My recent trip to Slovenia gave me the repeat opportunity to do some skiing again which I was looking forward of doing on the ski resort of Krvavec. I am proud to report no falls or injuries whatsoever.

The place was absolutely packed, probably due to the fact that it was in that weird time between Christmas and New Year and lots of people had the time off work. The other one was that the weather forecast was very good in the mountains. That was part of the problems with skiing as the snow got very wet and heavy very quickly. The highest ski slope Zvoh got closed at 1pm anyway. Luckily I only bought a four hour ticket so I avoided having to have to plough my way through most of the slopes.

This is about 1600 metres above sea. The valley is not visible as its covered with low-level clouds.	A view towards one of the Krvavec peaks at 1800m
Zvoh ski slope, Krvavec
	View from the Zvoh slope towards the Krvavec peak
	This is a view towards the Julian Alps that is home to Triglav – the highest peak in Slovenia. Its visible in the centre of the photo.
Zvoh ski slope, Krvavec	View towards the peak of Krvavec from the Zvoh slope

I returned to to Snowdonia in mid October 2011 to explore the northern third of the Snowdonia range, also known as the Carneddau. They are the most technically demanding part of the Snowdonia range in my opinion but you should not disregard them as there are some really stunning views seen on this range.

When I was returning back to the car park near Llyn Ogwen I was blessed with a spectacular sunset behind the Tryfan mountain. The shade the mountain was creating was moving so fast I had to constantly move to get the desired photo. Not the easiest thing as I could be ran over by speeding cars on the A5 road on the side of which I was standing at the time of taking the photos.

Sunrise over Snowdon	Idwal Cottage
Idwal Cottage	Snowdon from Carnedd Dafydd
Tryfan
View towards Snowdon from Carneddau	View towards Snowdon from Carneddau
Fynnon Llugwy Reservoir as seen from Carnedd Llewelyn	View towards Capel Curig from Carnedd Llewelyn
Fynnon Llugwy Reservoir	Fynnon Llugwy Reservoir
Carnedd Llewelyn from Pen yr Helgi Du	Fynnon Llugwy Reservoir
View towards Llyn Ogwen from Y Braich	View towards Llyn Ogwen from Y Braich
View towards Llyn Ogwen from Y Braich (Tryfan on the left of the lake)	Sunset behind Tryfan (taken from the A5)
Penrhyndeudraeth	Penrhyndeudraeth

OK. My three-peak challenge underway now. One (Snowdon) down, two more to go (Scafell Pike & Ben Nevis). Today’s climb on Snowdon was a challenge in itself as it was pissing (yes, not just pouring – PISSING) down with rain. Not one thing I was wearing is currently dry and I am using the car heater to dry as much as I can. It will probably take days for my boots to get dry. Funny enough there was hardly anybody up Snowdon this morning. Only a few loonies like myself.

Update 4. September 2011

My three-peak challenge, part 2/3 at Scafell Pike complete. Going ok but legs a little weak. Nearly had to take a dip in the stream on the way to the top as the water was very swollen from the previous’ day rainfest. On my way to Scotland – wish I was driven.

Update 5. September 2011, 8am

This is ridiculous. The weather forecast for my peak no. 3/3 aka The Ben is changing almost every hour. It was supposed to be raining, then it was supposed to be cloudy. Now, again, there is heavy rain forecast between 3 and 6pm. Give me strength!!

Update 5. September 2011, 5pm

Left the Ben Nevis tourist info centre at 9.30 and took me just under 3 hours to get to the top of Ben Nevis. Had a few drops of rain just as I was coming of the top of the mountain but then the skies cleared-up. However just as I came back into the valley the heavens opened-up. Not to wet though.

This info taken from Wikipedia: “In all the challenge involves some 42 kilometres (26 mi) of ascent and descent, with total travel approaching 765 kilometres (475 mi).”

