I apologise in advance for all the grid references - but, if you get a map of Snowdonia, you'll be able to follow our route!

 Pre-Expedition:

For this qualifying expedition, there were many things to sort out and arrange long before we actually went to Wales. The first of these was to decide on our group, which we did towards the end of February. We decided to keep our group as it had been for the practice expeditions, but with one exception - the tent partners changed to:-

Scott & Campbell

Mark & Alex

Andrew & Myself

The next thing to do was to work out our route and where our campsites would be. This was done on Sunday, 2^nd March, at a meeting in the 6^th Form Block at school, arranged by Derek. At this meeting, we also met our assessor, Jackie. Much of the morning was spent looking for good campsites, and after much deliberation, the following three were selected:-

After this, the route between the sites had to be decided, and was for the most part, easy to plan. With guidance from Jackie, Derek and the other leaders, we had finished planning our route by mid-afternoon. The final part of this planning meeting was to write out our route cards and fill in menu sheets, which took us up to four o'clock.

About a week before going to Snowdonia, I 'phoned Andy and arranged to go shopping to get the food for the trip. We also planned what kit we would need to borrow from school and who was going to carry it! Because Andy could not make it to the kit collection, I collected his kit for him, and dropped it off round his house on Friday, 29^th August.

So, Sunday afternoon came, and it was time to go. I arrived at the school shortly before two o'clock, put my rucsac on the coach, and all too quickly we were on our way. The journey was uneventful, and we arrived at the Hertfordshire Snowdonia Centre at nearly 8.00. Here, we did our first bit of walking - up the drive to the centre, as the coach couldn't hack it! We had an early night, considering our excitement (3.00 a.m.)!

We rose Monday morning ready for a day's acclimatisation and navigation practice, after a much appreciated cooked breakfast - our penultimate before our great challenge.

For the navigation practice, Darren gave us several grid references to find around the Watkin Path / Gladstone Rock area, which we found reasonably easy to do. After a few hours, we returned to the centre, where Andy and I had pitta bread and primula for lunch - yes, we had started eating dehydrated food already!

The afternoon was relaxing, as we had to wait around for several hours before having our kit checked by Jackie to ensure that we had adequate supplies and equipment before going out into the mountains. The kit check only took a few minutes, and after making only a few minor modifications, I repacked my rucsac ready for the morning. After our kit had been approved, Jackie quickly ran through our route with us, and decided on a few places where we were to leave messages for her or to telephone the centre.

After cooking our own dinner at seven o'clock, Derek held a brief meeting to wish us the best of luck and reminded us of a few basic points, then it was off to bed for an early night, and this time I was asleep before 12!

I woke up at about six o'clock, and as I had packed my rucsac the previous night, I had nothing to do except have a wash and think about what the next few days were going to be like. The weather forecast was for rain, and on the practices we had been blessed with near perfect walking conditions - dry, not too hot, a slight wind and some cloud cover. This expedition was to be different and I wondered how I would cope with this different set of conditions. I also wondered how much difference the extra distance would make - 50 miles for this, the qualifying expedition, compared to the 30 - 40 mile routes undertaken on the practices, but I was confident that I would have enough stamina to complete it, but how quickly (or slowly) I did not know. On the practices I had been the slowest member of the group, but was determined not to hold our group up this time.

So, 6.30 came, and it was time to have breakfast before setting out. There were high spirits amongst all the groups, but also a knowledge that the next 80 or so hours would stretch most of us to our limits. After our last non-dehydrated meal for a few days, it was time to set off. We were to be given a lift from the centre to our start point in the minibus, but even before getting in the bus I had a minor problem - when I did the lace up on one of my boots, it snapped! Fortunately, I knew where the spares were in my rucsac, and quickly replaced them. A few minutes were lost, but already the team work was apparent - while I was changing the lace, other members of the group were putting the rucsacs on the minibus. We finally left the centre at 7.00.

