0:00:05 > 0:00:09There is a land where extinct volcanoes rise out of the sea.
0:00:11 > 0:00:15Where you can stand on top of some of the world's oldest rocks
0:00:15 > 0:00:18and see every country in Britain.
0:00:24 > 0:00:30It is a land where rare wildlife lives in secret valleys,
0:00:31 > 0:00:35beneath the peaks of our island's highest mountain range.
0:00:39 > 0:00:43A privileged few hold the key to this land.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46Their knowledge has made them guardians
0:00:46 > 0:00:48of this extraordinary landscape.
0:00:48 > 0:00:52And given them a unique responsibility
0:00:52 > 0:00:57in preserving one of Britain's most treasured national parks.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01This land is Snowdonia.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17HE WHISTLES
0:01:45 > 0:01:48500 million years ago,
0:01:48 > 0:01:52Snowdonia's mountains erupted from the Irish Sea
0:01:52 > 0:01:55and transformed this part of North Wales.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03As the ice-age glaciers retreated,
0:02:03 > 0:02:06Snowdonia's valleys became an extraordinary wilderness.
0:02:06 > 0:02:12An Alpine landscape on Britain's shores.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16Home to species that can be found nowhere else on these islands.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24For millennia, those who've chosen to live here
0:02:24 > 0:02:29have had to be completely in tune with Snowdonia's seasons.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31And to this day,
0:02:31 > 0:02:35it's still one of Britain's least populated landscapes.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41To survive here you need something special.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49If you asked any shepherd or any farmer,
0:02:49 > 0:02:52very few would say that it's just a job.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59You farm from your heart.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07People often say how lucky I am
0:03:07 > 0:03:11and over the years I'd be thinking, "Me, lucky?
0:03:11 > 0:03:14"Running after sheep and wrestling with cattle."
0:03:14 > 0:03:17And now, as I'm getting older, I think, "Yes, I am lucky."
0:03:17 > 0:03:21I have been very, very fortunate to spend all my life on the mountains.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26This is one of the hardest places in Britain to farm sheep.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28The unpredictable climate means that
0:03:28 > 0:03:31Gwyn has to be constantly aware of the conditions.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34HE WHISTLES
0:03:34 > 0:03:37Tending sheep here in the Ogwen Valley is done much the same
0:03:37 > 0:03:42as it was three centuries ago, when Gwyn's family first started farming.
0:03:44 > 0:03:49Winter is coming now, it's end of November.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55We're preparing the sheep for the winter holidays,
0:03:55 > 0:03:58checking they are fit and healthy on their feet,
0:03:58 > 0:04:00and also it's been a very wet season,
0:04:00 > 0:04:03so we're giving them a drench against fluke, liver fluke.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05That can affect them.
0:04:05 > 0:04:10And because I'm organic, I'm limited to the treatments I can give.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13We are just preparing the ewes now, ready for them to leave the farm,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16go down to lowland pastures for the winter.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25Welsh mountain sheep have been bred especially to cope
0:04:25 > 0:04:28with the inhospitable mountain conditions,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31but Gwyn still has to send his flock to lowland pastures,
0:04:31 > 0:04:33just to survive the winter.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37Very little grass grows during this time.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40Without it, the sheep would soon starve.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44When they've gone away, at least you know that
0:04:44 > 0:04:46if the weather does turn bad,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49at least they've got a better opportunity to stay alive.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10The old shepherds used to say, "The best shepherd is the white shepherd."
0:05:10 > 0:05:14The snow will bring them off the tops.
0:05:17 > 0:05:24If we do get a good covering of snow, then everything stops.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36I like a good, hard winter, where things do go to sleep.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41It charges up the battery of the Earth, you know?
0:05:41 > 0:05:43To kick-start it for spring.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49People might think that I'm a bit odd, maybe they're right,
0:05:49 > 0:05:53but I really enjoy the quietness of this period.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56There are not many farmers left
0:05:56 > 0:05:58who can make a living in these mountains.
0:06:00 > 0:06:01In the coming months,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04Gwyn will have to draw on a lifetime of experience
0:06:04 > 0:06:06if he is to keep his flock from succumbing
0:06:06 > 0:06:09to Snowdonia's unpredictable environment.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Travel south from the mountains of North Snowdonia,
0:06:18 > 0:06:23and within the space of a few miles, the land changes dramatically.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29Steep mountainside gives way to rolling wooded hills,
0:06:29 > 0:06:34high moorland, and a different way of life.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44Winter down here in the southern end of the park
0:06:44 > 0:06:48can be very different to the weather north in the high mountains.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53Snowdonia is only about 40 miles long or thereabouts,
0:06:53 > 0:06:56but my patch can seem like a different world altogether.
0:07:05 > 0:07:10Humans have been living in southern Snowdonia for over 6,000 years.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14Though it's only in the last 60 that we have sought to preserve it
0:07:14 > 0:07:16within a National Park.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20Over the space of a year,
0:07:20 > 0:07:24Rhys' role as a warden will change as often as the weather.
0:07:24 > 0:07:29He will have to balance protecting Snowdonia's wildlife and culture,
0:07:29 > 0:07:32with the coming and going of some 9 million people
0:07:32 > 0:07:34who visit the park every year.
0:07:35 > 0:07:39But in the quieter months, his only distraction comes from those
0:07:39 > 0:07:42who have chosen to remain over the winter.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49The sound of winter for me is the sound of ravens.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52This is the time of year, January,
0:07:52 > 0:07:55when the ravens start to establish their territories,
0:07:55 > 0:07:58it won't be long before they'll be nest-building.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04They are perhaps the spirit of the mountain, cigfrain in Welsh.
0:08:08 > 0:08:13It's almost like an open-air concert for free, it's tremendous.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18But Snowdonia is more renowned for its unique plant life
0:08:18 > 0:08:20than as a musical venue.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26And it falls upon Rhys to know the flora in minute detail,
0:08:26 > 0:08:31even though they are spread across an area larger than Liverpool.
