April - Twympa (Lord Hereford's Knob)

Not the greatest summit picture, I know!

High winds, a summit empty of people and a lack of tripod are responsible for that!

Summit Height:
2231ft / 689m

What?
Twympa, aka Lord Hereford's Knob

When?
6th April

Where?
Brecon Beacons, South-East Wales. Starting from Hay-on-Wye

Who?
Just me!

Why?
The challenge this time was to leave and return to Birmingham within a day just using just public transport. Hay-on-Wye to Twympa and back was do-able in this time frame.

How?
I took the first train to Hereford early in the morning, and then a Bus to Hay-on-wye. 2.5 hours on public transport gave me lots of time to read (which is probably the third favourite hobby, Climbing and Mountain Walking being 1st & 2nd!). I think my favourite thing about taking trains and buses is that it gives you time to just sit and read! Reading, is of course, very much on my mind during this trip given that my starting point; Hay-on-wye, is the "town of books".
The walk from Hay-on-Wye to the foot of Hay Bluff (a mountain 'just next to' Twympa) was much more challenging, but equally much more beautiful than I had expected! The sun came out and I found myself walking for the first time this year in just a t-shirt.

After an hours walk through farm and woodland I arrived at a large opening and then I was presented with a surprisingly large looking pair of mountains! Still feeling fresh, I headed straight for the summit, and although not very steep, the trek up to the top was picturesque and enjoyable. On arrival I was totally on my own at the summit! The winds were really high, so I dropped down to find shelter and enjoyed lunch with an incredible view over Wales. I then returned to the summit cairn to try and get the all important photo. I set the timer, ran over to the cairn, and then 'click'; I got a lovely photo of some grass. The high winds had knocked my camera over. I tried again; 'click'; this time sky. Frustrated and wind swept, after another few failed attempts, I eventually had a to settle for a rather uninspiring summit shot (you can see at the top), which is a shame as it does not do the mountain justice!

The decent walk was even more beautiful than the ascent, and once out of the wind I was back to wearing a t-shirt in the sun and feeling the first hint of 'Spring'! Back in Hay-on-Wye I had a little time to kill before catching the bus back, and so naturally I went book shopping! The Hay-on-Wye book shops are just wonderful, as is the local Ale!

I did of course buy a book, and I chose, fittingly, "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" by Ernest Hemingway. Why fittingly? Well, I'm planning to enjoy the Snows of Kilimanjaro myself in August, as this will (hopefully) be my August Summit!