Today I was here. Took me a while to get here and find it. Had to give up the whole trek round the mountain ridges as I was going to run out of daylight by the end of the hike.

As mentioned in my [intlink id="1335" type="post"]previous post[/intlink] I had my FAI paperwork done after completing the FS1 certificate.

To on the safe side and prevent from the mail to BPA with the paperwork to get misplaced (as it likes to get with the Royal Mail) or get severely delayed I decided to use the local DHL servicepoint in WH Smith and send it through them for £5.95.

This turned out to be a great idea. not only did it arrive for sure, it got to them on time (DHL states it arrives in 1-2 working days).  This morning I already received the necessary stuff back from the BPA, also considered myself lucky as they used the normal mail. I received my FAI National Parachute Certificate booklet with all the necessary stickers in it, minus the FS1 I received last week which I had to attach myself. I also received a new BPA card that now includes my FAI certificate number 108453.

To be honest this is probably not a very busy time for the BPA (I presume) as the skydiving season is slowly coming to an end. Nevertheless , kudos to the BPA.

So now I am a bit more official in skydiving in the UK

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Ever since I moved to Wales 2 years ago I had a quiet wish to climb the highest peak in this country – Snowdon. Last weekend was showing to be a perfect opportunity to fulfil that wish. I was working only till 12 pm and the forecast was for sunshine and high temperatures stretching way into the following week. Getting some good literature, so you know what your are doing, is very advisable.

View from Garnedd Ugain: to the right is Snowdon and to the left is Y Lliwedd with its three peaks ) from left Lliwedd Bach, East peak and West peak. Any similarities with Triglav are strictly coincidental

If you are based in southwest Wales it is a good idea to head up there on the day before you are climbing as the road trip takes you over three hours. There are no motorways or even dual carriageways between the south and north parts of Wales! Instead of going for a more expensive option of a hotel or B&B (the decision to go to Snowdon was make pretty late and the hotel accommodations were either not available or very pricey) I opted for a campsite. The last camping I did was for a skydiving tournament that was held in my “home” DZ in Prečna near Novo mesto a few years back and I was a bit worried I might forget to bring along something essential. Hold that thought.

See the full photo gallery here.

There was a slight snag with camping in this part of Wales. I looked at the weather forecast and the low day temperatures were very, very close to freezing – and I mean 0° or 1°C. This was the forecast for Llanberris. So instead I went for campsites a bit closer to the sea and, of course, the warmth. I found one close to the town of Penrhyndeudraeth called Barcdy. Would recomend it, but it is a bit more pricey then others: it cost £10/person/night for a tent – other campsites were around £6 or £7. The additional problem you might have to contend with is kids – there was a family that came to the camp after me and they put up their tent right next to mine and, you guessed it, had a bunch of very noisy kids with them. Don’t seem to be a big fan of them, but would maybe feel different, if they were mine – and I stress – MAYBE .

Coming back to the issue of forgetting things – by some strange reason I forgot to take my sleeping bag with me – when I returned home on Sunday it was there, sitting on the floor in my bedroom, waiting to be taken along. I put all my camping stuff on one big pile to pack in the car and somehow I missed it. Thank god for sat-navs and Tesco Extra. I found one in Bangor that was open 24/7 and had a good selection of camping gear. The other unpleasant thing that happened was my car. At about 2 or 3 am it decided it is being attacked or stolen and the alarm went off. Now usually I wouldn’t be that upset about it but it was parked just outside the tent about 2 m away from my head with not much soundproofing in-between (if you can consider a tent wall soundproofing, that is).

[umap id="34149" size="t" alignment="left"]The following morning I set of quite early and arrived at the Pen-y-pass car park at about 7am as the parking spaces were just running out. Some trekkers were already returning from the summit! Come to think of it, it might have to do with the parking as there were no parking attendants at that time in the morning. Just a word of warning – bring enough change. The parking is a pay-and-display and it is quite expensive, especially if you are staying longer than 3 or 4 hours as the parking is about £6 and the machine does not take notes. At that time in the morning there is nowhere to get change so you have to bring enough along. I, of course, did not have enough but an angel appeared in a form of another climber who saw my predicament and just gave me the missing three pounds in coins – just like that. I couldn’t believe what happened, I was in shock. I quickly realized I did have a £5 note and I ran after him and caught him on the parking lot just before he set off to the summit, gave him the £5 note and thanked him for about the fifth or sixth time. Really, why should he be out of pocket, I did had the money but just not in coins. See, there are still some nice people going around who will help you when you need it. I don’t know his name but I am sure his good deeds will be rewarded sooner or later.