0:08:33 > 0:08:38Winter is the time to visit one of his rarest residents.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44Juniper is a very rare plant in the southern part of the park.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48They seem to be limited to three individual shrubs.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53Of course, it is one of the three native conifer species of Britain,
0:08:53 > 0:08:56the others being Scot's pine and the yew tree.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58So it has a very old history.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05The male ones produce cones with the pollen on them,
0:09:05 > 0:09:09and the female ones obviously produce the berries,
0:09:09 > 0:09:13the juniper berries, that are so famous for flavouring gin.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17They are obviously in difficult circumstances
0:09:17 > 0:09:20and anything we can do to help should be done, really.
0:09:23 > 0:09:27By taking hardwood cuttings at the end of their growing season,
0:09:27 > 0:09:29when the plant is at its strongest, Rhys is ensuring
0:09:29 > 0:09:34that these rare junipers have the best chance of taking root.
0:09:34 > 0:09:36It will be another year
0:09:36 > 0:09:39before he can return the sapling to its mountainside home.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42But the payoff is worth it.
0:09:42 > 0:09:47A healthy juniper plant can live another 250 years.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01Snowdonia isn't really very big,
0:10:01 > 0:10:05but its geographical scale is beside the point, really,
0:10:05 > 0:10:09because its presence is huge.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16Twm comes from a long line of Welsh poets
0:10:16 > 0:10:19who have written about the mountains of North Wales.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Their language is as much a part of the mountains as the rock.
0:10:29 > 0:10:33Snowdonia's changing seasons have always been
0:10:33 > 0:10:39a source of inspiration to writers, though one rises above all others.
0:10:43 > 0:10:48Well, winter is the time to come to Snowdonia or to Eryri,
0:10:48 > 0:10:50to give it its proper name.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55There are no pretensions in winter, there's no additives,
0:10:55 > 0:10:59there are no colorants, it's pure Eryri.
0:11:04 > 0:11:08That rawness of terrain that has inspired so many writers,
0:11:08 > 0:11:12has also been a magnet for those in search of adventure.
0:11:18 > 0:11:24There is a pub at the foot of Snowdon called Pen y Gwryd.
0:11:28 > 0:11:33That is the only pub to escape to if the weather turns cruel.
0:11:39 > 0:11:44It has very romantic associations
0:11:44 > 0:11:51because the 1953 Everest climbers came here to train.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57Because Snowdonia was very varied in its terrain.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04A lot of the weather is so fickle and unpredictable,
0:12:04 > 0:12:05that it's good training,
0:12:05 > 0:12:08especially if you have no experience whatsoever as a climber.
0:12:15 > 0:12:22I am the son of one of the members of that expedition.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24To wit, Morris of The Times.
0:12:24 > 0:12:30The Times correspondence sent on that expedition to report back.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33And he had no experience as a climber,
0:12:33 > 0:12:36and so he learnt everything climbing around his hotel.
0:12:45 > 0:12:48Well, it was necessary for any communications from the mountain
0:12:48 > 0:12:52to be in secret because there was great competition
0:12:52 > 0:12:55to climb the highest mountain in the world.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58And so, all the members had codenames.
0:12:59 > 0:13:04Hillary, for instance, was Jerkin or Candlestick.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07Tensing was Asparagus or Carpenter.
0:13:07 > 0:13:11And Morris of The Times was Carpet or Armchair.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14HE CHUCKLES
0:13:14 > 0:13:19But Morris of The Times had a more involved code
0:13:19 > 0:13:23in order to be able to send back whole messages and sentences.
0:13:23 > 0:13:30And the message sent back on May 29th 1953, was,
0:13:30 > 0:13:35"Snow conditions bad. Advance base abandoned. Awaiting improvement.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37"All well."
0:13:38 > 0:13:41And that was sent by a runner down the side of the mountain
0:13:41 > 0:13:45to the telegraph office many, many miles away,
0:13:45 > 0:13:47and sent back to London.
0:13:47 > 0:13:52It didn't sound very encouraging, but the meaning of that sentence,
0:13:52 > 0:13:54when deciphered was,
0:13:54 > 0:13:57Hillary and Tensing have climbed Everest.
0:14:18 > 0:14:23And to think, all this started in a remote corner of Wales.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32The Himalayan experience that Hillary sought in these mountains,
0:14:32 > 0:14:35lasts for only a few weeks each year.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43By the time the melt comes, there is much to do for those who
0:14:43 > 0:14:47depend on March's warm sun to begin the natural cycle of things.
0:15:01 > 0:15:05Spring is very, very important.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07It's when the Earth comes to life again,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10and it gives you the life, it gives you that bang,
0:15:10 > 0:15:14that spring in your feet again, off you go, you've got work to do.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20Another season is here and everybody else comes back as well.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24It's not just the animals coming back to the farm, it's the wildlife.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31It's nice to see the swallow and the swift coming back.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35They are very, very delicate.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38To think that they've come all the way from Africa.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42It's always nice for me to see birds coming
0:15:42 > 0:15:47from such a long, long way away to a small farm in Wales.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49Yes. Nice place for a holiday!
0:16:19 > 0:16:22I'm not farming here for myself,
0:16:22 > 0:16:25I'm farming it for the whole wildlife that's here with me.
0:16:29 > 0:16:33I'm trying to be as sensitive as any shepherd can be,
0:16:33 > 0:16:36and looking after the wildlife.
0:16:36 > 0:16:41We've got some weasels and some stoats maybe coming out, hunting.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46We've got a colony of water voles just down in the field
0:16:46 > 0:16:48in the bottom there.