By 7.20, we were at our start point outside the hotel opposite Llyn Lockwood at GR661559. There was a steep climb of about 500 metres to begin our expedition, but we reached the top by half past nine, going via the Miner's Track. We had left the bus no more than fifteen minutes when Andy got the first "bootie", which obviously caused a laugh, having said that, I got the first of my many about 10 minutes later. Going uphill, we tried not to stop, because in the long term it is less tiring. However, we did stop briefly for water and sweets, and there was the most spectacular view - miles away in the distance between the mountains you could see the sea shining under the sun, and I thought how much I would prefer to be swimming in it than walking up a mountain. Further up, it started to drizzle with rain, so we put our cagoules on, and a few minutes later we were walking in the clouds. The top was very flat and marshy, which surprised me, and there were ample opportunities for more "booties". Our visibility was impaired by the cloud, so bearings were taken to the downward path. Soon, we noticed piles of stones about a foot round and a foot high every fifty or so metres. We followed these piles across the ridge, and amazingly, they led directly to the path we wanted to follow.

All too soon, the descent began. We were in good spirits as we knew that we had completed the potentially most difficult climb of our expedition. Jokes flowed like running water, and a good time was being had by all. We rested for a short time after we came out of the cloud, but the heavens soon opened, so we descended as quickly and safely as was possible.

We then headed for the Llyn Cowlyd Reservoir. We left the first note of several to be left throughout the expedition for the leaders at 11.00 near Helyg, GR691602, before crossing the A5(T). As we climbed up towards the reservoir, the pace gradually slowed, and we decided to have lunch at 12.30 in the remains of a sheepfold beside the reservoir at GR717612. This gave some protection from the wind, but only a little from the rain. The lovely (?) dehydrated food was now being started, and I soon remembered why I normally steer well clear of Ryvita and Primula! After sitting down for almost half an hour, we were all starting to feel a little cold, so we decided to move on. I was cold because my clothes were wet - the cagoule from the rain, and the T-shirt and fleece from my sweat. As soon as we started to move again, I warmed up substantially, and generally felt better. We proceeded along the path up the side of the reservoir, and changed do a different one about two thirds of the way up. We stopped for a break at 1.50, but not for too long due to the cold weather. By 2.15, we had got as far as Siglen, and left a note for our assessor, Jackie on the gate at GR745642. Now, we faced a small dilemma - we were unsure of which path we were supposed to take, so we stood in the shelter of the pillars of the pipeline while we decided on which path to take. There was much time consuming discussion and, eventually, a group decision was taken. Although we were protected from the wind and rain, I became cold again, and was glad when we began to walk along what we believed to be the right path. But, after a while, it became apparent that we were not on the correct track, as we had come along a path which went above the woods that we wanted to go through. When we realised our mistake, we headed for the pumping station at GR757653, and got on the right track. Apart from the rain, all seemed to be going well, and we turned off the path at 3.45 at GR766658, towards the Coedty Reservoir. By now, I was very cold and just wanted to give up, but I was determined that the weather would not beat me, and with encouragement from the others, I fought on.

Soon, we could see the reservoir, and by 4.30 we were at Coed-ty-mawr. A few minutes later, we stopped for more water and sweets along the path that follows the bottom of the woods. Looking back across the reservoir, you could see a lovely rainbow with its colours perfectly defined, and one end of it starting from the middle of the reservoir. But, looking ahead, I did not want to believe what I was seeing - the rain was extremely heavy and the wind quite strong, and it looked as if there was a big "sheet" of rain stretching as far as the eye could see. In view of the poor weather, it was decided that we would camp just short of our campsite in the shelter of the dam at GR723649 as opposed to the area of open land at GR722647. We set off towards the campsite looking forward to our well deserved dinner and reached there by six o'clock.

