33-623: The A498 is a 16-mile road between Pen-y-Gwryd and Porthmadog in North Wales . At Pen-y-Gwryd, the A4086 Llanberis Pass route bears off to the north. The A498 descends from a 277 m (909 ft.) summit at Pen-y-Gwryd and runs south west through the village of Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass , where it overlaps the A4085 . The A498 then passes through Tremadog and crosses
66-702: A stage coach inn and the present stores building was once stabling for horses. The nearby Tin Can Alley was a source of honing stones used to sharpen tools during the construction of the A5 by Thomas Telford . This mammoth project started in 1815 and it was 1836 by the time the first mail coach crossed the Menai Straits via Telford's bridge. Telford designed the milestones and the hexagonal toll houses every five miles. Toll houses survive in Capel Curig and Bethesda , Wales whilst in
99-614: A useful holiday route to the Beddgelert/Porthmadog area. At the junctions, the A4086 to Llanberis is the minor road at Pen-y-Gwryd, while the A498 is the minor road at Beddgelert. At Pont Aberglaslyn , the A4085 is the minor road diverging to Penrhyndeudraeth and at Tremadog, the A498 is the major road. The junction west of Tremadog is a roundabout and at Penamser, the A498 is the minor road. There
132-658: Is a pass at the head of Nantygwryd and Nant Cynnyd rivers close to the foot of Snowdon in Gwynedd , Wales. The area is located at the junction of the A4086 from Capel Curig to Llanberis and Caernarfon and the A498 from Beddgelert and Nant Gwynant about a mile from the head of the Llanberis Pass . It is close to the boundary with Conwy county borough in northern Snowdonia . The famous mountaineering hostelry, Pen-y-Gwryd Hotel ,
165-515: Is a steep descent of Nantgwynant and some 1 + 3 ⁄ 4 miles of this is on a substandard, narrow twisting alignment, where larger vehicles have difficulty in passing. There are further substandard sections in the Aberglaslyn Pass and towards Tremadog and coaches have had difficulty passing in this section. The road passes through Beddgelert by way of a sharp right angled bend over a river bridge, not recommended for articulated vehicles. In
198-462: Is located in the pass. It is also a mountain rescue post with links to the other rescue posts at Ogwen Cottage and Plas y Brenin . The Old Miners' Track from the Snowdon copper mines are now part of the modern A4086 road between Pen-y-Gwryd and Pen-y-Pass . It continues northwards beyond Pen-y-Gwryd skirting Glyder Fach to Bwlch Tryfan and Dyffryn Ogwen . From Pen-y-Pass is the "PYG track", one of
231-565: Is now the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation. Ron James remained chief instructor for another five years after Birmingham City Council purchased The Cott in 1964. Over the next 45 years thousands of Birmingham people attended courses at Ogwen. Until the 1980s courses were for a fortnight but economic considerations and the need to take more students meant a reduction to six days. The Adventurous Activities Licensing Service (AALLS) pays regular visits and while
264-471: Is on the high road and conveyances meet visitors at Bethesda Station if so desired.” Geoffrey Winthrop Young , a noted alpinist with many first ascents to his credit, stayed at Ogwen between visits to the Alps in the early 1900s. 1959 saw Ron James , Trevor Jones and Tony Mason-Hornby purchasing The Cott from Mrs Williams and opening it as a mountaineering school. Ogwen became a climbing base and Mrs Williams gave
297-560: Is situated beside Llyn Ogwen , in Gwynedd , Wales. It is owned by the National Trust , who bought the property at auction in October 2014 for £450,000. It was formerly for many years part of Birmingham City Council 's Outdoor Learning Service, providing outdoor education , and with links to the climbing community. Located on the London to Holyhead A5 road (Great Britain) , Ogwen developed as
330-418: Is to the first successful Everest expedition in 1953 and the first successful Kangchenjunga expedition in 1955 , when training and testing of oxygen equipment for those expeditions took place at Helyg, near Capel Curig. On the right, at the hotel entrance, there is a Tyrolean-style Stüberl (dining room) with the signatures, written on the ceiling, of the teams that did the first ascent of Everest in 1953 and of
363-594: The A487 at a roundabout, before passing under the Cambrian Coast railway and terminating at Penamser on the A497 ( 52°56′01″N 4°09′15″W / 52.9336°N 4.1543°W / 52.9336; -4.1543 ( A498 road (southern end) ) ), about a mile west of Porthmadog. At its northern end, the road forms a link via the A4086 with the A5 at Capel Curig , forming
