Into the wilderness today - the Rhinogs in South Snowdonia. If you want to get away from the crowds around Snowdon and the Glyders, or on Cader Idris, this is the place to go. The Rhinogs are a wild, rugged range of mountains to the east of Harlech. The terrain can be rough and boulder/heather- bound, and some basic map reading skills are needed. The scenery is fantastic, and you can often walk for miles without seeing a soul. We drove up to the farm at the top of Cwm Nantcol, then walked up to Bwlch Drws-Ardudwy - a remote and wild mountain pass between Rhinog Fawr and Rhinog Fach. We climbed up to near Llyn Hywel below the towering peak of Rhinog Fach - we didn't  quite have the energy to scramble to the top of Rhinog Fach today - perhaps another day.   We walked back down to the farm, then stopped at Morfa Dyffryn beach on the way home, to catch the sunset over the end of the Llyn Peninsula.

Sunny weather continues in North Wales - today we headed to the lovely coastal town of Conwy, with its historic castle. A gentle climb out of town (about 2.5 km) brings you to the top of Conwy Mountain, and the remains of an ancient hill fort and stone circles (as well as wild Carneddau ponies). Great views back down to Conwy, the castle as well as across the estuary to Llandudno and the Great Orme. A nice day out, rounded off with delicious locally made ice cream on the quayside in Conwy. 

 We are in Rhyd this week, and the fantastic  weather continues in North Wales. Today we climbed the highest point on the Llyn Peninsula, Yr Eifl.. At 564 metres, this is a challenging, but  not too strenuous climb -just a little scrambling and boulder hopping near the top. The views back to the Snowdonia mountains are stunning, and on a really good day (there was a slight haze today) you can see the Wicklow mountains in Ireland and the Isle of Man. 

We then walked down to Nant Gwrtheyrn - this is a heritage centre site  below Yr Eifl, where the historic mining village of Port Nant has been restored and is now used as a conference and visitor centre - it is in a  stunning location on the Llyn Peninsula north coast and well worth a visit.  

We have availability at the cottage in late October. Week of 17-24 October (7 nights) at 325 pounds all-inclusive, and week of 24-31 October (half-term) at 375 pounds all-inclusive - these discounted rates apply to any enquiries made through www.snowdonia-cottage.org.  Enjoy an autumn break in wonderful Snowdonia !

Story on ITV Wales this morning - good news for those of us who want our National Parks free from the visual intrusion of pylons, wind turbines etc.

  http://www.itv.com/news/wales/update/2015-09-15/snowdonia-to-be-pylon-free/

Following his exploits with Kate Winslet in his Running Wild series on Discovery channel last week, Bear Grylls is back on our screens again tomorrow night in Britain's Greatest Adventures on ITV at 9.00 pm.  The first programme in this three-part series (tomorrow) features him trekking around Snowdonia. Bear Grylls likes working in Snowdonia, as this is local to his Welsh home - the island of St. Tudwal's West, situated about a kilometre off the Llyn Peninsula coast at Abersoch. Bear bought the island in 2001 for about £ 90,000. The smaller nearby sister island of St. Tudwal's East is owned by the writer Carla Lane.       

Those of you with Sky or Virgin TV might want to take a look at 'Running Wild with Bear Grylls' on the Discovery channel at 9.00 pm tonight. Bear takes Kate Winslet out of her comfort zone and puts her through various challenges in Snowdonia. 

The Tour of Britain cycle race starts today in North Wales. Start is at Beaumaris on Anglesey, finish in Wrexham, but the competitors tackle the tough Llanberis Pass below Snowdon, then on to Capel Curig and Betws-y-Coed - fantastic scenery on this part of the route - should show Snowdonia at its best (weather permitting). You can see live coverage on ITV from 1.00 pm. Wish we were there ! 
Peter and Lorraine    

Festival No. 6 starts tomorrow in the amazing setting of Portmeirion. Headline acts include Grace Jones, and on the comedy front, Steve Coogan, Arthur Smith and Ardal O'Hanlan are appearing. Weather forecast does not look too bad - here's wishing our guests checking into the cottage tomorrow for their visit to the Festival, a great time.