Reaching the Skyline

Cribyn from Pen-y-Fan

Booked in to watch an outdoor performance of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar in the evening (E is determined to encourage my sadly lacking cultural education), I gave the festival a miss today in order to run the ridge that I've been looking at longingly every day we've been here.

I plotted a route from where we're staying at Brecon, taking in a few miles of quiet road before hitting the long ridge up Pen Milan and past the obelisk to Corn Du and to the highest point at Pen-y-Fan. I didn't see a soul until I was on the ridge, where there were, of course, hundreds (it's a short walk from the Storey Arms and rightfully very popular). The views and the ridge walking are spectacular. I carried on up and down Cribyn and on to Fan y Big, where I started my descent route down over Cefn Cyff and back to Brecon. 

I managed not to be late back. I love these kinds of journey runs, reaching and exploring a distant skyline. With the addition of an extra mile due to a navigational error (missing signpost and a shower of rain when caused me to keep my new map dry - bought the day before because the 40-year-old one wasn't quite up to the task) it turned out to be 19 miles and 3,800 ft of climb in just under 4 hours. I rather surprised myself with how well the legs stood up. I would never have considered doing this 5 years ago! All this running pain with my eldest is paying off.

The Shakespeare was cold. We all felt for poor Caesar, who did dead extremely well. Not a shiver to be seen. To E's dismay, a lot of it was lost on me, but the energy and talent of the small Globe Theatre touring company was amazing, especially Anna Crichlow, the young woman who played Brutus. What a presence. The rooks were pretty good too. Even if they might have been crows, their timing was excellent.