0:16:48 > 0:16:51I don't grace it, so they are left alone.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58The return of wildlife to the farm is a good sign that
0:16:58 > 0:17:02conditions are right for Gwyn to bring his sheep
0:17:02 > 0:17:05and their newborn lambs back from the lowland grazing.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10With new grass court in the mountains, he can be sure
0:17:10 > 0:17:15that even if the weather does turn, there'll be plenty to eat.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17After they've been away for so long,
0:17:17 > 0:17:19it's like having your children back again.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27And, yeah, it's nice again, doing my shepherding work again.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03The sheep's spring health check needs to be thorough.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10Once they've been checked over, they are released onto the slopes
0:18:10 > 0:18:14and from that point on they're left to fend for themselves.
0:18:23 > 0:18:25The sheep here are a hefted flock,
0:18:25 > 0:18:30so each ewe returns to the same part of the mountain year on year,
0:18:30 > 0:18:33taking with them their lambs, so that their instinctive knowledge
0:18:33 > 0:18:37of this landscape is passed on for generations.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42You can see the type of area we have.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45It's very, very open and it's a large area,
0:18:45 > 0:18:47so there's no point having a small flock
0:18:47 > 0:18:50in one corner of your farm and the rest of the farm empty.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53These sheep really do spread out, you know.
0:18:53 > 0:18:59Up there, there will be probably about 300 sheep to 1,000 acres.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04As I'm getting older, I appreciate it more.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08One moment, there are a group of climbers as we speak now,
0:19:08 > 0:19:12looking at the wall in the bottom there.
0:19:12 > 0:19:18Foot on the barbed wire, jump over, the post snaps, and that's it,
0:19:18 > 0:19:20we have to repair the fence.
0:19:20 > 0:19:21HE WHISTLES
0:19:21 > 0:19:23Hey!
0:19:23 > 0:19:25Hey!
0:19:25 > 0:19:27HE WHISTLES
0:19:27 > 0:19:31Hey! Get off the bloody wall!
0:19:33 > 0:19:36It makes you feel like you ought to go there and say to them,
0:19:36 > 0:19:40"Listen to me or you'll be thrown in the river."
0:19:41 > 0:19:45My father told me many, many years ago, when I was a young lad
0:19:45 > 0:19:48and chasing after the climbers and the walkers,
0:19:48 > 0:19:51who were leaving gates open and climbing over the walls,
0:19:51 > 0:19:55and I spent hours running after them and getting very stressed,
0:19:55 > 0:19:58if that is the word.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00My father told me that I couldn't stop them,
0:20:00 > 0:20:03they were like the tide, coming and coming,
0:20:03 > 0:20:08but I could make use of them, I could take their money.
0:20:08 > 0:20:14Now we've diversified and are doing accommodation and educational visits,
0:20:14 > 0:20:18and now instead of waving my stick at them, saying, "Get off my land!"
0:20:18 > 0:20:22I say, "Come on the land, learn a bit more about farming,
0:20:22 > 0:20:25"where your food comes from, make friends
0:20:25 > 0:20:28"and leave something behind, like a cheque, you know."
0:20:39 > 0:20:41Change from winter to spring is quite a subtle one
0:20:41 > 0:20:43in the mountains of Snowdonia.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46On a day like this, we just hit the good weather this week,
0:20:46 > 0:20:51and it makes such a difference having a bit of sun on your back.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54BIRDS CHIRP
0:20:58 > 0:21:00You're constantly in the middle of wildlife,
0:21:00 > 0:21:03particularly around the lake here.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06The Goosanders have certainly arrived
0:21:06 > 0:21:08and started their breeding season.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12The redstarts and the pied flycatchers are in the woodland,
0:21:12 > 0:21:13so it's just everything.
0:21:13 > 0:21:18You just feel that spring has arrived all of a sudden.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23With so much wildlife activity in early spring,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26it's a good time for Rhys to patrol
0:21:26 > 0:21:28and take stock of the species in his patch.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35This part of south Snowdonia has so many diverse habitats,
0:21:35 > 0:21:38that it's always been a haven for wildlife.
0:21:40 > 0:21:42Some are here in abundance.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47Others, however, need closer attention.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53Take otters, for instance.
0:21:53 > 0:21:57They're not a species you associate with mountainous areas particularly,
0:21:57 > 0:22:02but there are plenty of signs they're on the upland lakes.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07They'll often follow the spawning fish going upstream,
0:22:07 > 0:22:10even up to the highest lakes on Cader Idris.
0:22:14 > 0:22:18Because man and animal have co-existed in the National Park for so long,
0:22:18 > 0:22:21the inevitable loss of habitats means
0:22:21 > 0:22:24that some species require a bit of a leg-up by now.
0:22:25 > 0:22:30Even though there are natural places for the otters to use,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34the addition of artificial holts complements that natural choice.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Nocturnal otters need somewhere to rest during the day,
0:22:40 > 0:22:44and typically build their holts in the banks of rivers and lakes,
0:22:44 > 0:22:47amongst the roots of old trees.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50But with industry having removed many of these trees,
0:22:50 > 0:22:55Rhys' artificial holt is a mimic of these subterranean
0:22:58 > 0:23:00Otters can have up to 30 such sites,
0:23:00 > 0:23:03which they use throughout their territory.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07And they might only use each one for a couple of days at a time.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13But there is a chance that Rhys' holt will be used for rearing young.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17And with any luck, in a couple of years,
0:23:17 > 0:23:20otters may be a common sight in the mountains again.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30On the western edge of Snowdonia,
0:23:30 > 0:23:33where the mountains tail off into the sea,
0:23:33 > 0:23:37are a series of valleys that face west,
0:23:37 > 0:23:40soaking up the warm spring sun and making them
0:23:40 > 0:23:45a secret refuge for plants, animals and man.
0:23:47 > 0:23:52In the spring I always go to Cwm Pennant, which for me
0:23:52 > 0:23:57is the beginning of Snowdonia because it's a long enclosed valley.
