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Karabiner Mountaineering Club

Ty Powdwr - The Karabiner Mountaineering Club Hut

Group Accommodation in North Wales

The KMC owns a superb Mountain Hut in Snowdonia. Accommodation is available for use by mountaineering clubs, schools and other genuine educational establishments or similar groups.

Ty Powdwr is better equipped than a typical bunk-house, offering hostel-style accommodation. Weekend group bookings can be made for up to 17 people in two dormitories; mid-week bookings can be for up to 23 people in three dormitories. A fourth dormitory is always reserved for use by Karabiner Club members, who can use the Hut at any time. There is a very large kitchen, with excellent gas cooking facilities, plus a very comfortable lounge. There are separate male and female wash-rooms, both with hot showers, plenty of private parking and a very effective drying room.

Located near the village of Dinorwic, next to the Padarn Country Park, there are views from round the Hut towards Snowdon, over Llanberis and out to Anglesey. Ty Powdwr is within walking distance of Llanberis, and is 20 minutes from Bangor or Caernarfon.

Ty Powdwr




Booking

Accommodation at the hut is available for bookings by climbing clubs and other recognised organisations. Note that bookings must be made at least two months in advance: short notice bookings are not available.

Please contact the KMC hut booking secretary:


Current Hut Bookings (As of 20/08/2010)

 
DateNotes
August 28th - 30th External Club
August 31st - September 3rd Outdoor Pursuits Group
September 4th - 5th KMC meet (still awaiting confirmation)
September 9th - 12th External Club
September 13th - 17th Outdoor Pursuits Group
September 25th - 26th External Club
October 2nd - 3rd Outdoor Pursuits Group
October 9th - 10th Working Party
October 16th - 17th External Club
October 22nd - 24th External Club
October 25th - 29th Outdoor Pursuits Group
November No bookings to date
December 13th - 16th Outdoor Pursuits Group
December 25th - 28th KMC meet
December 31st - January 3rd KMC meet
December 21st - January 23rd External Club




Interior Pictures

The Lounge

The well equipped lounge, complete with a large gas stove to keep it warm even in the coldest weather.

  The Kitchen

The large kitchen, with plenty of food preparation space, gas cooking facilities and seating for large groups.

  A Dormitory

One of the dormitories, showing the alpine-bunk style sleeping accommodation.




Some History

Ty Powdwr was originally the black powder store for the Dinorwic Slate Quarries. The KMC selected the name for the building to reflect its historic use. The quarrymen blasted away a large fraction of the local mountain, Elidir Fawr, to obtain the slate that was one of the most common roofing materials in the 19th Century. Many men died in the process, but only about 1% of the slate extracted from the mountain actually made it onto roofs. Mining stopped during the 1960's as cheaper, better quality slate began to arrive from Spain and China.

When the KMC purchased the building in the early 1970's, Ty Powdwr was virtually a solid blockhouse, surrounded by blast walls and with no windows. Over the first 10 years members laboured in horrible conditions to provide electricity, gas, water and sewerage. Over the next 15 years or so, various bits were finished off and finally, the hut was developed from end to end. In subsequent years though, the members responsible for the building have continued to upgrade in the light of experience and new technology, reducing energy bills while increasing comfort and improving facilities. Maintenance of the Hut is an ongoing task!

  View over Ty Powdwr to Snowdon

A view over Ty Powdwr towards Snowdon.

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