UKC

Climbed Tryfan last Thursday & friends G &D were left having lunch at Bwlch Tryfan with our rucksacks. T,R and I carried on up, and being so slow, took a long time. G and D felt cold and went down, and we arrived at Bwlch Tryfan an hour later, by which time our rucksacks had vanished. We walked all the way down imagining scenarios whereby D or G had become ill, and a strong friendly party had helped them down with our rucksacks. But no, at the bottom D & G were waiting for us (thank goodness) with only their own rucksacks. So have lost wee phone, smart phone, etrex, waterproof trousers, walking pole, head torch, first aid kit, midge net, flask,paramo smock, Tiso mug, thermos,sunhat and probably more as well as sandwiches. Maybe someone with a weird sense of responsibility took them down. Warden still to check, but cafe said "No", but more likely someone removed the valuables and threw rucksacks over a cliff. They were left against the stile at the end of the path up from Ogwen. Our average age is 78, but we ARE sure where we left them. We are based in Scotland, and I mostly post on Scottishhills.com but I gather there are more Welsh based people on this forum who might have spotted something, or could keep an eye open in case somebody decided to tidy them away. The weird thing was that no-one seemed to have taken the SIM card out by that night or I assume that it wouldn't still have rung to my message.....or would it? Have obviously been walking in remote areas too long, previous hill before Wales was Beinn Mor in Pairc, Lewis. Thanks in advance for any news.
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In reply to Squiz:

Can't be of much help other than to say very sorry to hear of your situation - hopefully others may be along to help. Other options (online) may be to ask on outdoorsmagic forum and walkingforum as well. Or contact one of the North Wales newspapers? Or maybe try Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team just in case they have any news or it's been dropped off outside. I hope someone can help and it hasn't been stolen. Or if it's an iPhone do you have FindMyiPhone set up to help track the phone - or the Android phones have something similar - only if these things have been set up previously. I do hope & pray you find your kit! In the meantime keep an eye on ebay and Gumtree to see if anything gets listed for sale that looks similar. It may also help if you post the make / model / colour of your rucksacks, in case people have seen that or someone carrying two rucksacks!

In reply to lucozade:
On android you go to the Gmail account that was used to login and setup the phone, and from that email account you can check its location if it's got data enabled.

In reply to lucozade:

Ogwen Valley cover that area. Here's a link to their site if you want to get in touch:
https://ogwen-rescue.org.uk/

In reply to Squiz:

Please see my reply to Lucozade

In reply to mypyrex:

Thanks. Can't get to the google a/c until I get home as it's not in my memory.....should be. Asked warden service, police and sent an email to Lllanberis MRT, mostly so that the rucksacks didn't trigger a stupid search. My rucksack is a grey and aqua Gegory 35 litres, R's is a royal blue and grey Berghaus 35 litre, T's is bright light green, (from photos) but I don't know the make it looks about 35 litres

In reply to Squiz:
I know the staff at YHA idwal cottage (Ogwen) and have sent a copy of your post on to them in case they have heard anything or someone dropped it in with them. Unlikely but worth trying. Will let you know if they know anything.

I would think it more likely that someone thought they were being helpful by taking them down than that they were stolen. I hope I am right.

In reply to Squiz:

Have you tried contacting the police station? Years ago I left my sack at the base of Lliwedd while we were climbing. When we got back to the bottom, it had disappeared. Someone thought it had been lost and handed it in at the local police station.

In reply to Squiz:

Sorry to hear that news Squiz,
I live nearby so will ask around.
I'm glad to hear you finally got Tryfan though, but it's shame your day ended this way.
(Imstuc)

In reply to llechwedd:

Yesterday we climbed Glyder Fawr and met a guy who had come over from Tryfan. More joking than serious we asked if he had seen any abandoned rucksacks "Yes, three, and sticks". He had seen them on the bwlch. So today we climbed Tryfan again as far as the bwlch and searched the wall between Tryfan and Bristly Ridge with no effect. A large party soon arrived, and we asked them to keep their eyes open in case the rucksacks were elsewhere. They couldn't have been more helpful, and soon we got a phone call saying that they had found them on the col between the south and north peaks, and not to bother climbing back up, they would bring them down.. Everything is intact. So HUGE thanks to the Community Education department of Coleg Lllandrillo, who wanted only a letter of thanks to the Principal to prove that they are being turned into useful citizens, and to the three boys who carried our heavy, and by now sodden rucksacks down. Apologies to the Welsh Nation for tarring them with the suspicion of criminality. And Robin's contact Jason was known to the outdoor instructors who say that he would do anything to help anybody.

Red faces from R. T and me who were all 100% convinced that we had found the right ladder stile, it was one of three, so I suppose the pattern is copied higher up. (Indeed I still have vivid impressions of the stile we searched today as being the correct one) but rucksacks don't have legs, so I guess we must have left them where they were found.

In reply to Squiz:

Really pleased to read this. I leave stuff all over the Pyrenees and have done for 30 odd years without the slightest problem. However, I have been to huts where things ( expensive axes, crampons and even skis) have disappeared in the early hours of trhe morning.

In reply to Squiz:

I'm sure the Welsh Nation will forgive you; they'll be over the moon at your discovery of the triple L in Lllandrillo!

In reply to Ian Parsons:

Relieved to find our last day in Wales was good enough weather to climb Carnedd Lewellyn, my last mainland Marilyn, thought that would be off after having to go up Tryfan twice. I know these are of no interest to climbers. Thanks for bearing with me, now back to hill walking forums.

In reply to Squiz:


I think it's called hilll walking in that part of the world!

In reply to Squiz:

Will you do Stac Lee?

(Hi Squiz!)

In reply to Squiz:

You do know the Welsh have a sense of humour, don't you?... 'Look Dai, why don't we just move these rucsacs to that stile over there, have a bit of fun see....'

I left my rucksack once to climb Seat Sandal (Lakes) quickly in my walked Rob Graham Round. A bit later all bracken clumps and pile of rocks looked the same. That was before I had a Smartphone- learnt now a good idea to take a grid ref and photo of cache. Learnt my lesson don't leave my stuff now; though I did leave my bag on the last bit to Mt Whitney in the US ( most people do at that location) the problem there is Marmots chew your bag straps.

In reply to Flinticus:

Are you mad? Although I can still do small scrambles I have seen Stac Lee and know it is, and always was, beyond me. Apart from the climbing challenges, you are ankle deep in guano and unless the swell is less than 2m for at least 4 days before, the sea-weed is too slippery to get a purchase on the bottom . The year before Rob Woodhall, the first Marliyn compllllletist did it, he said "I am coming back next year with a wet-suit and crampons." Sure many of the guys on this forum could do it, but at 78, fear I will just have to pass.

In reply to Diddy:

Why did you drop your bag at Seat Sandal ? Or did you drop it there to do Fairfield ?

In reply to Squiz:
Yes, it does look, for me too, well beyond my range. Got a large moody photo of it framed in my 'home office'. I was kinda surprised it was even listed as a marilyn, being so far removed from what I would consider a mountain or hill. For me the concept of both requires them to be surrounded by lower, flatter ground from which they protrude, not sticking straight up out of the sea. In fact, that's frequently a definition of either.

It's really more a circular sea cliff!