0:23:57 > 0:24:04It's there where spring shows itself wonderfully.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07More than anywhere else in Wales.
0:24:10 > 0:24:15I come every year in May to hear the cuckoo
0:24:15 > 0:24:21and to see the blue mist of bluebells which is always here in cuckoo time.
0:24:24 > 0:24:29The Welsh word for bluebell is clychau'r gog,
0:24:29 > 0:24:33which means, the boots of the cuckoo.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39CUCKOO CALLS
0:24:39 > 0:24:43They say it's becoming very rare for some reason. I don't know why.
0:24:43 > 0:24:47But you can always be sure of hearing in Cwm Pennant.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Because it is the very last refuge, as it were,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59before the bareness and the ruggedness and the treelessness
0:24:59 > 0:25:03of Snowdonia, there's something very special about it.
0:25:09 > 0:25:14The presence of people is always evident in Eryri.
0:25:15 > 0:25:19There are ruins of farms, there are tumbledown walls, and for me,
0:25:19 > 0:25:26in my writing, this is all important, the presence of people.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33Pam, Arglwydd, y gwnaethost Gwm Pennant mor dlws?
0:25:33 > 0:25:37A bywyd hen fugail mor fyr?
0:25:41 > 0:25:47Why, Lord, did you make Cwm Pennant so beautiful
0:25:47 > 0:25:51And the life of a shepherd so short?
0:25:55 > 0:26:01The impact of a simple farming way of life on this landscape
0:26:01 > 0:26:05was nothing compared to the industry that was to follow.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10The slate quarries of north Wales
0:26:10 > 0:26:15were at one time the biggest on Earth.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18Tens of thousands of men toiled with picks and dynamite
0:26:18 > 0:26:22to supply the four corners of the world with roofing material.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34It was an industry with a global scale
0:26:34 > 0:26:36that spawned entire communities.
0:26:36 > 0:26:42That made a few men rich and took many to an early grave.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52At its height, 5 million tonnes of rock
0:26:52 > 0:26:56were being removed from the mountainsides each year.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58Which is impressive,
0:26:58 > 0:27:01were it not for the fact that in the process,
0:27:01 > 0:27:07the industry was claiming on average the life of a quarryman a day.
0:27:12 > 0:27:19The Second World War deprived many of the quarries of their workers
0:27:19 > 0:27:21and the industry collapsed
0:27:21 > 0:27:25when soon after clay roofing tiles became cheaper than slate.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32But by exposing the rock,
0:27:32 > 0:27:36the quarrymen have attracted a new breed of mountain life.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43It's taken 33 years for climber Johnny Dawes
0:27:43 > 0:27:46to build an in-depth knowledge of the rock in Snowdonia,
0:27:46 > 0:27:49and in that time he's pioneered
0:27:49 > 0:27:53some of the most difficult and dangerous climbs in Britain,
0:27:53 > 0:27:57and etched his way into mountain folklore.
0:27:59 > 0:28:04To climb successfully here you need to know not only where
0:28:04 > 0:28:09but also when to pit yourself against the mountains.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13And spring is the perfect time to visit the slate.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24The quarries throughout Snowdonia
0:28:24 > 0:28:29are places where you see plants come alive a little bit earlier.
0:28:33 > 0:28:37You've got warmed areas, passive solar collectors.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43That slate absorbs so much heat,
0:28:43 > 0:28:48on some amazingly hot days, you could probably cook some bacon on it.
0:28:49 > 0:28:52And where plants grow is just amazing.
0:28:52 > 0:28:56They seem to know where to place themselves to greatest effect,
0:28:56 > 0:29:00like some interior decorator has got to work
0:29:00 > 0:29:03specifically for us, you know.
0:29:15 > 0:29:18When you walk on it, it actually clatters musically,
0:29:18 > 0:29:23so you end up with this beautiful cacophany of sounds,
0:29:23 > 0:29:27clattering out from underneath you as you walk.
0:29:29 > 0:29:33And you've got the sound of peregrines.
0:29:38 > 0:29:43And the whole combination sort of wakes you up and makes you listen.
0:29:43 > 0:29:47Stops you listening to the garbage in your head.
0:29:56 > 0:30:02I love climbing on slate cos it looks so blank.
0:30:04 > 0:30:08It's like a fine-bone-china, slate. It's cooked mudstone.
0:30:08 > 0:30:11It's like nature's porcelain in a way.
0:30:23 > 0:30:28If you know how to go from one shape to the next,
0:30:28 > 0:30:31you can actually use momentum from a long way down a chain of moves.
0:30:35 > 0:30:39But to do that you've got to be relaxed
0:30:39 > 0:30:42and listening to what's going on,
0:30:42 > 0:30:45and that comes with affinity for the rock.
0:30:51 > 0:30:56As you get into the flow of a climb, you get to the point where
0:30:56 > 0:30:59instead of having to focus directly on what you're doing,
0:30:59 > 0:31:04your senses are so much wider and you sort of come alive.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22The only thing to do is to absolutely go for it,
0:31:22 > 0:31:27and the excitement kind of rises as you're doing it
0:31:27 > 0:31:29and the fall rises as well.
0:31:49 > 0:31:52SHOUT ECHOES
0:31:55 > 0:31:57DOGS BARK
0:31:57 > 0:31:59By summer, it's time for Gwyn
0:31:59 > 0:32:03to gather his sheep down from the mountains in time for shearing.
0:32:03 > 0:32:05HE WHISTLES
0:32:05 > 0:32:08The warmer weather will have spread them
0:32:08 > 0:32:11across the highest peaks on the farm, in search of good grass.
0:32:20 > 0:32:22In the past, gathering the sheep
0:32:22 > 0:32:25would have been a huge community event,
0:32:25 > 0:32:28with whole villages ascending the mountain.
0:32:28 > 0:32:30HE WHISTLES
0:32:30 > 0:32:34But now it's left to Gwyn and a handful of neighbours
0:32:34 > 0:32:38to gather 3,000 acres of sheer mountainside.