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/National_Three_Peaks_Challenge

This is about Lake Cerknica – the largest lake in Slovenia, when its there, of course, part of the Notranjska Regional Park. When its there its about 25 km2, but can reach up to 38 km2. It has a complicated system of communications with the underground reservoirs which means the lake can drain and thus completely disappear. It usually fills up after the autumn rains and the spring thaw, and is empty round May and June (sometimes even in winter) so I was lucky to see it when I was there on June 16th. It has been recorded the lake draining off and not re-appearing for a whole year.

By the way, if you open Google maps and look up Lake Cerknica, you will see the aerial view of it when it is drained.

Zelše village church

On of the problems with this lies with the local fish. Now imagine you being a fish and your whole world that you know gets drained once or twice a year, like down a toilet. You have to appreciate this being a bit of a existential problem for the poor fish. There is, however, a system in place for protecting these poor fish by capturing/keeping them in a part of the lake that doesn’t get drained.

For all you bird-watchers out there you would be interested to know the Cerknica lake is an important habitat area for over 250 species of birds, about a hundred of those species nest here. A few of them are very rare and on the endangered list like the Corncrake, Common Snipe, Red-necked Grebe, Ferruginous Duck, Northern Shoveler, Common Redshank and the Curlew.

The church in Zelše near cerknica.	The church in Zelše near cerknica. It is built on a small hill to the south of the village and is dedicated to Saint Volbenk and belongs to the Cerknica Parish. It was built around 1680 with a triple rounded apse, unique in the region. The belfry was added in the 18th century. It has excellent acoustics and is sometimes used as a venue for various concerts.
The intermittent Cerknica lake – the largest lake in Slovenia, when its there, of course.	The Cerknica lake
The Cerknica lake	The Cerknica lake
The Cerknica lake	The Cerknica lake
The Cerknica lake	The Cerknica lake – the trees here are outlining where the road goes and what you see in the middle is a small bridge that allows the water to flow from one side of the lake to the other.

Here is an example of an area I remember visiting as a child and have only vague recollections of it. It is a stunning area in the karst region of Slovenia – the same region where the world famous Postojna caves and Škocjan caves are located, however the Rakov Škocjan park albeit less known to the regular tourist, is still a must see.

The photos you see are from a part of the Rakov Škocjan that might not be for the faint hearted or extremely worried about rocks falling on your head. There is an actual warning sign when entering one of the caves that there is a serious danger of falling rock and that you enter at your own peril. If you happen to have a helmet with you – use it!

After you had a good look at the top of the Small natural bridge turn back towards the car park and about 20m down turn left and continue on a track which will lead you to an open cave. The path continues down it and then ends at a tunnel with slippery rocks on the left and a stream on the right. On the other side there is another cave where you cross the stream over a stone bridge (see featured photo on top). The path then leads you to yet another tunnel, this one much longer than the first but still manageable. That opens up into the larger open cave that is located under the Small natural bridge.

The Great natural bridge	The Great natural bridge
At this point the spring is gushing vertically into the stream.	One of the many springs. Next to it is a remnance of an observation platform that apparently found the hard way what nature is all about.
Prunkovec spring	Prunkovec spring
Prunkovec spring	Close to the Prunkovec spring
Close to the Prunkovec spring	Ruin of St Kancijan Church
There was an actuall tree growing from the top of the wall of the church	Ruin of St Kancijan Church
Ruin of St Kancijan Church	Thi is the top of the Great natural bridge. As you can see it is very wide with space for a wide track that can accommodate cars parking on it.
Tkalca cave entrance	Tkalca cave with the visible Rak river within it
The Rak river entering a sinkhole that leads to further caves inaccessable to mere mortals	The river Rak
Taken from inside Tkalca cave looking up, into the entrance	The view into the cave from the Small natural bridge
The Small natural bridge	This is the top of the Small natural bridge
The Small natural bridge	Below the Small natural bridge
Another cave near the Small natural bridge
	The Small natural bridge as seen from the cave below
The Small natural bridge as seen from the cave below
This little fella' was making a lot of noise below the Great bridge

This is a stunning castle with surrounding estate close to the northern Italian city of Trieste, close to border with Slovenia.

