Snowdon Via The Watkin Path

This weekend was the annual Orpheus CC trip to North Wales. In previous years, we stayed at the Oread Mountaineering Club's hut in Rhyd Ddu but this was unavailable due to some sort of building work so as an alternative we stayed at the Clogwyn Mountaineering Club's hut at Croesor where some Orpheus members had stayed on previous occasions.
Karen and I set off from home at around six in the evening following a cross-country route via Hartington, Stoke and Corwen. It had been snowing in most parts of the country recently but the roads were clear. We were nearing the end of the journey and following the road to Bala when it started to snow again. After a short time it began to settle and became two or three inches deep and as there was only one set of tyre tracks from a car which had passed us coming from the opposite direction, we appeared to be the only car to pass since it started snowing. For about 8 or 9 miles we drove at twenty miles and hour or less which meant that we had a longer journey then expected. Anyway, we arrived at our destination at about nine forty-five to find Jenny and Boyd, Trish and Frank, John Pratt and his niece Helen plus Steve Tucker already there. We were the last to arrive and some had arrived on Thursday night and been walking on the Glyders earlier in the day.
We were about just after half-past seven and as we had left our sausages and cheese in the fridge at home, we just had cereal for breakfast. Karen had planned to spend the day bird-watching with
Jenny and I set off to park near Pont Bethania, Nant Gwynant to walk up the Watkin Path, possibly up onto the Lliwedd ridge and then back down Snowdon's South Ridge and back down the Watkin Path. There was still plenty of snow cover as I started up the Watkin Path with very few others around, probably because it was only a quarter past nine in the morning. I continued past old quarry or mine buildings and started up a steepening in the path with stone steps and passed a group of walkers. Later on I passed a second group and found that the path was covered in snow from last night and there were no boot prints from others, so I was the first to pass that way today.
Soon the rocks were partly covered in ice and the snow was becoming frozen, so I stopped at a flat area at Bwlch y Saethau to put on my crampons and swap walking poles for an ice axe. I wandered over to the other side of the Bwlch giving views across to Crib Goch, the Pyg Track and far below, the Miners Track and the lake, Llyn Glaslyn. I could see quite a lot of walkers making their way up the diagonal Pyg Track with even more on the lower and flatter Miners Track.
I continued up a steepening with frozen snow and found it difficult to make out the Path as the snow and rock all looked the same. But as I approached the end of the Watkin Path where it joins the Rhyd Ddu Path at a large finger of stone, I decided to return back the same way, back down the Watkin Path as I could see
dark clouds blowing in and thought it would be easier to retrace my steps rather than try and follow another route which I had only ascended before (the South Ridge) if the weather turned nasty.
So I turned around and started making my way back down. I met others now coming up the same way many with pretty new looking crampons and ice axes - probably the first time they needed them in recent years! I was asked by several people what it was like higher up and I told then it was icy alright and they should have a look and decide for themselves. Soon I was making my way down the stone steps back past the old quarry workings with light snow falling and gusts of wind. I reached the road and made my way back to the car park and after changing out of my boots, drove to Capel Curig to have a snack in the cafe and but the sausages, cheese and margarine to replace those which we had left at home!