in deep snow with limited visibility it's easy to take the wrong route and end up over a cliff.
Whilst we were enjoying (read 'enduring') a short break at the summit there was a lass huddled in an emergency heat cover suffering from hypothermia. Mountain rescue were on their way, we were assured.
The wind-chill was so severe that the water in my plastic water bottle had part-frozen in the side mesh pocket of my rucksack. Think, for a moment, just how chilling the wind must be to render that in just two hours. Wear the wrong gear in those conditions - as this lass clearly had - and death isn't too far away.
"You saw proper winter mountain conditions today, chaps" said Fraser in his gentle Aberdonian burr. Bankers always were masters of under-statement. He can't make our trek through the Pyrenees, sadly, as he has a birthday engagement to honour, so it shall fall to me, on this our third high level traverse of the range, to play T.O. once more.
If you'd like to join our merry dozen, you know where to find me. Any sponsorship you raise for Claire House along the way will be put to very good use indeed.
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