The Miramare Castle is a stunning Carl Junker designed 19th century castle near the northeastern Italian city of Trieste and was built from 1856 to 1860 for Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife, Charlotte of Belgium, later Emperor Maximilian I and Empress Carlota of Mexico.

The castle itself is very interesting and worth the charged visit, but be prepared to be charged first for the visit, then for the audio guide that you rent and then by a huge parking fee on your way out. The gardens are worth a walk but when I was there (June 2011) they were extremely unkempt, there were signs of the paths not being cleared for months if not years

http://www.castello-miramare.it/

Miramare castle	Miramare castle
The fountain directly facing the Miramare castle	Miramare castle
Miramare castle	Miramare castle
Miramare castle
Part of the Miramare castle estate. This is an entrance to the estate built in the hill conneted to a road that has adjacent tunnels on each side.	Part of the Miramare castle estate. This is an entrance to the estate built in the hill conneted to a road that has adjacent tunnels on each side.
	Miramare castle gardens
Miramare castle gardens – looking needy of some good gardening work	Miramare castle gardens
Miramare castle gardens	Miramare castle gardens

Oglej or Aquileia in Italian is a small village in north-eastern Italy close to the holiday town of Grado (Slovenian: Gradež).
It is the home of the Patriarchal Basilica of Aquileia which houses the largest and stunning piece of mosaic I have ever seen. Restaurateurs have manufactured an elevated platform and glass walkway inside the basilica allowing you to still walk in the cathedral without walking and ruining the precious mosaic on the floor.

Its worth paying an extra €3 and climbing up the many steps to the top of the tower and enjoying the view – you can even see a little bit of Venice.

Small portion of the large floor mosaic	Small portion of the large floor mosaic
	Cripta degli Scavi
Cripta degli Scavi	Cripta degli Scavi
Cripta degli Scavi	Cripta degli Scavi
	Aquileia – Oglej as seen from the tower
view from the tower towards Venice	The bells in the tower
A copy of the Capitoline wolf in Piazza Capitolio	A copy of the Capitoline wolf in Piazza Capitolio

This is an old favourite of mine and apparently for many Brits as well as during my short visit there saw countless UK reg cars on the roads.

The Savica waterfall is part of the Sava Bohinjka river which is joined by the Sava Dolinka near Radovljica to form the Sava river. That in turns flows into the Danube at Belgrade which discharges into the Black Sea.

The 71-metre waterfall is fed by the Triglav Lakes and flows into the Bohinj lake.

Bohinj lake and the Goldhorn statue	Bohinj lake and the Goldhorn statue
Bohinj lake and the Goldhorn statue	Bohinj lake and the church or St. John the Baptist
Zgornja Sorica	The Savica falls

M25 parking lot on December 18th Photo: TOMMY HINDLEY

There were plenty of warnings about possible weather problems before I set off from Haverfordwest in the SW Wales to Stansted airport on December 18th. There was very little snow in Pembrokeshire and the airport was open. There were absolutely no problems up to the M4 exit for Slough.

Photo taken on my iPhone of the M25 standstill

Then it all started to slow down and by the time I got to theM25 exit on the M4 the traffic stopped. We managed to somehow move a little so I was mostly on the M25 slip road but that was it until about 16.45 when we slowly started moving. We more or less crawled on the M25. Managed to see the remains of the burned-out people carrier that caused all this mess – it was just near the M40 junction on the M25.

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

The Highway Agency was warning there were problems on the northbound M11 so I decided to take the A10 and A120 roads that ended up being very snowed up but at least empty with no accidents on them. I arrived at the B&B near Stansted called Puttocks Farm at about 8.30pm – about 10 hours after I left Haverfordwest. The trip usually takes me 5 – 5.5 hours.

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

To top it all the next day I couldn’t get a taxi to take me from the B&B to the airport about 10 minutes away. They were taking orders only after 2pm but that would be to late for me. Luckily the B&B owner gave me a lift so I didn’t have to leave my car at the airport costing me £13/day. And to top that as well the place was 2 hours late due to some engine problems – apparently something refused to start up in the plane. The passenger next to me remarked that the pilot just couldn’t find the reverse gear and in the end somebody else told him.