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#1732848280323396-647: The Aberglaslyn Pass the trackbed of the Welsh Highland Railway , now being reconstructed, can be seen on the opposite side of the Afon Glaslyn . At its west end, the route crosses the new A487 Porthmadog Bypass at a roundabout west of Tremadog. In late 2008 the Bryn-y-felin road bridge was rebuilt over the Welsh Highland Railway as part of Gwynedd Council's WHR Bridges policy. Unfortunately the bridge
429-539: The Idwal Slabs as their first ever climb, before descending Suicide Wall by abseil. An evening of orienteering and then the next day might see a kayak descent of the Afon Llugwy or a walk up Tryfan. The National Trust for Wales purchased Ogwen Cottage in 2014 and since 2015 works in partnership with The Outward Bound Trust to offer young people from all over the country a memorable outdoor experience. In October 2014 it
462-532: The Inn in 1843. In 1847 Henry Owen acquired the Inn. He was born in Beddgelert , Caernarvonshire on 2 April 1822, the son of a farmer, Owen Owen. He married Ann Pritchard from the parish of Llanbeblig near Caernarvon. Initially Henry combined his hostelry work with a position of Agent at the nearby Snowdonian copper mine and later with farming. But by 1858, the inn business was sufficiently successful to allow him to purchase
495-465: The activities may not be as extreme as they once were, Ogwen is probably the only centre in the UK to programme multi-pitch climbing for secondary school students. The traditional core of mountaineering activities remains with an emphasis on mountain walking and climbing but the programme has expanded to include kayaking, gorge walking, canoeing, ski trips, orienteering, expeditions. A student might ascend Hope on
528-639: The book, The Pen y Gwryd Hotel: Tales from the Smoke Room was published by Gomer Press. (With photography by Nicola Maysmor.) The work features a notable introduction by Jan Morris as well as contributions by: (amongst others) Chris Bonnnington, Peter Hillary, Rebecca Stephens, Jim, Perrin, Joe Brown, Anna Lawford, Ed Webster, Caradoc 'Crag' Jones, Doug Scott, John Disley, H.P.S Ahluwalia, Norbu Tenzing Norgay, Margaret Clennett, Hugh Brasher and Julian Freeman-Attwood as well as William 'Bill' Roache of Coronation Street fame. The hotel's most notable mountaineering link
561-667: The current location of the Pen-y-Gwryd Hotel. The camp was probably first built during the Roman General Gnaeus Julius Agricola 's conquest of the Ordovices in the late AD 70's. As it is unusual for temporary camps to survive, its existence suggests it was periodically reoccupied. Although the camp had no permanent garrison or buildings, it may have been a waypoint for Roman units travelling between Deva Victrix ( Chester ) and Segontium ( Caernarfon ). The site
594-438: The first ascent of Kangchenjunga in 1955 – these include Sir Edmund Hillary , Tenzing Norgay , Sir John Hunt , Charles Evans , George Band , Joe Brown , John Angelo Jackson , Wilfred Noyce , Tony Streather , Tom Mackinnon, Norman Hardie , Neil Mather, John Clegg and others, including Noel Odell from Mallory's 1924 expedition and Chris Bonington of later successes. There are many photographs and exhibits provided by
627-459: The freehold. During the Owens' tenure running the inn, it became renowned for its status for comfort and hospitality. The original building was considerably extended transforming it from a farmhouse Inn to a well-known and popular hotel. Ann's excellent cookery was apparently to play no small part in the hotel's success. Eventually it became an integral part of the blossoming mountaineering industry that
660-484: The hotel. During the Second World War the hotel was taken over by Lake House School from Bexhill-on-Sea . The subsequent owners have improved the hotel and enhanced its mountaineering links by becoming a Mountain rescue post (the plaque is still attached to the main entrance), whilst maintaining the hotel's history. Guest bedrooms are named after each of Snowdonia's 13 peaks over 3,000 ft (910 m). In 2016,
693-461: The ice with an unusual tool; "According to tradition Thor was armed with a hammer for his battle with the Frost Giants, and with such a weapon, we too, were luckily provided in the form of a hatchet, surreptitiously removed from Mrs Jones' coal cellar at Ogwen.” The 1894 Climbers' Club Journal contained an advert for The Cott citing it as "the chief centre for climbers visiting Snowdonia….the cottage
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#1732848280323726-420: The management until her death in 1896. After the owner of The Royal Hotel , Capel Curig took over, the business saw an indifferent ten years. However, this changed when William Hampton, along with Arthur and Florence Lockwood, took ownership. The hotel and its mountaineering traditions soon picked up again and the building was redeveloped. In the 1920s they created Llyn Lockwood – the small trout lake opposite
