Pen y Fan, Brecon Beacons, December 2023 & March 2025
At 886 metres, Pen y Fan is the highest peak in the Brecon Beacons and in South Wales, and a popular sunrise hike for good reason: on the right morning, cloud settles in the valleys below the summit and leaves the ridge floating above a sea of white, lit from below by the rising sun.
A December 2023 climb caught exactly that: a full cloud inversion at first light, frost thick on the summit rocks, and the sun burning slowly through mist and haze as other early hikers made their way along the snowy ridge path. A frozen waterfall on the way down added a quieter detail shot to close out the visit.
A return in March 2025 traded the inversion for a clear golden dawn: drone aerials over the ridge as the sun came up, Pen y Fan's distinctive silhouette against a brightening sky, and wide panoramas across the surrounding hills once the light had turned properly gold. A small herd of wild ponies grazing the frosty grass on the way back rounded out the second trip.
