24 Hours.. In Snowdonia

After almost a month of storms battering the UK it was time to get out and go on an adventure - with just 24 hours in North Wales, what photographic gems could we discover?

There comes a time when I just need to get out with the camera. After successive storms had hit the UK it felt a long time since I was last out on a proper adventure. With bags packed, batteries charged and full tank of fuel we hit the road and headed to Wales.

The plan was originally to grab some dramatic seascape shots along the North Wales coast with the storm surge crashing against the shoreline. Many roads were close due to flooding or for safety reasons, so we were left questioning if we had made a mistake making the journey. A tactical retreat to the pub was in order and fresh plans to head inland in the morning were drawn up.

I’m no stranger to Snowdonia. Its a favorite family holiday destination, I’ve mountain biked here and visited loads of the well known and not so well known photography locations. The scenery is so pleasing that there is still plenty of places to visit. Some are real tourist hotspots so in reality that has kept me away from some iconic locations. That’s a shame because I’ve missed out on some stunning places.

Dinorwic quarry is one such place. I genuinely don’t know why I’ve never been before. I’ve been so close, down in Llanberis, at Llyn Padarn and Dolbedorn castle many times. More often than not it has been time constraints that have got in the way or its been peak season and I’ve been in search of less well know locations. Parking up at Allt Duu the heavens open to biblical amounts of rain. The wind still howling from the last breaths of storm Franklin, there was no way I was venturing out. So I sat back, preparing for a little snooze until the weather improved.

It didn’t take long. A bright patch of sky was heading inland from the coast. Kit on, boots laced up and we were off down the path towards the main viewing point to get an overall idea of the location. Having seen the quarry for years from the other side of the lake, either from Llanberris itself or while driving down the A4086 , I was well aware just how big a site this was. Being close up just made it seem so much more awe-inspiring. Literally half the mountains has been carved out. From the view point, as well as the quarry, you get to look across at the Snowdon massif and can pick out the mountain railway climbing across the landscape. You also have a great view up the valley to Pen-y-Pass. Another patch of better light was hovering at the head of the valley so I broke out the telephoto to capture some intimate landscape images, the clouds stubbornly clinging to the mountain tops.

From here we had a little look around the various mine workings and terraces before heading down to workers barracks below.

These 1870’s workers cottages are stunning ruins set against the mountainous backdrop. So much atmosphere to capture in a single image. The dark slate walls just looked perfect with those ominous clouds still hovering around the high peaks.

We spent almost half a day at this one location so its was time to press on. We tried a few more places but the wind and high water levels didn’t inspire. Eventually we decided to visit the Fairy Glen. The water was going to be raging, not what I wanted. Tranquil water is what this location benefits from to give it that other worldly, ethereal feel. This visit was just going to be a reccy. This was again somewhere I’d avoided due to the potential for high tourist numbers. The storm had certainly culled the numbers. We had the place to ourselves and just saw one other photographer arriving as we left. He commented that we were as daft as he was given the less than ideal conditions. I had a couple of shots in the bag to use as reference for future visits and I’m in no doubt that I will definitely be returning here.

Time was getting away from us and we lost a good hour of light due to the A5 being closed after a serious accident. Next stop Penmachno and the Roman Bridge. I know the village of Penmachno really well having mountain biked here for years. I had no idea it had a Roman bridge! A bit of research on the internet suggests it doesn’t have one after all! Despite its name most information states that it is medieval. The old pack horse bridge stands next to the much more modern road bridge with the river Machno flowing beneath. Tendrils of foliage hang from its arch and if you can catch this back lit as the sun shines down the valley, you will have a really pleasing scene to capture. I used a 4-stop ND filter to accentuate the movement of the water and then it was just a waiting game hoping that the light would happen. It wasn’t perfect but given the weather challenges we had faced I was more than happy.

We could have squeezed in plenty more locations but we decided to call it a day - a finally stop at the old bridge at Llanwrust as we were passing and then we were heading home.

Don’t Be Too Hasty

Rydal Water