The Welsh 3000s: Hardcore Mode with Brave Dave

If the Welsh 3000s is new to you then let me explain. The Welsh 3000s is a challenge which involves touching the summit of the 15 highest mountains in Wales (and by default England too) in under 24 hours. These mountains are all over 3000 feet tall (hence their name) and are rather conveniently all quite close to each other, in Snowdonia, so there's no driving involved.

The route is approximately 25 miles long and involves a lot of very rugged terrain, steep descents and grueling ascents as you cover three mountain ranges; the Snowdon massif, the Glyders and the Carneddau. The distance covered on a successful Welsh 3000s attempt is much longer than the 25 miles of route itself, as in order to even start the challenge you need to climb to the top of Snowdon (approximately 4-6 miles, depending on where you've parked your car, and 800m of ascent) and at the end, from Foel-fras, there is a 4 mile walk down to the car park. All in, the hike is about 33 miles long. There is also a good chance that you will be doing a chunk of it in the dark.

Each range of the Welsh 3000s has its own distinct attributes and challenges and there are plenty of opportunities for something to go wrong. For this reason you should only attempt the 3000s if you have a good amount of experience with mountain walking whilst carrying a heavy pack, and in bad weather.

Hire me as your guide!

Having me guide you the whole way gives you a huge advantage when attempting the Welsh 3000s. I am very familiar with the route in all conditions, I know how to set the pace on each part so that we don't burn out too early, and I know where the tricky bits are and how to navigate them with minimal fuss.

By hiring me as a guide you no longer have to worry about navigating or taking a wrong turn, which means you can instead concentrate on powering your way along the route and not going over on an ankle. It is also a great morale boost to have someone there who is very familiar with the route and can tell you what's coming up and what to expect, so there are no nasty surprises. I'm also trained in mountain first aid and will have the relevant shelters for the group.

But wait! There's a twist...

When people do the 3000s they often have a support team who meet them in both of the valleys that are between the mountain ranges, giving them food, replacing water, and taking kit that is no longer needed etc. This is all very well and good, but wouldn't it be more satisfying to do the Welsh 3000s off your own back? That is to say, imagine doing the Welsh 3000s without a support team, meaning that you have to carry everything you need on your back for the entire challenge (except water which we will find along the route).

It makes a tough challenge even tougher, but when you've completed it you'll feel hard as nails. I will be with you throughout the entire challenge, from walking up to the summit of Snowdon to start the clock, right until we're in the car park a mile from Abergwyngregyn, and then driving back around to where we started. We'll have experienced the whole thing together; the ups, the downs, the highs, the lows. We'll have laughed together, cried together, and overcome seemingly impossible challenges as one solid team! It'll be like we've been to war, damn it!*

* This is possibly an exaggeration, but the point remains.

Think of the bragging rights.

Just imagine, you'll be in the pub, someone will say how they've done the 3000s before and were given bacon sandwiches in each valley by their support team, offloaded kit they didn't need, and had a manicure. Then you'll tell them that's cool and all, but you've done the Welsh 3000s "Hardcore Mode" with Brave Dave! There'll be a record scratch, the place will go silent, everyone will look at you in awe, their mouths agape. Then suddenly a cheer will erupt throughout the room and you won't have to buy another drink all night*.

* Not a guarantee.

No Man Left Behind.

One other thing worth mentioning is that in Hardcore Mode, the general agreement is that everyone finishes together or no one finishes. If I'm leading a few of you and someone gets injured, or someone can't hack it any more and has to pull out, and we're not near to one of the valleys where they can safely retire and wait for the rest of us to finish and collect them then we will all be in agreement that we will stop the challenge and instead focus on getting the injured/knackered party member safely down off the mountains. We will then come back and do the challenge another day.

Team member safety is the absolute top priority and with there being just me as your leader we will all stick together no matter what. It adds another element to the challenge, but hey, that's why it's called Hardcore Mode, and not Pillows and Marshmallows Mode.

Do you dare try it??

This is the Welsh 3000s we're talking about! In order to attempt it you need to be fit. Ideally you will have had a fair amount of experience walking in the mountains, carrying a reasonable weight in your backpack and in a range of bad weather. There is a lot of scrambling involved throughout the route, and it is very rugged so your ankles need to be strong and conditioned.

Being able to map read is a great skill to have, although if I'm leading you then you won't have to worry about the route. Still, it can't hurt to know where you are!

Before the challenge I will offer all the help and advice with planning and preparation that I can, including kit to bring and the logistics involved (logistics can be quite complicated on the Welsh 3000s due to it being a linear route instead of circular, and factoring in the relatively high chance of someone needing to drop out half way along).

On the day itself I will lead you for the entire hike, navigating to keep us on track, pacing so that we don't burn out too early, and boosting morale with hilarious jokes and anecdotes.

What's Not Included:

Accommodation, transport, kit, supplies. Basically everything else. Though I can advise on all of it beforehand.