Tuesday. Almost not worth mentioning as I was going to go back home to Haverfordwest. The train from Paddington was strikingly fast and it looked like we were in Bristol in no time. It feels like ages when driving.

However I was supposed to change trains in Newport, Gwent and they have done some modifications to the station and platform assignments meaning I had to cross to the other side using lots of steps to reach the footbridge. That made me miss my connection to Pembrokeshire. Grrrr. Writing these lines as I am bored and sitting in a quiet refreshment bar on the platform waiting for two hours for the next train home. Apologies to all Newport fans, if you exist, but your station looks mighty grim and not a wireless connection in site to kill some time updating ‘ruddy’ Facebook or go on Google Docs. I don’t think Google‘s Chrome OS would be very useful here – you tech guys know why.

Have been writing bout this London trip while waiting for the train home, still in Newport, getting bored now. Really bored. Think I might have to go to the loo to kill some time. Grrr.

PS. did end up in Haverfordwest OK but very late. A least the system of request train stops worked Ok so didn’t have to get a taxi from Milford Haven.

Saint Paul's Cathedral

Monday. Did some more walking round London and did the touristy view of St. Paul’s Cathedral. The Fat Tyre bike tour guide told me that the view from the top of the cathedral was much more impressive than from the London eye. I surely was not disappointed. The tour was not that bad.

Village Deli in Bermondsey

The one thing I wanted to do on this day is to go for lunch in Bermondsey. Specifically to a deli on Bermondsey street called Village Deli on 109 Bermondsey Street. I went to it last year but forgot what it was called. It seems to be a family-run business and trying their toasted wraps are a must if you go to London and the 5 minute walk from London Bridge tube station even in the bitter cold is well worth it.

The evening was spent going to the first west-end show I have ever been to. Now you would not find me dead at a musical but there were some theatre plays there and the re-enactment of the famous BBC comedy series ‘Yes, Prime minister‘ (and ‘Yes, Mr Minister before that) was something that had to be seen. And it was really really good. The actors were brilliant and the Gielgud theatre, where it was playing, was packed.

After the play a short walk around central London, long enough to get spectacularly lost and then back on the tube to get warmed-up again.

	The tube
View from Saint Paul's Cathedral	View of the Shard from Saint Paul's Cathedral
View of the Millennium bridge from Saint Paul's Cathedral	Saint Paul's Cathedral
The Shard from St Thomas street	Looking up on the Shard being built from St Thomas street

BT Tower captured from Oxford Street

Sunday. Nothing much planned for this day. Did do some shopping but came to Oxford street to early – nobody told me they opened the shops at twelve so I spent some hard earned money at a well-know American coffee franchise called Stardollars or something. The best was left for last as I went to the Natural History Museum and put on a pair of skates after about 17 or 18 years and didn’t fall once. I am however still removing the wood from underneath my nails. Now I am against self-harm as much as the next guy, but it was so much fun and I would urge anyone to try it at least once. Good place to chat up girls, by the way, as you can rush to the saviour if any of them falls down. Just mind you don’t accidentally chop their fingers off on approach. They kind of don’t like that very much and would spoil your chances of a pull – just a tad.

Also bear in mind the whole operation could make yourself look as a complete idiot if you fall yourself trying to help the girl up. This, of course, is not speaking from my own experience [smiley face comes here]. The other snafu was that most of the people skating there were couples.

Westminster Hall

This was a Saturday and the big part of the day was dedicated to the John Rutter‘s Christmas Celebration at the Royal Albert Hall. This was the second one I have attended and even though the last one I went to was last year it did not feel like a repeat from the previous year. The only difference was to be the Christmas dinner I signed-up

for that was to be held in the nearby Imperial College dining hall. Now this was a BIG disappointment.

