ron-t climbing
12 January 2017 ................ Holyhead mountain
I really didn`t know whether to put this in the "out and about" section of the website, or in the "climbing" section - Holyhead Mountain isn`t actually a mountain, although it is quite a distinct hill that dominates the north west corner of Anglesey.
However it turned out to be a bit more of a meaty climb up than what I had anticipated, and it has the audacity to call it itself a mountain - so here it is, in the climbing section.
I am not sure why, but I didn`t take any photographs of it when I was heading across the flat area between South Stack and North Stack - so I took this one once I was almost back to South Stack.
As you can see, it has quite a rocky west face, and as I was heading across, I decided I would try and get up one of the green gullies - I think, but I`m not sure because this is a different view from that which I was seeing at the time, that I went up the one above the sort of now-unused squat square radio tower.
I didn`t realise it, but there is a path right up that gully over on the right, and I tried to go up the middle - oh dear - what a struggle - first of all it was over big boulders, then it was up through quite long heather.
Which wouldn`t have been too bad, except for the fact that all through the heather there was a low ground creeping gorse, and every time I put my hands down for assistance, I got spiked.
It just got thicker and thicker as I climbed up and it was getting sorer and sorer.
Eventually I saw that there was a path just a few metres off to my side, so contoured across to get onto it - just as well, as I had got to the point I just couldn`t go any further up the way I was going, it was just solid gorse.
By the time I got to the path, the clouds had started to break a bit, and I got a bit of sun trying to shine through the clouds, with a rather nice effect.
It took a bit longer to get up to the summit than I thought it would, there always seem to be a bit more to climb - but here I am just about there.
An unbelievable wind, but good views over the north end of Anglesey - looking away to the south over Trearddur Bay and down to Rhoscolyn Head - you can just make out the mountains of Snowdonia and the northern end of the Lleyn Peninsula.
Looking down on Holyhead -
Looking down on the Holyhead breakwater -
Some interesting lighting over Carmel Head - normally when you see shafts of sunlight, they are diverging as the head down to the ground.
But these ones are converging -
The Skerries were catching the sun, just as well, they would have been just about invisible without the sun.
Away to the west, and the shafts of sunlight were highlighting parts of the sea just like spotlights.
Time to head away, and I thought I had problems getting up - I didn`t want to go back down the path I eventually found and came up, because it was very steep, and steep descents cause me problems.
So I headed southwards following paths, hoping they would lead to an easier descent - but every path dropped down a bit - then came to abrupt stop above the cliffs.
The paths must all be used by climbers, not your average touristy person like me, and this just went on and on - I would go down a path, find a cliff, and have to climb away back up again.
I did eventually find a way down, it was a bit scrambley, but got there, and headed back across to South Stack, but this time I went much further over, and got a good view down into Gogarth Bay, and across to North Stack.
The sun was getting quite low by now, and at times appeared below the clouds -
Back at the brick built viewing post above South Stack now, and the sun has a mottled look now -
Hiding behind the viewing post to keep out of the wind, and I noticed that although Snowdonia and the upper part of the Lleyn Peninsula were almost hidden in the grey clag, the south end of the Lleyn Peninsula and Bardsey Island were quite clear, although somewhat grey.
Before heading away, I dropped down to Ellin`s Tower - I haven`t ever been to it before - and got a somewhat different view of South Stack in the gathering darknes.
A last look out to the last of the sun, as it dropped down below the horizon.
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