0:32:40 > 0:32:44One thing hasn't changed, though,
0:32:44 > 0:32:47the shepherd's reliance on his oldest companion.
0:32:47 > 0:32:52The basic commands for dogs, away, come back and lie down,
0:32:52 > 0:32:54the whistles are very similar.
0:32:54 > 0:32:56HE WHISTLES
0:32:56 > 0:32:58Lie down! Lie down!
0:32:59 > 0:33:02If you have one in English and one in Welsh,
0:33:02 > 0:33:04you don't get confused to the commands,
0:33:04 > 0:33:08and as I get older I get very confused.
0:33:08 > 0:33:11And when I had three working dogs,
0:33:11 > 0:33:13I don't know what the third dog's language was,
0:33:13 > 0:33:18it was more swear words and all kinds of stuff.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21Back here now. Back here now.
0:33:25 > 0:33:30We get a few awkward ones that either don't know the way home
0:33:30 > 0:33:33or they just want to stay on the mountain,
0:33:33 > 0:33:36so it's a little bit more difficult with the weather being so hot
0:33:36 > 0:33:39to shift them.
0:33:39 > 0:33:42The dogs get tired very quickly, the shepherds get very tired.
0:33:56 > 0:33:58HE WHISTLES
0:34:06 > 0:34:09SHEEP BLEAT
0:34:38 > 0:34:44As it becomes harder to make a living here,
0:34:44 > 0:34:47fewer local people are farming Snowdonia,
0:34:47 > 0:34:50and there's been a huge loss of knowledge
0:34:50 > 0:34:53about living in these mountains.
0:34:53 > 0:34:55SHEEP BLEAT
0:34:55 > 0:34:59You can't just bring a person in to gather such a large area and say,
0:34:59 > 0:35:03"You stand over there with your dog and gather that part of the mountain."
0:35:03 > 0:35:05They don't know which part to gather.
0:35:05 > 0:35:08It's been passed on from generation to generation, hasn't it.
0:35:14 > 0:35:17The low price of lamb and wool is making it increasingly hard
0:35:17 > 0:35:20for the shepherds, and more communities are now reliant
0:35:20 > 0:35:25on Snowdonia's huge influx of summer visitors in order to survive.
0:35:28 > 0:35:32Tourism isn't a new thing here, of course.
0:35:32 > 0:35:34People have been visiting for centuries.
0:35:34 > 0:35:37It is simply their numbers that have changed.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40INDISTINCT CHATTER
0:35:45 > 0:35:50The first visitors to these mountains
0:35:50 > 0:35:53didn't come for the scenery,
0:35:53 > 0:35:56they were geologists and plant collectors.
0:35:57 > 0:36:00And they needed guides to shepherd them around the mountains.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05The first guides were the local farmers,
0:36:05 > 0:36:10and as word spread of Snowdonia's beauty,
0:36:10 > 0:36:11the competition amongst guides grew.
0:36:12 > 0:36:15And many turned to their second love,
0:36:15 > 0:36:19poetry, to advertise their expertise.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23Well, a famous guide was a fellow called William Williams.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26William Williams' Guide To Snowdon.
0:36:26 > 0:36:32"Anxious that all those who bode in England, Scotland or old Ireland
0:36:32 > 0:36:35"Should place their feet upon much higher land
0:36:35 > 0:36:38"Gives notice that if here they'll ride
0:36:38 > 0:36:41"He with much pleasure as their guide
0:36:41 > 0:36:43"Will show them quarries, lakes and mines
0:36:43 > 0:36:46"Snowdon and the place he finds
0:36:46 > 0:36:49"Plants that nowhere else abound
0:36:49 > 0:36:52"And which by him alone are found
0:36:52 > 0:36:56"Waterfalls with various actions
0:36:56 > 0:37:00"Minerals, ores and petrifactions
0:37:00 > 0:37:04"Anglers too, who with a boat can be supplied
0:37:04 > 0:37:08"And when afloat will find that once by asking him
0:37:08 > 0:37:10"The places where the best trout swim
0:37:10 > 0:37:14"In fact, to him, no place is new
0:37:14 > 0:37:17"Within the range of Snowdon view
0:37:17 > 0:37:21"And as a guide midst many millions
0:37:21 > 0:37:24"There's none so good as William Williams."
0:37:24 > 0:37:30But he fell when he was guiding people up Snowdon in 1861
0:37:30 > 0:37:32and died.
0:37:34 > 0:37:39The cliffs around Snowdon, Wales' highest peak,
0:37:39 > 0:37:42are to this day not places to be taken lightly.
0:37:44 > 0:37:48And in the summer when the villages become inundated with tourists,
0:37:48 > 0:37:50those in the know
0:37:50 > 0:37:54head to one of Snowdonia's most iconic pieces of rock,
0:37:54 > 0:37:56Clogwyn, the Black Cliff.
0:37:59 > 0:38:01Clogwyn's really special.
0:38:01 > 0:38:05I only get that feeling when I come over the top of that hill
0:38:05 > 0:38:09and I see that crag, I don't get it anywhere else.
0:38:09 > 0:38:11Clogwyn is a volcanic cliff,
0:38:11 > 0:38:14where Johnny entered into the annals of climbing history
0:38:14 > 0:38:18with an ascent of the Indian Face in 1986.
0:38:18 > 0:38:23A feat which has only been repeated four times since.
0:38:23 > 0:38:28The names of the climbs here say it all.
0:38:28 > 0:38:31Some of the faces around the side, on the pinnacle,
0:38:31 > 0:38:35things like Psycho Killer and Margins Of The Mind, things like that,
0:38:35 > 0:38:37that don't say, "climb me, climb me."
0:38:37 > 0:38:41Shaft Of The Dead Man, that's not very nice, is it?