The Houses of Parliament clock tower

Kind of sorry I missed the company Christmas dinner even more. The dinner itself was eat-able but who would want to eat their Christmas dinner you had to get yourself, then eat it on a plastic platter, on a table with no table-cloth in what could only be described as an average student canteen. Awful! Have you heard of the bankrupt Belgian airline Sabena – well this was a Sabena moment meaning Such A Bloody Experience, Never Again. By the way the airline SAS has an unjustifiable connective abbreviation: Same As Sabena.

The morning, I nearly forgot, was spent visiting the spectacular Houses of Parliament. I was so amazed at how much they let you see and where they take you. This was just two days after the student protests/riots when the House of Commons passed the controversial law about tuition fees. The one thing they did not let us do was to sit on the seats in either of the Houses – such a shame as I so wanted to put my legs up.

You know when you sleep in a strange bed and it takes a night or two before you get used to it. That was exactly what I was doing when at about 6am the first morning the hotel, where I was staying, had its fire alarms go off. When I got into the hall outside my room I saw a lot of sleepy-looking heads popping out from behind the doors trying to find out what the hell was going on. As I got closer to the fire exit it looked more like a zombie convention. Luckily they did not make us wait in the brisk December morning for very long but it was to late to catch-up on any zzz-s.

The day’s morning was first and foremost planned for the Thames version of the Fat Tyre bicycle tour – another highly recommended activity if you visit London, so much more interesting for the fact that we had a run-in by the local bicycle-mounted PCSO (Police Community Support Officers). Sorry, but to me its like civilians playing police. They are just not allowed to play with guns. Apparently our guide took us over a red light so he got a bit of a posh bollocking from the two officers. I guess that made the tour a bit more thrilling – don’t judge me if I don’t get out as much

This tour took us round some other parts that the standard (Royal London) tour does not and you even end up sailing on the Thames clipper boats for part of the return journey.

The lunch stop was at a quaint marketplace close to London Bridge where you could have a chance to have some tasty sausages, curries, burgers and much, much more.

The evening entertainment was to be at the Hammersmith Apollo (or as its called now the HMV Apollo) where Mark Watson was spreading his pre-Christmas comedy magic. There was a bit of a cock-up by the production company and one of the advertised times when the show would start was to be half an hour before the actual start. So what Mark did then was to put up a computer screen connected to an overhead LCD display and did some written (chat-line like) humour. Great improvisation Mark! I was surprised about the poor state of the theatre. You see it on the telly with all the big names putting on their comedy acts there and I would never have believed what a dump the place really is. It still however trumps the awful toilet of a place in Swansea Grand Theatre. That place should be condemned, not to mention the almost non-existent legroom – the place was probably designed by a Lilliputian.

	Matt from the Fat Tyre Bike tours
Matt from the Fat Tyre Bike tours
Borough market	Borough market
Shard London Bridge	well guess what this is
HMS Belfast	Hay's Galleria
	HMS Belfast and the Tower Bridge in the background
London Bridge Hospital with the Shard behind it	Signpost warning against importing animals into the UK
Ofcom Building	The Globe Theatre in London
Tate Modern
	Covent Garden
Covent Garden	Covent Garden
Covent Garden

Related articles

• Mark Watson: Do I Know You? Hammersmith Apollo, London (independent.co.uk)

London Paddington station during rush hour

The trip I did last year took quite a bit out of me as I took the car from the deepest and darkest parts of Wales right down the M4 to central London. Now this wouldn’t be otherwise to bad but for the whole visit being very active and at the end of it was completely exhausted. Not to mention the cold I was nursing at the time.

This was one of the reasons I decided to try the train this time. Very cool, as it turned out to be – the albeit small train station, where I boarded, is almost right on my doorstep – if, of course, your doorstep is about 50 metres outside your house and over a bridge and bloody cold. For those who don’t know or haven’t realised yet, Haverfordwest is not a very big place and walking around it you are quite likely to bump into someone you already met before, as I am a vet this increases the chances dramatically.