The trek itself started off on a reasonable steep incline, with the morning sun warming my shoulders. I started on the Pyg track and then turned right on top of the pass to continue on the Crib Goch path. Now I would not recommend this route for beginners or young children – it can be very tricky. The majority of the track runs along the Crib Goch ridge and in some places is only about a metre wide with sheer cliffs on either side. Then you also have to contend with the wind trying to blast you off the cliff. If you have fear of hights then give this route a miss. You also might freeze on that ridge from fear and getting you down could prove to be very tricky. The route is also not recommended as a descend from Snowdon. I was surprised how much climbing was actually involved, much more than I was used to in mountains in Slovenia. This took a toll on my legs and I had to stop a few times, even on the descent, to relive the cramps in my upper legs.

There were not many climbers on the Crib Goch path but once you reach the 3m marker stone you joined the rest of climbers from the Pyg and Miners track and there were loads of them on that beautiful day. On this weekend it was like downtown Haverfordwest – full of people. The remainder is a short walk up to the summit walking by the Snowdon railtrack.

The Snowdon Mountain Railway goes right to the top of the Snowdon summit edit Delete caption

The descent on the Miners Track was a bit tedious and still quite stressful on the legs – it is almost completely covered by rock slabs and that does not make a very comfortable walking surface. In other places you have smaller stones and there you have to watch you dont sprain an ancle. There are some nice views of the lakes (see photo gallery) and the end part of the track is very easy – like a walk in a park

At the time of my trek on May 30th the top railway station was closed for renovations and there were no refreshments or toilets available. I was surprised not to see a local entrepreneur selling us drinks and snacks – I remember seeing someone at the top of Triglav and there definitely weren’t as many people on that summit as there were on Snowdon.

Glaslyn lake

I am convinced you everyone will see the huge difference in the views you see on the north side of the peninsula, compared to the south – while on the north side you see the beautiful town of Angle, but then as you move further along you are met with the view of all the petroleum and gas industries in the area with their huge piers and tall chimneys. And as you continue to the south part of the peninsula all that you can see is the vast ocean.

The Chevron oil refinery

A small guard fort, probably from Napoleonic times. St. Ann's head in the distance on the right

The walk started on a very sunny day with hardly a cloud in the sky. As it was Easter Sunday I was better off arriving early as the crowds of tourists were soon to follow. Luckily only the beach parking area and Freshwater West beach were busy, the rest of the path not so much as people opted not move more than 500 metres from their cars.

The tower house in Angle

OK, so I don’t forget to mention this. It is about a reference in the hiking book to a  “leafy lane” – word of warning – the trees above are covered with nests and you would probably want to avoid the poo projectiles coming from the heavens. I also advise changing the path a little bit in the town of Angle by continuing pass the church on the right and turning right on a path through the playground, which, on the other side, continues towards an old guard tower.

As you continue on the coastal path you get the opportunity to have good look of the new LNG South Hook gas terminal – it recently had its first shipment of gas from Qatar and I heard the tanker that was docked in front of the terminal was spectacular.

The more exhausting part of the route is from West Angle beach to Freshwater West, there are many valleys to climb down and just as many to climb up from. A good idea is to pace yourself, especially on the ascent.

Have a look at the photo gallery but the photos, as usual, do not do the »live« views justice.

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This one the walk no 27 taken from the book and is a bit of a deviation from the books theme – it being that there are 41 circular walks in Pembrokeshire. Well this walk is still in Pembrokeshire but it is not at all circular. However the authors can be forgiven for this as it is a very nice easy walk with some nice views, especially at the main Slebech estate (see their website for more details. If you are a birdwatcher then this walk should definitely not be missed. In quite a few places along the road you can reach the Eastern Cleddau and gaze upon the views of the river and the bird population that occupy it.