0:38:46 > 0:38:50Clogwyn is rhyolite, it's the same stuff as granite
0:38:50 > 0:38:54but it's come out really quickly and cooled really quickly,
0:38:54 > 0:38:56so it's like glass.
0:38:58 > 0:39:01You've got to use it quite accurately
0:39:01 > 0:39:05and it puts your body in very precise positions.
0:39:07 > 0:39:11The solving what to do, it needs to be done quickly and decisively,
0:39:11 > 0:39:13and you've got to look very carefully,
0:39:13 > 0:39:17so you take your eyes out from the rock and scan,
0:39:17 > 0:39:20and by moving your head, you can see where things are.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44Clogwyn has this weird juxtaposition in the climb world,
0:39:44 > 0:39:48there's some of the hardest climbs in Britain on its face,
0:39:48 > 0:39:53set against the backdrop of thousands of people chugging up the hill
0:39:53 > 0:39:55in a little train towards their summit.
0:39:56 > 0:40:02But it's a different mentality, this idea of summiting,
0:40:02 > 0:40:03from actually getting into the rock
0:40:03 > 0:40:07and enjoying the process of being there.
0:40:16 > 0:40:20Nowhere are those two takes on what a mountain means to people
0:40:20 > 0:40:25more exposed than on Clogwyn when you're trying to stay alive,
0:40:25 > 0:40:29trying to get a tiny wire into a crack,
0:40:29 > 0:40:33and you've got Thomas The Tank trundling up behind you.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37You can even hear the train whilst you're climbing.
0:40:37 > 0:40:40TRAIN TOOTS
0:40:48 > 0:40:50Get a climber's view of Snowdonia
0:40:50 > 0:40:53and you'll notice ancient trade routes
0:40:53 > 0:40:56that have been cut into the landscape.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00There are over 1,500 miles of pathways through these mountains.
0:41:02 > 0:41:04MOTOR STARTS
0:41:06 > 0:41:10And it falls upon the wardens to keep them open for walkers.
0:41:10 > 0:41:15Though for Rhys it's clearly more than just a job.
0:41:16 > 0:41:19For me, it's a much deeper involvement with the landscape
0:41:19 > 0:41:22when working with these track-ways.
0:41:22 > 0:41:25The feeling of being in a long line of people responsible
0:41:25 > 0:41:30for creating and keeping them open, and keeping that history alive.
0:41:30 > 0:41:36A lot of the routes that we maintain are very ancient ones
0:41:36 > 0:41:37that would have linked communities.
0:41:37 > 0:41:42They might have been paths to the chapel, postman's routes,
0:41:42 > 0:41:45and they might have been tracks to take goods from a farm,
0:41:45 > 0:41:49perhaps to be sold in the nearest village or the nearest market.
0:41:49 > 0:41:51There is one that crosses the Cader Idris range,
0:41:51 > 0:41:54the Ffordd Ddu in Welsh, the Black Road,
0:41:54 > 0:41:57that was used by the Welsh princes to get to their castle,
0:41:57 > 0:41:59Castell y Bere, on the other side of the mountain.
0:41:59 > 0:42:02And there is a tradition that stretches back,
0:42:02 > 0:42:05of course, 800 years or so.
0:42:11 > 0:42:15Not all the paths we clear are used extensively,
0:42:15 > 0:42:17but I don't really mind that.
0:42:17 > 0:42:21It's the quieter ones very often that turn up the most surprises.
0:42:29 > 0:42:32I often try and look out for hen harriers up here,
0:42:32 > 0:42:35it's a fantastic spot.
0:42:36 > 0:42:39Very often the first thing that you'll see is this
0:42:39 > 0:42:42little white speck, some people liken it to a seagull,
0:42:42 > 0:42:46but to me it looks almost like a bit of drifting snow,
0:42:46 > 0:42:50a little snowflake, and to see that in summer is a curious thing.
0:42:53 > 0:42:58Hen Harriers are one of Britain's rarest birds,
0:42:58 > 0:43:01and in summer they follow their main prey species,
0:43:01 > 0:43:05meadow pipits and skylarks, to the moorlands of remote mountainsides.
0:43:06 > 0:43:09The dense heather of these moorlands
0:43:09 > 0:43:12also provides good protection for these ground-nesting raptors.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19HARRIER CALLS
0:43:21 > 0:43:23It only takes a few weeks
0:43:23 > 0:43:26for the chicks to grow large enough to fledge.
0:43:28 > 0:43:30It happens in such a short period of time
0:43:30 > 0:43:33it almost seems like a small miracle.
0:43:34 > 0:43:37They're still a rare sight in this part of the world.
0:43:37 > 0:43:41Last year there were only 40 to 50 successful breeding pairs
0:43:41 > 0:43:43in the whole of Wales.
0:43:43 > 0:43:46So to spend any time with them at all is a rare privilege.
0:43:48 > 0:43:51SHEEP BLEAT
0:43:52 > 0:43:54Shearing is one of the few times
0:43:54 > 0:43:56the community does come together nowadays.
0:43:56 > 0:44:00These Welsh mountain sheep are bred for their meat
0:44:00 > 0:44:01rather than their wool,
0:44:01 > 0:44:04but the insulation that has kept them alive
0:44:04 > 0:44:08on the mountains for the past six months still needs to be shorn.
0:44:10 > 0:44:14It's a highly competitive time as the shearers are paid per sheep.
0:44:18 > 0:44:22They usually shear between 250 and 300 sheep a day.
0:44:24 > 0:44:27It's still good to have one top gun, lead shearer,
0:44:27 > 0:44:30and everybody's trying to knock him off, you know.
0:44:45 > 0:44:49The wool doesn't have the same value it used to.
0:44:49 > 0:44:53Years ago, it would pay for half the year's rent on the farm.
0:44:53 > 0:44:58Now, my wool cheque will probably put me a tank full of diesel.