This is why I did end up seeing one of my clients on the train with whom I tried to avoid eye contact as much as humanly possible. Now at this point I should elaborate so I don’t look like a complete unsociable pratt. As I said before in our line of work you meet people constantly every day and consequently get recognized a lot on the street. There are two problems with this. First: if you meet a client on the street you sometimes feel you are pushed into a work situation and to be honest, you sometimes would like to get away from people and remain anonymous. The second reason is that you actually might get to be asked a veterinary question and that is sometimes the last thing you want as you rush to get your lunch at Tesco. But hey, this is the way it is and I don’t really complain about these problems (every day) and am usually quite happy to answer your pet-related questions. [CHEESE=ON] Helping animals is the reason I really DID get into this profession.[CHEESE=OFF].

To come back to the client I saw on the train to London. She was travelling with her family and I couldn’t help but overhear that they were going to Llanelli, but getting off the train was taking them to long and did not get off on time so they had to go all the way to Swansea for the privilege – outch.

Went to this excellent Argentinian restaurant El Gaucho in South Kensington last night where I satisfied my taste for lots of beef.

These photos were taken on a hike to Pentre Ifan this last weekend.

Pentre Ifan in Pembrokeshire

Carn Ingli in Pembrokeshire as seen from Pentre Ifan

These waterfalls are actually Fullers Falls, not the one in the title

This hike is worth talking about as it takes you round some spectacular views in the Brecon Beacons.

When I did the hike round Cwm Gwesyn the guide books told us about waterfalls but you saw was actually very small – especially compared to the waterfalls seen on this hike between Ystradfellte and Pontneddfechan.

One of the highlights of the walk is the fact that you can walk under one of the waterfalls names Waterfall of the Snow. Gets a little wet though if you hang around underneath it for to long – like I did trying to take photos.

Taking this hike will also introduce you to waterfalls with delightful names like The Lady Waterfall and the Waterfall of the Chieftain.

Scwd Ddwli	Waterfall of the Chieftain – Sgwd Gwladus
Waterfall of the Snow – Sgwd yr Eira	Waterfall of the Snow – Sgwd yr Eira
Waterfall of the Snow – Sgwd yr Eira	Walking under the Waterfall of the Snow – Sgwd yr Eira (that is not me in the photo)
Waterfall of the Snow – Sgwd yr Eira	Fullers Falls – Sgwd y Pannwr
The Fall of the White Meadow – Sgwd Clun-gwyn

Gospa Hamer, žena vrtnarja v majhni južno-valežanski vasici, naj bi ponoči sanjala o dečku, ki se je izgubil slab mesec poprej. Ko se je le opogumila in prepričala moža, da ji pomaga, se je 2. septembra leta 1900 skupaj z nekaj sorodniki odpravila na lastno iskalno akcijo. Ko je skupina z gospo Hamer na čelu prispela do grebena nad jezerom Cwm llwch, okoli pol kilometra zahodno od vrha gore Pen-y-fan, je gospa Hammer naenkrat zakričala od groze. Malo stran ob poti, kjer je hodila, je namreč ležalo trupelce izgubljenega petletnega dečka Tommya Jonesa.

Pen-y-fan je najvišja točka gorovja imenovanega Brecon Beacons ki pokriva večji del južnega dela Walesa in skupaj z malo nižjim dvojčkom z imenom Corn Du tvorita čudovit razgled, ki bolj spominja na površino lune, kot pa na zeleno valežansko hribovje. Malo ob poti na vrh Brecon Beacons boste našli manjši obelisk, ki so ga postavili po končani iskalni akciji izginulega dečka Tommya.

4. avgusta daljnega leta 1900 se je oče, po poklicu rudar, odpravil skupaj s svojim petletnim sinom Johnnyem na obisk sorodnikov na kmetijo nekaj kilometrov južno od mesteca Brecon. V Brecon sta prispela z vlakom okoli šestih zvečer, do kmetije pa ju je vodila šest in pol kilometra dolga pešpot. Okoli osmih zvečer sta prispela v danes podrto vasico Login, kjer je bila v tistem času nastanjena vojska, ki je imela višje v dolini strelske vaje.