The dam provided good shelter from the wind, but not from the rain. Alex, Mark, Scott and Campbell camped near the end of the dam, and due to space limitations, Andy and I camped nearer to the bend in the dam. We pitched our tents quickly, to keep the inner tent as dry as possible, and then filled our water carrier up from the stream. The water did not look particularly appetising, but it was that or nothing! I was feeling cold, so I changed into my dry clothes in the tent and got in my sleeping bag. Due to the unfavourable conditions, we cooked our Mexican Chilli Vesta in the bell-end of the tent, which also helped to warm the tent up. The vesta was ok, and we also had a cup of soup. It was too much effort to cook pudding, so we scoffed a whole packet of malted milk biscuits between us! Then it was time for bed.

At the end of the first day, I felt very tired - not from the walking, but from the wind and cold, and just wanted to be in my own bed at home, so I could be warm and comfortable. I was having a good time though, and was enjoying the company of my friends.

We were supposed to get up at 5.30 and to have left by 7.00. In reality, we got up at 6.30 and left at 8.30. The rain and wind had not let up all night, our tent was soaking, our wet clothes were now sodden, and I had had the worst night of my life - so a good start to day two. For breakfast, we had the weetabix, but did not have time to mess about cooking the super noodles. At 7.00, we saw Derek, one of our leaders. Due to the poor weather, we could not follow our main route, nor our alternative (bad weather) route. An alternative alternative route was given, which was not much shorter in distance, but did avoid any big climbs. The new route entailed going back up the valley along the track to the car park at GR732664, crossing to the other side of the valley via the footpath, following the track round Clogwynyrer and up to Melynllyn and Dulyn Reservoirs, then taking the path up to Tan-y-bwlch and joining up with our original route.

Once breakfast was completed, I changed back into my wet top, but put some dry tracksuit trousers on. I knew that they would get wet in a matter of minutes, but they would be warmer than the shorts, especially with overtrousers on too, to cut out the wind. Once clothed and ready to do battle with the elements, we collapsed the tent and packed our rucsacs as quickly as possible, being careful to keep our dry clothes and our sleeping bags dry. After a quick look round for any litter, we left the shelter of the dam and started to walk down the valley. The wind was strong and the rain was being blown straight into our faces. The only compensation was that the track was reasonably good and not very muddy, so we made good time. We turned off the track at the car park at GR732664, and continued on our way without a break. By 9.15, we had reached the sheepfold at GR72666, and were still going strong. The next part of the route involved a small climb, and where the track was going uphill, the ground water was flowing down it like a river, making some of the larger stones quite slippery. With care and determination, we reached the top of the hill and sheltered behind some rocks. Then, it was onward and downward towards Melynllyn. It seemed to take an eternity to get there, but the walking was not difficult, and we arrived at 10.30. Again, we sheltered from the wind behind the wall at GR703658, and sweets were dished out. The short hop to Dulyn was a pleasant one, but then we encountered our first problem of the day, (not including the weather!). We needed to cross the river so that we could get on the path towards Tan-y-bwlch, however, there was no bridge! We did not worry, and tried to find a suitable place to cross the river. By the reservoir it was very deep and fast flowing, and further downstream it was quite wide. In view of the fact that we did not want to fall in and get even wetter than we already were, we decided to walk beside the river until we found a sensible place to traverse it. We walked just past the sheepfold at GR706663, and found a small island in the middle of the stream. Here, the water was very fast flowing, but there was a thin metal girder across the river. Most of the others crossed it alright, but I was frightened that I would fall in. The girder was about five feet long, but less than two inches wide. Knowing that my sense of balance takes a lot to be desired, I required help crossing - Andy stood in the river to steady me, Mark pulled me on to the island, and the others encouraged. The same set-up also helped Scott across. This gave a good team spirit feeling - proving that we could overcome hurdles that were thrown at us, and succeed. Once on the island, crossing to the other bank was easy, and we made our way up the grass slope to the footpath, which we joined shortly after eleven o'clock. The path was seriously muddy, and we walked on the grass at the side of the path wherever possible. Crossing the walls and fences was a problem - although there were styles, we had to go ankle deep in mud to reach them! The rain still kept on pouring down on us and the wind continued to blow, but I knew that every step I took was a step nearer to completing the expedition and a step nearer to the pub!

