A short walk from Capel Curig
We knew from experience that when it rains in North Wales, particularly around Capel Curig, it really rains. However, we were attracted to Capel Curig as our starting point and, having found a leaflet published by the Capel Curig Tourist Group with details of a number of walks, we selected one that should take about 3 hours. As we intended to start by 10 o’clock unless the rain arrived early we should have no problem completing this ramble before inclement weather arrived.
Above is map of the walk area.
Having parked the car
in the car park behind Joe Brown’s Walking Shop; we
enjoyed the westerly view of the Snowdon Horseshoe, which
looked its usual impressive self in bright
sunlight.
Views from Capel Curig
of the Snowdon Horseshoe.
The weather was
certainly better than was forecast. We
walked to, and crossed the A5, and then crossed a
stile, to the left of St Curig’s Church, into a
field. Ascending through the field, generally
eastwards, we passed into another field and soon
the route became more distinct as we walked through
woodland. With the sun still shining, which
it did for the duration of the walk, we were soon
enjoying the view on our right (south-west) of Moel
Siabod.
With Anne, Greg and Ian, I had climbed Moel Siabod
one May Day some years ago and although it just
misses being a Welsh 3000 foot peak by 140 feet it
is still very impressive. I consider
the scenery from the top to be some of the finest
in Snowdonia as it is possible to enjoy views
of Snowdon, the Glyders and the Carneddau as one
looks northwards from its top.
Anne walking along the
path towards Crimpiau.
Gradually our path
today swung northwards and we reminisced about the
many times we had walked this route back to Trefrew
in the Conwy Valley where we had enjoyed the
hospitality of the Princes Arms Hotel, which is
where we were staying during this visit.
We had been tempted to do this route again but
were “put off” by the time we would have spent
getting to Capel Curig from Trefrew by the local
bus service, which, if I remember correctly,
necessitates changing in Betws-Y-Coed.
However, if you are in this area and have a day
to spare the walk is wonderful and visits the
beautiful Llyn Crafnant and, via a short detour,
Lynn Geirionydd can also be reached.
Views between the
start of the walk and the base of Crimpiau
So we continued along
this generally ascending path. Having passed
over a small concrete foot bridge, we turned left
and went up and over a knoll and by now the views
of Snowdon, which we had lost earlier, had
returned. Over a couple more stiles we went
until we were almost at the bwlch – the high
mountain pass that once reached leads down to Llyn
Crafnant. However, our route was left, uphill on to
the slopes of Crimpiau, which I understand means
long serrated ridge. Here we found a path which
lead to a spot that gave wonderful views along the
length of Llyn Crafnant. So we stopped here
to enjoy the views, then walked on until we reached
a location which gave us views down the Ogwen
Valley including views of Tryfan and the
Glyders. By now the sun really was shining,
the air was clear and the views were
magnificent. So I snapped away on my digital
camera to capture the scenery as best I
could. But, as always a photograph is a poor
substitute for the real thing.
Views from between
Crimpiau and Capel Curig
From here we walked
downhill, through knee high vegetation, to the left
of a small lake, Llyn Coryn, before finding a
track, to the left of a fence, which, after turning
right, went steeply downhill. This really was
a pleasant walk with wonderful views at almost
every turn.
Moel Siabod from the
slopes of Crimpiau.
On reaching the bottom
of this descent the way ahead was less obvious and
was quite boggy. One can almost always
guarantee that on any walk at some point the
directions can get a little confusing.
However, although we may have taken the incorrect
path at this point the general direction was fairly
obvious. We just walked towards the valley
with Snowdon at the end of it, negotiating a couple
of gates on the way and in no time at all we were
on the track that we had followed after crossing
the A5 a couple of hours earlier, and yet again
were able to enjoy the views of Snowdon bathed in
sunshine before the rain arrived.
The magnificent Snowdon Horseshoe.
The total distance
walked was only just over 4 miles, but the scenery,
even over such a short distance, was spectacular.