Pushing my limits on Pen y Fan

Last Monday I fancied a challenge – something rather more ambitious that my usual hikes in the forest or beside the River Wye.  The weather forecast was excellent, so what could be better than climbing Pen y Fan, the highest mountain in South Wales?

I downloaded the Ordinance Survey map and studied it.  The easiest route looked to be one starting at Pont ar Daf car park, though at 2 miles up and 2 miles back again, it hardly seemed long enough for a day's outing. I therefore plotted a longer route, descending to the northwest of the mountain and returning along the Taff Trail.

I arrived at the car park just before midday and was surprised to find it almost full – just one little Bluebell-sized space left.  I squeezed Bluebell into it, donned my walking boots and rucksack, and set off.  By now the mid-day sun was blazing and I began to regret my choice of long-legged walking trousers.  Too late to change my mind now, though. Skirts and shorts had been left at home.

Locals call this path 'The Motorway'. It starts gently, but soon steepens.  My pace slowed.  Another half mile and it was down to crawling pace — 30 steps... pause... 30 steps... pause... 30 steps... sit down and rest. Fitter souls overtook me and some even ran past.  A mile and a half in, and everything ached but I was determined to press on.   30 more steps... pause... and so it went on, the summit getting ever closer.

Just before the summit, the path makes a welcome dip and my pace quickened.  One final push with my tired and aching legs, one last rest... and I made it! Here's the view from the top, looking north towards Brecon...

... and east, over Cribyn. I'd planned to eat my lunch here, but swarms of midges took rather too keen an interest in my cottage cheese – and my hair, arms and legs too – so I descended a bit and found a midge-free spot on the southern slope.

Slowly, my strength returned. Ahead of me lay Corn Du, which I was determined to climb but I also decided to abandon my original plan and shorten the walk considerably. After Corn Du, I would take the popular path down to The Storey Arms Centre, then join the Taff Trail for the short walk back to my car.

This is the view from Corn Du summit, looking back toward Pen y Fan. Corn Du is 13 metres lower than Pen y Fan, but there was a pleasant breeze blowing here, and consequently no midges. A good spot for another rest, before the homeward trek. 

The view from Corn Du, with the return path stretching out into the distance before me.

The whole walk, exhilarating though it undoubtedly was, proved to be much harder that I'd anticipated. My fitness app record says it all — a little under 5 miles at an abysmally slow speed of 1.3 mph, and that doesn't include long rests as the app stops recording if I remain stationary for more than a minute.

I've walked hills and mountains before, most frequently in the Lake District, but never in blazing sunshine, with temperatures in the mid 20s. I conclude that three things impaired my progress: 

• I wore the wrong clothing. My denim skirt or a pair of shorts would have been more sensible in that heat.

• I'm overweight. It would have been good not to have carried 2½ stone of surplus fat with me.

• I'm 67 years old. Though I was overtaken by many people on the long ascent, they all looked a lot younger than me.

Would I tackle Pen y Fan again? Most definitely, though only after my Slimming World group have seen me down to my target weight. And next time I'll probably plan to walk later in the day, rather than beneath the midday sun.  

One thing I can do nothing about is my advancing years, but neither will I use them as an excuse to stay in the valleys.   Well hopefully not for a while yet.