At 12.45, we rejoined our original route at Tan-y-bwlch. The matter of lunch was discussed, but we felt that we should make more progress before stopping to eat. We then headed down to the woods at Rowlyn-uchaf, GR745681, and entered them at 13.45. The river, Afon Dulyn, was easy to spot, but not very easy to cross. Where we could cross the river there were fences and walls on the other side, and where there were not any fences, the river was impassable! As a group, we decided to walk beside the river until we found a suitable place to cross. Eventually, we found what appeared to be an old ford, and opted to cross there. Unfortunately, the crossing point was about a foot under water, but it looked as if it was going to be the best place that we were going to find. So, up to our knees, we walked through the river! To be honest, I don't think that I got any wetter from it! Soon, we were back on track, and followed quite a steep track up to the road and then walked a few metres along the road towards Rowlyn-Isa, where there was a small sheltered grass area. As the time was almost three o'clock, we decided to have our well earned lunch. The Ryvita and Primula tasted much better than the day before, and a whole jelly seemed to replenish my energy levels. Just as we were finishing our lunch, Nick, one of the leaders, spotted us and told us that Jackie was waiting for us just metres round the corner! We quickly packed up, and walked a little further, where we saw Jackie. She was pleased to see us and we were pleased to see her. It was nice to see a smiling face! Because of the continuing poor weather and due to the lateness of the day, she advised us to amend our route slightly. After crossing Afon Ddu, we were now to walk along the road to Coed Creigau, then cut across the footpath via Gellinewydd, and rejoin our route at Gellilydan. This pleased us immensely, because although the distance was the same, we would be walking on good tracks and would not be gaining unnecessary height. We motored along the track towards Afon Ddu, and by the time we got there it had stopped raining - for the first time in nearly 24 hours we were not going to get any wetter - hooray!!! Morale instantly improved and there was an atmosphere of anticipated success. For the first time in the day, jokes were told, and the topic of conversation changed from moaning about the weather to other, more interesting topics. There was also a noticeable quickening of the pace. It seemed to take quite a while to reach the campsite, but we knew that when we got there we would have done the worst day of the expedition - over 60% of the distance would have been covered, the weather could only improve, and in less than 48 hours it would all be over. These thoughts drove us on, and we reached the campsite at the side of Llyn Crafnant, GR751609, at 7.30. We had been told to pay at the cafe, but it had shut at six! Gingerly, Andy knocked on the door, and a rather grumpy old bloke answered. Fortunately, he owned the cafe and camping field, so we paid and then went up the path to the field.

Campbell was still not feeling too good, and in fact, was sick. This concerned us, and we all encouraged him and hoped that he would be all right for the morning.

We put our tents up, which had dried off slightly, and started to cook our dinner. Whilst I cooked our Vesta Chow Mein, Andy 'phoned the centre to tell them that we had arrived ok. By the time he got back, the meal was cooked. Unfortunately, I dropped most of mine on the floor because the bowl was so hot! So, we cooked that morning's super noodles and had those to eat as well. The time was now getting on for nine o'clock and it was starting to get dark. We therefore abandoned the hot crunch pudding again, and ate a whole packet of tuc biscuits. At around this point in time, Jackie came to visit us, and seemed to be fairly happy with our progress.

It was then time to get some sleep in. I felt alright, but needed some rest so that I could cope with the next two days. My trousers were slightly drier, but my shirt and T-shirt were both damp. Dry clothes came as a comfort again, and I was really lovely and warm, and did not wake up all night!

Because this was to be the shortest day of the expedition, we got up slightly later - at seven o'clock. I felt refreshed thanks to a good nights sleep and was raring to go. The tent was almost dry and the ground was only slightly wet. This felt like such excellent news - it would not be so cold today and the tent would not be so heavy. My trousers were damp, but my shirt had dried out - things were looking up!