759-580: The many routes leading to the summit of Snowdon, its name is believed be derived from the initials ("P-y-G"). However, older maps show it as the "Pig track", a name derived from Bwlch y Moch (the Pigs' Gap). During Roman Britain , the Roman Army built a marching camp at the head of Dyffryn Mymbyr at the strategic intersection of three major routes through the Snowdonian mountains. This type of fortified cantonment
792-500: The middle stands Ogwen. The centre is informally referred to as "The Cott" and has been used as a base for climbers since the nineteenth century. During the 1890s climbers stayed at Ogwen or the Pen-y-Gwryd and early accounts make mention of Mrs Jones of Ogwen Cottage; " Mrs Jones at Ogwen Cottage always most good naturedly received and fed us if we turned up, no matter at what hour.” In 1895 Archer Thompson ascended Twll Du, climbing
825-399: The new owners advice on mounting rescues; "Fire a red flare in the car park – get the climbers together and put the one with the cleanest boots in charge.” With increasing leisure time and improved transport links, Ogwen grew as a climbing mecca and The Cott's instructors regularly became involved in rescuing climbers in trouble and gradually a specialist mountain rescue team evolved into what
858-577: The original team members in the main bar and guest lounge. In the past each year, now every five years, Pen-y-Gwryd hosts the Everest and Kangchenjunga reunions. Caradog Jones , the first Welshman to conquer Everest, has stated that it was this Welsh connection with the mountain which inspired him. Other notable visitors include: Charles Kingsley and Henry Kingsley , William Ewart Gladstone (Gladstones), Augustine Birrell , Walter Parry Haskett Smith , Thomas Huxley , Lord Coleridge – past and present (at
891-457: The time of writing), John Henry Cliffe who wrote Notes and Recollections of an Angler (1860), Andrew Ramsay , George Mallory in 1914, and actor Jack Hawkins during the filming of The Long Arm on location in Snowdonia. 53°04′57″N 4°00′07″W / 53.08256°N 4.00203°W / 53.08256; -4.00203 Ogwen Cottage Ogwen Cottage Outdoor Pursuits Centre
924-505: Was developing in North Wales. In May 1898 The Climbers Club originated at Pen-y-Gwryd, as it is recorded in its first journal "....its natural birth at Pen-y-Gwryd" and "...its congenial atmosphere...... ( The Climbers Club ) first struck its roots". The Climbers Club is now based at Helyg on the A5 between Capel Curig and Ogwen Cottage . In 1870 the Society of Welsh Rabbits (c.1865)
957-522: Was first occupied prior to the construction of Caer Llugwy , a c. 90CE Roman auxiliary fort about 5.5 mi (8.9 km) to the east in the Afon Llugwy valley. The site is difficult to observe due to erosion and local land usage as nothing remains except grass and bramble-covered mounds. It was first excavated in 1960 by early surveying courses from Plas-y-Brenin under the auspices of Dr Josephine Flood (née Scarr). The Pen-y-Gwryd Hotel
990-434: Was founded with the objective of exploring Snowdonia in winter (and as close to Christmas as possible). Ann Owen said in 1895 that the society had written an article "praising Pen-y-Gwryd as an excellent resort at Christmas". She noted " ....we rarely, if ever, had a guest at Christmas and since then we have hardly been without guests during the period". Henry continued to run the hotel until his death in 1891. Ann then took over
1023-464: Was originally a farmhouse dating from 1811. It was converted to wayside inn by a John Roberts from Llanberis , who eventually sold the Inn in 1840 before emigrating to America . A Mrs Hughes, who was the widow of the first landlord (a Joseph Griffith) of the Capel Curig Inn (which became The Royal Hotel, now Plas-y-Brenin ), and later the widow of Reverend Robert Hughes of Capel Curig , took over
A498 road - Misplaced Pages Continue
1056-850: Was rebuilt with such narrow dimensions that vehicles wider than a standard car find it difficult to pass. The road was created from early toll roads . There was some improvement in the 1960s/70s in Nantgwynant and south of the Aberglaslyn Pass. Just south of the Goat Hotel in Beddgelert is an arched railway overbridge (with height and width restrictions) built by the Portmadoc, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway but never used. Download coordinates as: 53°01′04″N 4°05′41″W / 53.0179°N 4.0946°W / 53.0179; -4.0946 ( A498 road ) Pen-y-Gwryd Pen-y-Gwryd
1089-480: Was the kind built each evening by Roman legionaries when out in the field or on campaign. The camp, which has a rhomboid shape, covers about 4 ha (9.9 acres) providing accommodation for up to 2000 soldiers and their baggage trains. Its defences included a ditch approximately 5 ft (1.5 m) wide and 2 ft (0.61 m) deep below the turf-line and an earthwork rampart 8 ft (2.4 m) to 9 ft (2.7 m) wide. The northern rampart runs through
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