0:44:58 > 0:45:01But still, wool produce is very, very expensive,
0:45:01 > 0:45:03so I don't know what's happening.
0:45:03 > 0:45:07Maybe we should start knitting or something, you know. HE CHUCKLES
0:45:35 > 0:45:38The timing of shearing is crucial.
0:45:39 > 0:45:42If it's done too late, the wool won't have enough time
0:45:42 > 0:45:48to grow again before winter, which in Snowdonia is never far away.
0:45:49 > 0:45:55At the end of summer there is a kind of heathery time
0:45:55 > 0:46:00when all the bikers, and the hikers, and the walkers, go back home,
0:46:00 > 0:46:05and you no longer hear chattering and yelling among the rocks.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20And the great silence falls on the mountains,
0:46:20 > 0:46:25but a silence full of the voice of Eryri,
0:46:25 > 0:46:28the true voice, which is water, water everywhere.
0:46:37 > 0:46:40THUNDER ROLLS
0:46:47 > 0:46:52This valley in particular is noted for the volume of rain
0:46:52 > 0:46:55because we get over 100 inches of rain here.
0:46:55 > 0:46:57But these Welsh mountain sheep,
0:46:57 > 0:47:01they are used to finding shelter before the rain comes,
0:47:01 > 0:47:03so now with the clouds coming in,
0:47:03 > 0:47:06and the sheep looking for somewhere to shelter,
0:47:06 > 0:47:09maybe it's time for us to shelter as well or we'll get wet.
0:47:15 > 0:47:18Snowdonia is officially the wettest place in Britain.
0:47:18 > 0:47:24Over 4.5 metres of rain falls here every year,
0:47:24 > 0:47:28and most of it falls now, in the autumn.
0:47:41 > 0:47:44It's a wretched time of year for those who have to
0:47:44 > 0:47:47make a living from Snowdonia's mountains.
0:47:47 > 0:47:54After October, the sun won't reach Gwyn's farm for another four months.
0:47:56 > 0:48:00The changing climate signals the time of departure
0:48:00 > 0:48:03for the fledgling swallow chicks.
0:48:03 > 0:48:05By the time they return next year,
0:48:05 > 0:48:09they will have travelled over 12,000 miles in their migration.
0:48:12 > 0:48:15It's also a time of increased unpredictability
0:48:15 > 0:48:18and danger for the climbers who come here.
0:48:22 > 0:48:24ENGINE STARTS
0:48:24 > 0:48:26But Snowdonia's unique geography
0:48:26 > 0:48:30means that you can escape the tempestuous mountains,
0:48:30 > 0:48:33and within a matter of minutes, be on Gogarth,
0:48:33 > 0:48:36one of Britain's best sea cliff crags.
0:48:38 > 0:48:44The sea cliffs around Snowdonia are older than the mountains themselves.
0:48:44 > 0:48:49And old rock needs experienced hands if it's going to be climbed safely.
0:48:50 > 0:48:55The rock is very old, it's like 650 million years old, pre-Cambrian,
0:48:55 > 0:48:58but because it's been here a long time, some of it's gone to talc
0:48:58 > 0:49:02basically, and so, some rocks break off and some snap,
0:49:02 > 0:49:04some of them are really solid,
0:49:04 > 0:49:09so you've got to have a knack of working out what's what.
0:49:33 > 0:49:36You're not quite sure what's going to happen,
0:49:36 > 0:49:38that's what makes it fun here.
0:49:40 > 0:49:44It does engross you mentally, it's a puzzle,
0:49:44 > 0:49:48and it gets your blood racing.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02Some people experience the landscape through living in it,
0:50:02 > 0:50:05others by working in it, but for me, I mean,
0:50:05 > 0:50:08I've climbed on the rock all these years,
0:50:08 > 0:50:12in a way, I've learnt it by actually feeling it with my hands.
0:50:19 > 0:50:23It takes time to be a good climber, you've got to know a lot about rock.
0:50:24 > 0:50:26There is no better place than Snowdonia
0:50:26 > 0:50:29to learn about the different varieties of rock.
0:50:37 > 0:50:40Such a unique and intimate knowledge of the landscape
0:50:40 > 0:50:42through its geology is rare,
0:50:42 > 0:50:48and it sets Johnny apart as one of Snowdonia's true insiders.
0:50:51 > 0:50:55The proximity of the sea to the mountains of Snowdonia
0:50:55 > 0:50:59is more than just a bonus for climbers,
0:50:59 > 0:51:04it has created a globally important kingdom on a miniature scale.
0:51:06 > 0:51:10The constant influx of fresh, moisture-laden air
0:51:10 > 0:51:13from the Irish Sea into the valleys of Snowdonia
0:51:13 > 0:51:18makes it a perfect location for some of Britain's most sensitive plants.
0:51:20 > 0:51:21At this time of year,
0:51:21 > 0:51:24it's very easy to appreciate a forest on a grand scale,
0:51:24 > 0:51:29you get all the colours coming through.
0:51:29 > 0:51:32But there is another world underneath that,
0:51:32 > 0:51:34which people often pass.
0:51:37 > 0:51:42Lichens are extremely sensitive to air pollution,
0:51:42 > 0:51:47and they've become increasingly rare across Britain.
0:51:47 > 0:51:51Yet the wet autumnal conditions in Wales are so perfect
0:51:51 > 0:51:54that three quarters of all the lichens in Britain
0:51:54 > 0:51:57can be found here.
0:52:00 > 0:52:06In fact, Wales is the most diverse lichen environment on Earth.
0:52:08 > 0:52:13Just a single wall can be such a fascinating treasure trove.
0:52:14 > 0:52:19It's almost like entering into a sub-marine environment.
0:52:20 > 0:52:24They are almost coral-like in formation.
0:52:25 > 0:52:27And they have some beautiful names.