By the time we had packed our sleeping bags away and were dressed, we did not feel very hungry, so Andy and I skipped breakfast. The tent folded down in next to no time, and we left the site at quarter to nine. Although he was not feeling perfectly well, Campbell was feeling better and was determined to carry on, so we gave him our full support.

The previous night, we had been asked by Jackie to 'phone the centre when we left the site. We did this at nine o'clock from the call box at GR748606.

I found the next part of the expedition quite demanding, as it was climbing uphill through woods, but I managed it. The pace was extremely slow due to Campbell's stomach ache, but we were not too worried about the time, only for Campbell's well being, so we took it in turns to talk to and encourage him. After the best part of an hour, we had reached Ty-newydd on the edge of the woods at GR759604. Then we followed the footpath round the west edge of Llyn Geirionydd and then up to the minor road. The terrain was surprising - although the path is shown as not crossing any contours on the map, the path undulated a lot. The ground was also very muddy and slippery, so we had to take great care - we had completed nearly two thirds of the expedition and we did not want any broken bones now! At about GR763612, we stopped briefly for some sweets and water, otherwise this part of the day was pretty boring!

We then followed the road to Llanrhychwyn, joking and laughing all the way. Finding our way into the woods was a little tricky, but once we were in, we did not have too many problems. The first part was up a muddy footpath, the pace was slow, but it was dry and warm in the woods and there were some lovely views of the old mine workings. In the middle of the woods, we took a wrong track, but got back on course and reached Hafna Mine at GR780602 at midday. We then followed the road to Bwlch-yr-haiarn, GR778594, where we stopped for lunch from 12.30 until 1.45. The Ryvita and Primula were, by now, becoming repetitive, but at least we had a different flavour jelly each day! This did not really concern me, as I was too overjoyed that my shirt and trousers had dried out completely, and at last they were not rubbing on my legs and making them sore. Any way, after finishing lunch, we 'phoned the centre from the phone box opposite to let them know that we were all ok. We then followed another track in the woods down to the Miner's Bridge near Betws-y-Coed at GR780569. The route was mainly downhill, and the pace quickened slightly. For the first time in three days, I was actually enjoying myself and did not feel tired. Perhaps it was due to the improvement in the weather, possibly because my clothes were dry, or it could have been the fact that we did not have much further to go before completing the penultimate day. I don't know what it was, but I was on a high! Just before approaching the Miner's Bridge, we had a quick stop for water, and Alex repaired his feet! We finally reached the bridge at 3.30, and enjoyed the view down the river. It was hard to believe that it had been several feet under water the previous day, but the only clue was the wet rocks a few feet up from the river's surface. Once across the bridge, we had to leave another note for Jackie tied to the access gate on to the A5(T). This we did, but because we could not find the "twisty ties" given to us, we tied the note to the footpath signpost using a piece of grass - initiative ruled once more!

After crossing the road, (a little bit hairy), it was a steady walk up through the woods to the Lledr Valley. The path was steep in places, but it was well marked. Unfortunately, the pace gradually slowed as we headed for Rhiwddolion, GR772559, and we had to stop for a short break. The sun was still shining overhead, but we could see some black clouds in the next valley, and just hoped that it would not rain. The final part of the day passed very quickly, as we walked through the woods on the top of the hill, and down through the fields on the other side down towards the A470(T). On reaching the road, we headed towards the Youth Hostel, GR749535, where we were to camp for the night. This was a different campsite to our proposed one, because another group also wanted to use the one at "Castle Dolwyddelan", so we were asked to change our site. As we were going along the road almost opposite the 'phone box we could not believe what we saw coming towards us - the school's red minibus! Derek waved and said that he would see us at the campsite. At six o'clock, we were there, and were greeted by Derek. After seeing that we were all ok, he left us to prepare for the evening

We were to camp in the small field opposite the Youth Hostel, between the road and the river. It was actually a very nice place to camp - the ground was firm and dry, it was sheltered from the wind, and there were a few large trees giving some limited shelter from possible rain. Andy and I erected our tent under one of the trees, and were surprised to find that the tent was mainly dry. On unpacking other items, I was pleased to find that my sleeping bag was still perfectly dry, as were my spare clothes. Andy's sleeping bag was damp in places, but everything else seemed to be ok. However, both Alex and Mark had soaking wet sleeping bags and it was decided that Alex would come in our tent for the night and that Mark would join Scott and Campbell.