Zgodba se zdi močno oddaljena in življenja takratnih prebivalcev so že dolgo pozabljena. Prav tako se zdi, da na večer 110. obletnice Tommyevega izginotja njegovemu obelisku delajo le dežne kaplje in ovce na paši.

Bila sta namenjena v še danes obstoječo majhno kmetijo z imenom Cwm-llwch. Od Logina do kmetije je bilo le okoli pol kilometra rahle hoje navkreber. Kljub temu, sta oče in sin za nekaj časa postala z vojaki in se okrepčala. Čisto po naključju, pa sta takrat v Login prispela še Tommyev dedek in 13-letni bratranec Willie John. Willija so poslali nazaj domov v Cwm llwch, da družino obvesti o skorajšnjem prihodu sorodnikov, za njim pa je stekel tudi mladi Tommy. Pot je bila za Tommya kar strašljiva, saj sta morala prečkati dve brvi postavljeni med gosto pozidanimi stavbami. Ena od brvi ni imela ograje in vse skupaj je bilo preveč za Tommya, ki je planil v jok. Želel je iti nazaj k očetu v Login. Dečka sta se zato ločila: Willie John navkreber po dolini proti kmetiji, Tommy pa nazaj navzdol v Login. Willie je v kmetijo prispel okoli petnajst minut potem, ko je zapustil strica in dedka, mladi Tommy pa v Login nikoli ni prispel.

Sam sem bil v tej dolini v mesecu, ko je Tommy izginil in v večernih urah, okoli osme zvečer. Dan v Walesu traja precej dolgo in ob osmih je svetlobe še veliko, se pa sonce hitro spusti za zahodnim grebenom Pen Milan in stemni se precej hitro.

Ko sta oče in dedek tudi sama končno prispela na kmetijo in ugotovila, da je Tommy izginil, sta ga začela takoj iskati. Po kakih dvajsetih minutah so se iskanju pridružili še vojaki iz Logina. Iskanje so prekinili ob polnoči, a ga že tri ure kasneje nadaljevali. Iskanju so se ta dan potem še pridružili še policija in sovaščani. Tommya nikakor niso našli in tako se je nadaljevalo iz tedna v teden.

Vsak dan so sistematično preiskali dolino in okoliške travnike, porezali grmovja, in prečesali gozdove. Porodila se je celo ideja, da bi preiskali tudi dno jezera Cwm llwch, vendar je prevladalo mnenje, da petletni deček zagotovo ni uspel priti tako visoko v dolini. Predvidevali so, da se je ob poskusu vrnitve v Login izgubil in šel predaleč v dolino ali pa je celo ob prečkanju brvi padel v vodo. Iskanje so zato osredotočili na dolino in celo do mesta Brecon. Ker dečka še vedno niso našli, so se porodile ideje, da so ga ugrabili – to je bilo za svojce tudi zadnji up, da bi Tommy še našli živega. V tistih časih so bil glavni osumljenec za taka dejanja okoliško Romsko prebivalstvo. Tudi preiskave njihovih naselbin niso obrodila sadov.

Zgodba je seveda prišla v medije in časopis The Daily Mail je ponudil nagrado, njihov predstavnik pa je tudi aktivno sodeloval v iskalnih akcijah. Po tednih iskanja je bil Tommyev oče primoran zapustiti dolino in se vrniti domov v Maerdy, vendar se je uspel kmalu vrniti in sodelovati v nadaljnjih iskanjih. Bil je tudi eden redkih, ki so se pri iskanju povzpeli na vrh Pen-y-fan.

Ravno približno v tem času pa je imela gospa Hamer svoje razsvetljujoče sanje, kjer je v njih videla mesto, kjer leži Tommy. In tako se je okoli mesec po izginotju – 2. septembra še z nekaterimi drugimi svojci podala na iskanje visoko v dolino Cwm llwch in na greben nad njim.

Trupelce mladega dečka so še isti dan prenesli v dolino.

