Andy Latham and Kathy returned to the UK this summer for a week of climbing, this time in North Wales.

Andy high above Llyn Llydaw.

On arrival, our first objective was to climb the North Ridge of Tryfan.

It was a good warm up, with a couple of tricky passages but nothing intimidating.

Nothing that is, except the locals. Actually they were too busy battling it out for dominance among themselves, to pay us any mind.

The summit comes into view at last.

Andy tags the summit blocks, which have the quaint name of "Adam and Eve".

Descending the easier South Ridge, lots of people are coming from all directions on this unusually sunny Sunday afternoon.

We took the opportunity to have dinner and poke around in the nearby town of Caernarvon. A walled town center with lots of charm.

On our second day, we returned to the neighborhood of Tryfan (looking at the South ridge here), to climb "Bristly Ridge" on the next peak over, Glyder Fach.

The climbing, while having it's moments of challenge, was nowhere terribly difficult. However, it WAS very slippery! So care was needed with every step.

The mist was thick this day, fortunately the routefinding was quite straightforward. Just follow the ridge!

The mist added a great deal of atmosphere and a spooky sort of mystery.

Yet more spooky and mysterious ambience.

At the end of the difficulties, the rock lives up to its name.

An easy walk to the actual summit of Glyder Fach, takes us past the famous and obligatory-to-photograph "Cantilever Stone". Andy warks the plank.

On day 3, after an aborting our climbing objective due to rain, we did some sight seeing at the much recommended architectural site of Portmeirion. A difficult place to describe! The brain child of the excentric architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis, it has a peaceful and whimsical air about it. We couldn't resist snapping lots of photos of the colorful and shapely buildings, several follow:

Back to the mountains on the next day, we headed to the vicinity of Snowdon, tackling first the East Ridge of Crib Goch.

Cruisin' along, singin' a song on the high and exposed crest.

Intermittent sun breaks and views.

The nature of the day changed abruptly as we continued along to Crib y Ddysgl.

By the time we reached the top, we were in thick pea soup.

We were also getting quite close to Snowdon peak, so the population of hikers increased dramatically.

A few more minutes walking in thick fog, brought us to Snowdon's summit, and a queue for the summit shot!

Andy's turn on top.

We ducked into the unbelievably crowded and steamy tea shop to mull over our next moves.

In the end, we decided to continue on and complete the "Snowdon Horseshoe", by tagging the remaining summits in the cirque of peaks: traversing east and west peaks of Y Lliwedd.

No shots of the tops here, the fog was thick and the state of mind rather "head for the barn"!

It was very beautiful however when we did finally break back out below the fog banks and back into sight of the main Snowdon highway (the Miner's Track).

As we neared the car park, the sun broke out again, making for lots of happy tourists. It's tea time!

Another sight-seeing day, we had to check out the slate mines and their excellent (and free!) museum. The foundry at the old mine.

An overview of a portion of this enormous mine.

We had been told of a route that explores some of the inner secrets of the quarries. We were told to start by finding something called "Dali's hole", and that we would know why when we saw it. True 'nuff!

Behind Dali's hole is a tunnel to a place called "California". Andy in the entrance to this tunnel.

On the other end of the tunnel, I would call it Shangri La!

A hidden wonderland!

Some of the slate in the cuttings here.

The quarries are home to miles of rock climbing as well. Here, a family enjoys a little afternoon idyll.

Another day, another skunk. Our arrival at the base of our proposed route coincided with real rain; we tried to wait it out but in the end backed off to do something shorter and on the drier side of the valley.

The dramatic "Pinnacle Ridge" was fun and scenic.

Yahoo! A wild ride.

On the way home, more sight seeing. A beautifully preserved chapel at Capel Curig.

Gravestones in the Capel Curig graveyard.

Swans in Llyn Padarn, at Llanberis, where we stayed throughout the week.

On our last morning, we returned to the neighborhood of Tryfan, where we started our week. An old farmhouse, now the "headquarters" of a popular campsite, near our chosen crag.

We're climbing this lovely wall, on Tryfan Bach. Beautiful rock.

Slabby and featured, a nice combination.

Near the top of the slab.

It's over all too soon.

For our final night, dinner at the Pen Y Gwryd hotel, where Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's expedition team stayed while training in the nearby mountains for their 1953 first ascent of Everest. It's since been the site of subsequent meets, reunions and celebrations among many guiding lights of British mountaineering. Oh to be a fly on that wall during smoky evenings of tall tales and hatching plots! The food was fabulous by the way.

Whose boots are these? They're old, that's sure. Photo of Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary on the wall...

Alas, all trips must come to an end. Thank you again as always, Andy, for a unique week in a beautiful place.