The next thing to do was to have dinner. To be honest, anything would have tasted good, but the Chicken Tikka Vesta did taste wonderful. Because the weather was good and we had arrived there reasonably early, we had the time and inclination to cook pudding. In fact, Andy and I had one day's pudding each - it was ok, but it was a bit lumpy! For the first time in the expedition we sat round and ate dinner together, it was quite a novelty! Looking at the sky, we were in for a dry night, and as soon as we had eaten, we got into the tents to settle down for the night.

With three of us in a two man tent it was quite squashed and very hot, but some how I got to sleep. At the end of what should have been a very short, easy day, I was worn out and needed a good nights sleep. Unfortunately, I had the worst nights sleep of my life - it was too hot, I could not move, and by the middle of the night, I had a small stream running through my sleeping bag - where the water came from I do not know as it did not rain all night! I managed to keep my sanity by telling myself that in twenty hours it would all be over, and I would be able to sleep in a proper bed and never have to see a tent again!

Although this, the last day of expedition, was a short day, we decided to get up relatively early so that we could get back to the centre about half way through the afternoon. So, we got up at 6.30. I really did not feel too good when I got up - I was cold and wet! But, once I got outside the tent and dried off, I was fine. It was a lovely day for walking - the sun was up and there was not a cloud in the sky. My clothes were dry and I even treated myself to a clean pair of socks! Also, the tent had dried out perfectly overnight, which made things easier generally.

We had our weetabix for breakfast, but to be honest, it was not all that appetising. After eating a few sweets and packing the tents, sleeping bags, etc. away, we were ready to attack the home straight. There was a general feeling of happiness and early celebration as we left the site, and morale was good. We walked along the main road for a hundred metres or so, and then took the lane which goes past several cottages. At the one called "Tan-y-graig", we took the left hand fork, and continued into the woods. The path through the woods was a bit of a nightmare - it was not very well defined, and in many places we had to fight our way though the brambles trying not to get scratched to pieces! Eventually, we reached the track at the top of the woods and followed it towards Dolwyddelan. As we walked into the heart of the village, we saw some children, perhaps 8-9 years old, waiting for their school bus. Their uniform was terribly drab and they looked really funny. Jokes flowed about schools etc. for quite a while after this, and brought about a good feeling amongst the group. So, we went along the road a little further, until we reached the castle. By now the time was 8.30, and we thought that this is where today would have begun if we had not had to change campsites. After a brief rest, we made off down the track and then along the minor road towards Blaenau Dolwyddelan. We made good progress along the road, but stopped for a short time on the bridge across the river at GR697515. Not long after this, we turned up a path which would take us around Foel Goch and eventually up to Llyn Edno. There was quite a lot of uphill, and for some reason, my stomach was aching. I did not know whether it was due to something that I had eaten or if I had pulled a muscle. What I did know was that I was going to have to slow down a little, but at this stage I was not holding the group up in any way. We continued along the path and then crossed the river at the footbridge. Shortly after this, we turned on to the footpath towards Bwlch y Rhediad, GR666524. We arrived at the fence at about eleven o'clock, and could see one of the groups ahead of us making their way up to Llyn Edno. We sat for a while and rested before departing. Derek was waiting for us here, and we were glad to see a smiling face.

