Another weekend, another training event! This time, with mother nature working against us, we were set for real adventure. Come rain, come snow nothing was going to stop the 14 ramblers getting to Wales.
After a rather slippy road trip, the girls arrived in Isla's Cherokee Jeep (equipped with mahogany dash and leather interior) to a delightful mug of coco. David's cricket pavilion was a softer, but colder nights sleep to that of FFFC's village hall. I don't think any of us were quite prepared for how cold it would be over night, with poor Helen looking positively blue in the morning!
The cow bell chimes rang at 7.30, at which point the production line of tea and sandwich making began. With each of us now in possession of some shiny new trek gear, we were all chomping at the bit.
A rather scenic road trip, including a stop off to collect Mr Hern brought us to our final destination of snowy wonderland. I think the girls probably became slightly weary towards my exclamations of joy in the car "wow look at the snow its amazing"......for that afternoon I transformed into an excitable kid, along with everyone else I think.
The precarious snow swept lanes brought us to a kind farmer, who let us take over his yard with our assortment of vehicles. After some negotiation with physically maneuvering the cars, we were set for the slopes.
Day 1 of our practice rambling was a really scenic and at times challenging walk up Pen Y Fan. It was like walking in the French Alps, with the blue sky and the white bright snow.....if only I'd brought my skis! After a steep ascent, the kids enjoyed rolling down the hill at the end of the day, with a few attempting to transform into human sledges. I have to own up to letting out girly yelps, on a few occasions, when losing my leg to the mountain, and suddenly finding myself thigh deep in the snow.
That night we had a good laugh at a Balti House, accompanied by some beers. I'm quite sure the owners, staff and other diners were happy to see us go, following an overdose of inappropriate chat. We then gatecrashed a 21st party (well, almost!). The beer jacket at this point was very much on, and luckily so, as we faced an even colder nights sleep, having lost all power earlier on.
Day 2 was planned to be a shorter, gentler ramble. In fact, we walked further, and for longer after coming across a couple of issues with our map's accuracy and a faulty compass....bloody things!! Spirits remained high for most of the day, which was helped by the beautiful scenery and truck load of snickers. The comedy banter spreading between the group also provided a welcome distraction at times. There was only one point when I felt slight concern, shortly after walking through a river. It was freezing cold, and Isla calmly mentioned that wet feet were the most common cause of hypothermia!! With soggy feet and a brave smile we soldiered on, making it back for 4.30.....only a couple of hours late.
All be it at the sacrifice of our Sunday Roast, the weekend was another great rehearsal for testing a bit of team resilience, while also providing a wake-up call to the cold that we should be prepared for up Everest.
Top tip: invest in a good sleeping bag (thanks Sugar!)