See the complete photo gallery here.

There is also quite a bit of history related to the Slebech estate and the church. It dates from the 12th century A.D. when the grounds were owned by the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem who “have their roots” in the first crusade. Cool.

I just love this photo, I think it is good enough to be framed

This was the longest of the walks in the book and a walk not to be reckoned with. It is long and by the end you just really want to see that lighthouse in the distance.

The authors say in the beginning of the walk »Although the longest of the walks in this book, there is nothing difficult about its undertaking« – Yeah right, either they (both authors) came home from this walk and their egos were to big to admit the agonizing pain in their muscles or they had themselves a post-hike LSD trip.

However there is apossibility I brought the toughness of this trip on myself as I completely forgot to bring along something to drink ending-up being rather dehydrated by the end of the hike. There are no refreshments to be bought on the way, not even in the part that runs through Goodwick

St. Gwyndaf's church in Llanwnda

A word of warning, in the first part of the walk as you leave the coastal path to start-up Garn Fawr it is a bit confusing as to where to turn. Do NOT continue on the paved lane. This will only end in tears – tears due to the realization you have to go back as you have gone the wrong way. There path signs is missing, well, I say missing. I found it hidden in the grass on the ground.

I was also quite surprised to find an inscribed stone commemorating the last invasion of Britain – by the French none-the-less in 1897 at Carregwastad Point. What were they doing here, we all know where France is, I presume they shot their navigator.

See the excellent gallery here.

Memorial stone on Carregwastad Point commemorating the landing of the French on 22 February 1797

Looking down towards Cwm mawr

What a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend a March Sunday. In fact it was so nice I wish the hike would have lasted a bit longer. Instead I took the opportunity to sit and enjoy the sunshine on the wooden bench by the Sychbant car park were this walk starts and ends.

The walk (no. 39: Mynydd Caregog and Carn Ingli) starts off with a nice steep hill and then should continue in a conifer forest. As this has now been cut down the walk continues in something more resembling a wasteland. Conifers are not a native tree in this area and due to the concervationalism of today a more proper forest is being planted. However I haven’t seen any signs of the this today.

a Pembrokeshire traffic obstacle

Once you leave this so-called forest the view changes into a more familiar Preseli hillside on the Carningli Common. The Carn Edward stone group did not really draw my intention so I skipped it and rather choose the hilltop on my left – Carn Briw – no doubt being, again, a decision influenced by my Slovene origins.

If you are walking in the area the ruins of the Carn Ingli fort (the translation of Carn Ingli is the “Hill of angels”) is a definite must-see, if not for looking at it, at least by climbing on top of it and enjoying the views. I attempted to bring the view to you but not getting the live experience does give the place its justice.

The book then states you should circle the fort on its north side and then find a path towards the hill on the eastern side. This is actually quite tricky but I was either lucky or my navigation experiences proved to be the basis of some good instincts. I though I completely missed those two poles and the tramway that were supposed to be somewhere on the descent. Instead I ended-up right on top of them – spot on!

See the complete photo gallery here.

The walk then continues towards some farms and ends up in the Cwm gwaun valley. The “second” part of the walk continues on a delightful path on the opposite side of the valley and there was absolutely nobody on it but myself. You will find a stunning forrest scenery, abandoned farms and even an abandoned mill.

I would definitely recommend this trek to anyone and the muddiness factor was quite low.

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Pentre Ifan Burial Chamber

Nice contrast from the Rosebush walk I took yesterday. This walk is no 40 called Pentre Evan Nature Reserve and I just a great forest walk with some hill climbing thrown in as well.

This was also the walk that was the most confusing as the instructions in the book did  not help in many parts of the woods. I got badly lost once and had to back-track quite a bit to get to the right path again.

Also worth mentioning that that a couple of fields at the end of the walk before you re-enter the woods for the last time have been ploughed and will be very difficult to walk once something grows on it or after a downpour.

Again this walk is very appealing, especially if it has been dry for a few days/weeks so there is less mud to deal with. I just wished I had a dog with me.