The way up to Edno was along a path which runs up the side of the fence all the way to the lake. In places, the actual position of the path was a little vague, but we never wandered far from it. The ground was very soft, and on many an occasion, when you put your foot down it almost disappeared. I was very happy that I had avoided any "booties", but when we were about two thirds of the way up, the inevitable happened - with hindsight, I suppose that putting a clean pair of socks on was tempting fate! Not only did my foot go in, but so did my leg - right the way up to the knee. What made me feel better was the fact that I got off lightly compared to Scott - he went in deeper than his knees, and couldn't get out! In the end, Andy pulled him out, but he got muddy in the process. Mark tried to jump over a boggy patch, but unfortunately, landed on his front in some muddy grass the other side! Luckily, everyone had been victimised by the mud and bog, and so we could all laugh at each other and make fun out of an unfortunate situation.

By 12.15, we had reached the near end of Llyn Edno, and decided to have lunch. There was great jubilation for two main reasons - firstly, that we had virtually no more uphill to go, and secondly, that our next meal would be back at the centre and made out of proper food! We did not stop for more than about half an hour at the lake, as there was a fairly strong wind, and although our clothes were for the most part dry, the wind cut through our clothing making us cold. My stomach still ached, but I was not going to give up because of it now - we had only a few hours to go.

We followed a bearing to Adar and managed to lose our direction slightly on the way, but got to the lake by two o'clock. As we were about to leave the lake, we saw someone running towards us, so we waited and then discovered that it was Darren. He just wanted to check that we were all ok, and that we knew where we were going. We took another bearing to Llyn y Biswail, and did not have any real difficulty in finding it, and arrived there by 2.30. Before we set out on the expedition, Jackie said that we could miss out the two lakes at GR633472, so we followed the river down from Biswail to where the river crosses the wall at GR638472. By now, I was the slowest member in the group, and this was the first time on the expedition that I was finding the going tough. The rest had been very demanding, but now it was taking a great deal of effort to take each step. Even though we were going downhill and were nearly back at the centre, it still proved an immense challenge. I was determined to finish, however much it took out of me. Up until now, my swimming training had helped me out, and I was adamant that it was not going to go to waste.

When we got on the footpath, I sped up slightly, but was still quite slow. The others were encouraging me to continue, and thanks to them I did. By four o'clock, we had reached the minor road at GR632484, and were to walk along it most of the way back to the centre. My stomach ache was diminishing fast, and by the time we saw Derek at the minibus, at GR637495, it had almost gone. The pace had quickened substantially, and we were in really good spirits, looking forward to a nice warm shower and the chance to get cleaned up after four days of looking and feeling a total and utter mess.

A quick hop through the woods and we were in the lay-by on the A498. Crossing the road proved a little difficult because of the speed of the cars, but it was then a simple case of following the track up to the centre at GR626510. As we approached the centre, the expedition seemed to reach an anti-climax, but gradually the realisation set in that we had completed something special. We had done the practices together as a group, and the same team that started together all finished together - it was an elating feeling. As we went through the gate at 4.50, Jackie came out to meet and congratulate us, and we were pleased to find out that we were not the last group back! The best cup of tea I've ever had followed, and then it was time to meet friends from other groups, and have a good shower.

The rest of the afternoon and early part of the evening were spent talking to the other groups and finding out how they had done, and generally telling funny stories of our experiences. Just after 7.00, we were allowed to tuck into the buffet - it was wonderful - real food, fresh salad, real meat and other luxuries like crisps. After a short meeting, it was time for the long awaited trip down the pub. It was good there, too. Most of the time was spent talking about the expeditions, but there was also time to enjoy a game of pool, and generally to relax. After an hour and a half, we had to go back to the centre, and I packed my rucsac totally ready for the way home the next day.

At the end of the day, I felt so tired, but at the same time so happy that I had completed one of the hardest things that I had ever set out to achieve.

The following pictures were taken when the weather permitted, therefore there are none for the first day, nor for the morning of the second day. After this, it was possible to remove my non-waterproof camera from its plastic bag and expose it and the film to the elements!

P.S. I was quite chuffed with the results being a complete amateur photographer.