Obelisk, ki je bil postavljen na mestu, kjer so našli Truplo Tommya Jonesa kaže kako zelo blizu so morali biti iskalci, ko so prečesavali greben. Leži skoraj čisto na poti do vrha Corn Du in Tommyev oče je bil verjetno le nekaj metrov stran, ko ga je iskal. Iskalci so verjetno videli le nekaj podobno skali v visoki travi.

Sledil je sodni postopek, kjer je bilo kmalu potrjeno, da je deček umrl zaradi izčrpanosti in podhladitve. Nihče pa ni mogel jasno razložiti, kako naj bi tako majhen deček uspel priti tako visoko, ko pa je bil namenjen dol v dolino. Trupelce je bilo najdeno na nadmorski višini 700m, ker je pomenilo 400m višinske razlike z vasico Login, okoli tri in pol kilometra hoje čez strm in težko dostopen teren in to v precejšnji slabi vidljivosti. Najverjetneje se je Tommy potem, ko sta se ločila z Willie Johnom, izgubil, ko je prečkal prvo brv nato pa namesto, da bi prečkal drugo brv skrenil na levo in se potem “zahodil” v zahodni greben Pen Milan misleč, da se dejansko vrača priti kmetiji. Dečka je povrh še najverjetneje zajela panika in skupaj z vedno slabšo vidljivostjo je nadaljeval pot proti grebenu Cwm llwch. Danes žal vidimo, kako dolgo je zdržal in kako daleč je uspel priti.

Dečkova družina je več let hranila črtasto obleko, ki jo je takrat nosil skupaj s piščalko, ki jo je imel na sebi in bi mu verjetno rešila življenje, če bi jo bil uporabil preden je omagal od izčrpanosti.

Porote so v tistih časih dobile nezanemarljivo denarno nadomestilo za svoje delo in porota, ki je sodelovala pri preiskavi Tommyeve smrti se je plačilu odrekla. Denar, skupaj z drugimi prispevki okoliških prebivalcev (ga. Hamer se je prav tako odrekla precejšnjemu delu nagrade, ki jo je ponudil The daily Mail) je šel v postavitev obeliska, ki so ga postavili julija naslednje leto – 1901. Obelisk so morali zvleči gor s posebnimi sanmi in konjsko vprego.

Od takrat je obelisk spomnil na tisoče planincev na dečka, ki je v rokah hribovja Brecon Beacons podlegel izčrpanosti in podhladitvi.

Obelisk z dolino Cwm llwch pod njim

Napis na obelisku:

This obelisk marks the spot where the body of Tommy Jones aged 5 was found. He lost his way between Cwmllwch Farm and the Login on the night of August 4th 1900. After an anxious search of 29 days his body was found on September 2nd.

Vir:

1. Victim of the Beacons
2. Wikipedia

These were some of the photos from my latest trip to Slovenia.

Ostrovica – Hochosterwitz
Gospa Sveta – Maria Saal
Blejski vintgar
Kope in Huda luknja

My original plan for this days hike was Y-Garn but that soon changed once I reached the peak and gazed upon the inviting summits of Glyder Fawr and Glyder Fach.
As if that was not enough and after all the struggle of descending off Glyder Fach I made a silly move and ascended up Tryfan. Now for those who haven’t been up this mountain I must tell you it more resembles a high stack of very big rocks that in many cases precariously lean on each other.This kind of mountain probably never would exist in a country like Slovenia which is prone to earthquakes. Just as good as if there would have been an earthquake while I was up there I would soon find myself meta-morphed into a pâté pancake.

The previous day I climbed the “horseshoe” and the next day Snowdon via the Pyg trail.

Sunset over Snowdon	Llanberis pass
The Pyg track to Snowdon	View from Snowdon
Snowdon from Y Lliwedd	Snowdon (Llyn Llydaw)
Snowdon	Snowdon
Snowdon (from the Miners track)	River Dwyryd in the sunrise
Above Llyn Ogwen and Tryfan	Llyn Ogwen from Y Garn
Llyn Idwal	Llyn Ogwen and Llyn Idwal
Glyder Fach	Glyder Fach summit: notice the relative size of the rocks compared to the climber (highlighted)
Tryfan