Last night, racing the sun before it went down, I set up my alpkit Elan bivvy to get the hang of it before today's expedition. I decided I like it very much - it feels compact and discreet, perfect for the quick-pitch wild camping I anticipate doing this summer. My current sleeping pad is a bit too long, and naturally I do anticipate that the 3/4, thicker one that I ordered off vinted is probably going to arrive when I've already left on the bus. And I decided, since its forecast to be very hot (20-25 degrees in Wales in April??) I won't take my 4season sleeping bag, because while it is maybe the most comfortable thing I've ever slept in, it's quite bulky and if I overheat I'm risking way more condensation on the inside of the bivvy.
Today's route goes from Rowen over the tops of the Carneddau into Bangor, hopefully in time for the planning meeting over zoom with the Friends, to talk about the upcoming AM on Gender and Sexual Diversity. Chaired by Rhiannon Grant, a name I surprisingly already knew, for their queerness and their quaker quicks series. Lots of Q's. But myself and my intrepid walking buddy C will be getting the 11:08 bus out to Llandudno, then the 12:25 out towards Rowen. We'll have to get off at Tal-y-bont, starting our journey at 12:55, because alas, we are asking to go to sort of the middle of nowhere, and the public transport system may find that a bit difficult to accomodate. I'm estimating the total length of our journey to be something like 35km - maybe 17km a day. I'm excited and also quite nervous.
My bag isn't that heavy, but I'm not certain I packed enough food, and also a bit worried that the waist strap is going to give me bruises again. I gave the shoulder straps a bit of a reshuffle to try and get it closer to my body and keep the majority of the weight off it, which is where I think I had been going wrong before, but sort of dreading the idea of waking up at fuckoff o'clock and then putting my bag back onto very very sore hips. However, I am really looking forward to waking up at dawn. Might even wake up a little early to catch the sunrise and then try and get a bit more sleep. I just think there's nothing in the world I love more than the dawn chorus and the smell of all the grass and flowers waking up. And I'm so so so looking forward to just walking in the peace and quiet, away from car noise, no buildings blocking the light. Just might need to ask C for some suncream!