In the early hours of Sunday morning, I packed my new Tilopa F-Stop kitbag in preparation for an early start and an ascent up the tourist route to Pen Y Fan, via the Storey Arms and Corn Du. I arrived a little late, as oddly the A470 was shut, so a detour through Merthyr Vale was required.

Arriving with some fellow photographers we set off into the dark, headlamps lit and were a little surprised by the lack of wind (which had been forecast) and snow. You could see the faint white glow on top, so evidence of it's existence but low level it was quite sparce. Surprisingly we passed another couple of groups of climbers and caught up with an earlier party, just at the base of the Corn Du steps. This shot was taken by a fellow photographer ( http://www.wild-landscapes.co.uk) we took cover from the sandblasting under a cornice, before making the decision to continue up and over and on to Pen Y Fan. 

It became less of an exercise about photography and more of personal achievement and of course safety. It was a complete whiteout on top. We are prepared climbers/walkers and had the necessary kit to take care of ourselves, but even I lost my bearings on top for a short while. It really goes to show just how careful you really need to be in the Beacons.

Anyhow we continued on to the summit of Corn Du and then the usual drop down and cut over to Pen Y Fan, which in itself was a challenge to find. The constant sandblasting was a real hassle and next time I must remember to pack my ski-mask, which really would have made the whole walk more bearable. On the main pathways was easily a foot of snow, on the slopes leading from the Corn Du and Pen Y Fan summits allot more.

As the sun rose at 8.25, we were on top of Corn Du and a tiny pink glow appeared, hardly noticeable in the total whiteout, it was a teaser of what we had hoped for. 

Descending was going to be a tough decision, becuase we really didnt was to traverse the Corn Du ridge, so we opted for a cut across the base of Corn Du and ended up trampling through a foot of snow to create our own ridge! and evetually managed to get back onto the main path and head down.

We arrived back in the car park in daylight to see skiers, boarders and a heap of other walkers heading up. It amazes me to this day the number of ill-prepared walkers that go up in this weather, without the right gear or navigation ability.

A few thanks to the fellow photographers who came with me and also to Duncan for taking these shots, my Canon 5D2 didnt come out of it's new Tilopa bag!

Looking forward to more Brecon Beacons fun in 2012, watch this space.

Cheers,

Neil

www.neilmansfield.com