Also I found out to late that the four rock formations at the top of Carnedo Meibion-Owen  are off limits as there is some rare lichens growing on them?? I managed to pick the only one formation (the second) that had the warning sign destroyed and climbed on top to have a rest. Hope the relevant people correct the problem and put up the sign.

Started off while it was still dark. Plan A was going to ski on Krvavec. No plan B at that time. Just as we left Cerklje there was a suspicious hold-up in the traffic which turned out to be due to the great number of cars – all heading for the same ski resort. My friend and I parked just soon after Cerklje , where the buses usually park. That meant  were were at least a few kilometres aways from the valley cable station. This didn’t sound good and quite surprising as it was a Tuesday and still a working day.

We had to come up with a plan B double time or faced having to return home. Plan B came to be the Vogel ski resort which turned out to be a great idea. It took us about 45 minutes to get there and once we found a parking found no queue to go onto the cable lift.

However once we reached the top cable station we found out how right we were to choose this place. The views of the valley below and the surrounding mountains were stunning and there was also plenty of snow to enjoy – 260 cm (thats 8 and a half feet for my friends back in Wales

The valley cable car station	View towards Triglav from the top cable car station
	View towards the valley and Lake Bohinj
View taken just outside the top cable car station
	In action
	Yo, yo, yo, get down!

After finally settling for DeLand being the DZ we will be jumping at we have now also have a definite place where we will be staying. Now you skydivers among you probably know what the usual level of accommodation comes during skydiving trips. This time we will live in near luxury. We will have a whole house to our self and we also received some pictures of the place.

I hope it all stays as planned and that this lucky bubble won’t burst. I hope to get more pictures once we’ve stayed there.

As mentioned in a previous post, this is the DZ (dropzone) where we will do our skydiving in Florida in 2008. There are quite a few of us booked for the SkyDragons tunnelcamp and all will skydivers will also be doing jumps as well. Why on earth would you miss skydiving in Florida and the prices compared to the UK, where I live at the moment, are much lower.

Here are the basic details of the Deland DZ:

• airfield ID: Deland Municipal Airport (KDED)
• website: skydivedeland.com
• address: 1600 Flightline Blvd., DeLand, FL
• aircrafts: twin otter, skyvan

The DZ is about an hours drive (50 miles / 80 km north) from Orlando, where we will be using the Skyventure wind tunnel.

Last weekend I did what I wanted to do for a long while – to actually skydive in the UK. I’ve been putting it off for a long time, lately mostly due to the weather we have been having. Last weekend the weather was OK, no flu lingering in the background and no lameness in any of the legs
The Skydive London dropzone is situated about 3 hours drive away from Haverfordwest, adjacent to the town of Swindon. Being used to relatively small dropzones in Slovenia I was surprised that the DZ which bares the name of the nation’s capital is smaller than most of the DZs in Slovenia. But that is not relatively a bad thing. The environment is very friendly, everybody knows each other by their first name and there is no large scale manifests to have to battle with. The only real drawback for me, as a skydiver, is the focus on tandems which means you probably have to wait a while to get a seat on the next lift.

I heard from some skydivers, that the DZ only has an Airvan and that it takes about 20 minutes to get to 12,000 feet – I must be pretty unspoilt as I though the flight was relatively fast and comfortable. My last high altitude jump was in the Antonov-2 which needs about 30 minutes to get to 3,000 metres and you usually have the opportunity to enjoy diesel fumes and turbulance (with all due respect to our lovely Fata). In fact the Airvan very much reminded me of the Canguro airplane although the two planes are quite different from each other.

I made two jumps and unfortunately the second did not end with a very great landing. Just metres from starting the second stage flare I dropped what felt like about half a meter which resulted in me landing on my knees and not my feet. Ouch! I still have a lot to learn about landing in zero-wind conditions
It definitely is my fault as the parachute is quite stable and forgiving to my mistakes so you should deduct from this that it is NOT “idiot proof”. The good thing I found about the parachute is that I am slowly getting the hang on the packing. Not long ago, in Prečna, the packing was a nightmare and the only respite came from the last pack of the day, when the increased evening humidity helped with wrangling with the still relatively new parachute material of my Atair Dragon 170.