0:52:27 > 0:52:31The map lichen, Rhizocarpon geographicum.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36The matchstick lichen, the Cladonias,
0:52:36 > 0:52:39has bright red tips to them.
0:52:41 > 0:52:45There is a long history of fascination
0:52:45 > 0:52:47with this bizarre underworld.
0:52:47 > 0:52:49It wasn't long ago that people believed
0:52:49 > 0:52:52they had medicinal properties.
0:52:53 > 0:52:57Lobaria pulmonaria, the tree lungwort.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02The idea was that if some aspect of the plan looked similar
0:53:02 > 0:53:05to an organ in the body,
0:53:05 > 0:53:08that plant was then taken to be a source of medication
0:53:08 > 0:53:10for any illness,
0:53:10 > 0:53:16and so this tree lungwort was used for respiratory problems.
0:53:16 > 0:53:20It had no effect at all.
0:53:23 > 0:53:26This combination of diverse micro world
0:53:26 > 0:53:30and the many habitats amongst the peaks and valleys of Snowdonia
0:53:30 > 0:53:35make it truly one of Britain's unique wildernesses.
0:53:35 > 0:53:40But Rhys knows that this wilderness can't be taken for granted.
0:53:42 > 0:53:44Snowdonia's always been in a state of change
0:53:44 > 0:53:46and probably always will be.
0:53:47 > 0:53:52The demands on the land will change
0:53:52 > 0:53:54and more people will visit it.
0:53:56 > 0:54:00In the middle of all that, I think we need to realise
0:54:00 > 0:54:03the value of keeping undisturbed areas for the richness of species.
0:54:05 > 0:54:09And to protect this cultural heritage that we have,
0:54:09 > 0:54:13which otherwise run the risk of disappearing for all time.
0:54:18 > 0:54:24Yet for many it is less HOW the land in Snowdonia will be used
0:54:24 > 0:54:27than WHO is responsible for its future.
0:54:34 > 0:54:38With winter setting in, Gwyn has again sent his sheep
0:54:38 > 0:54:41down to the lowland pastures,
0:54:41 > 0:54:44but this year he has kept back a special flock,
0:54:44 > 0:54:46which he will feed through the winter.
0:54:48 > 0:54:52All the other sheep have left the farm, they've gone to the lowlands.
0:54:52 > 0:54:56These are more like pets really, and they're to encourage Jack,
0:54:56 > 0:54:59my grandson, Jack is six,
0:54:59 > 0:55:02for him to, like I did,
0:55:02 > 0:55:05grow up with animals around him, because being up here farming,
0:55:05 > 0:55:09it's not pounds, shillings and pence, it's about wanting to be here,
0:55:09 > 0:55:12it's that passion you have for wildlife, and for farming,
0:55:12 > 0:55:14and for shepherding, really.
0:55:16 > 0:55:20HE SHAKES FEED Come on, girls. Come on, girls.
0:55:22 > 0:55:26By the time he comes to an age when he can decide for himself
0:55:26 > 0:55:29whether he wants to sell them or he wants to start farming,
0:55:29 > 0:55:31then he'll have that choice.
0:55:34 > 0:55:38The main thing is that there is still be somebody here farming, you know.
0:55:38 > 0:55:40For me, that is very, very important,
0:55:40 > 0:55:43that there is a family here at Blaen y Nant,
0:55:43 > 0:55:48and a lot of other upland farms, before they get amalgamated,
0:55:48 > 0:55:51farmhouses taken back as holiday accommodation,
0:55:51 > 0:55:54and land then not being farmed properly.
0:55:54 > 0:55:58For me it's important that there's somebody here,
0:55:58 > 0:56:03that there has been for hundreds of years, tending to the land,
0:56:03 > 0:56:07tending to the animals, keeping tradition going, you know.
0:56:10 > 0:56:14It takes a lifetime of experience to learn how to farm in harmony
0:56:14 > 0:56:19with the landscape and wildlife in the mountains of Snowdonia.
0:56:19 > 0:56:24Three quarters of North Wales is devoted to farmland,
0:56:24 > 0:56:26but the number of farmers who can make a living from it
0:56:26 > 0:56:30falls year on year.
0:56:30 > 0:56:34There will come a time when Britain needs farmers like Gwyn
0:56:34 > 0:56:36to feed our crowded island,
0:56:36 > 0:56:41so we can't afford to lose their knowledge.
0:56:41 > 0:56:44Two months and it will be flat out again.
0:56:45 > 0:56:48There will be plenty of work to do.
0:56:50 > 0:56:55Snowdonia has always been one of Britain's treasured landscapes,
0:56:55 > 0:57:00though its resilience to change is not everlasting.
0:57:00 > 0:57:05Yet those who know it best know there is a permanence
0:57:05 > 0:57:10to its wilderness that will never be replaced.
0:57:11 > 0:57:16Mae'n well i ni adael y mynyddoedd
0:57:16 > 0:57:20Yma I aros lle mae
0:57:20 > 0:57:23Nhw Rhwng eu tynged a'r gwynt.
0:57:23 > 0:57:27We had better let these mountains remain where they are
0:57:27 > 0:57:30Between their fate and the wind
0:57:32 > 0:57:35Were we to shepherd them with our years
0:57:35 > 0:57:37That would not make a whit of difference
0:57:37 > 0:57:40To their shape and their colour as mountains
0:57:41 > 0:57:44For their outline is for us
0:57:44 > 0:57:47An assurance of the rock's strength
0:57:47 > 0:57:52And the guarantee of a tender blade in that inheritance
0:57:52 > 0:57:57Which is faith in the roar of the wind
0:57:57 > 0:58:03The faith that has no wish to move mountains.
0:58:05 > 0:58:09Next time, the New Forest.
0:58:11 > 0:58:15A magical Eden, thick with myth and legend
0:58:17 > 0:58:22and one of Britain's most loved wild places.
0:58:43 > 0:58:46Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd