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After a day of rain we drive into Wales for an early Sunday morning appointment at the white water rafting centre in Bala. If you look closely you can see Vicki subtly making herself known to the camera.

Seconds later and the raft hits the bottom of the falls. Apparently the water was really cold, but at least there was plenty of it.

A slightly calmer moment near the end of the ride.

The ride wasn't the longest in the world, but they'd picked a great stretch of river and after reaching the end they put everyone in a minibus and took them back up to the top - four runs in total, which is a bonus, because we only thought there'd be two.

Believe it or not, there's a whole raft full of people in this photo. This was one of the many other boats using the same stretch of river that day.

Vicki's boat on the same excellent stretch of river. You can just make her out on the starboard side at the back.

Sploosh!

On to the next section, battling through crowds of canoes...

More sploosh. The blur on this picture was a little disappointing, but still worth including.

A brief lull between sections often took place, probably just so people could catch their breath. Vicki seems to be having fun though.

Following the rain the previous day the river was quite high and fast flowing, even on relatively flat sections such as this one.

The instructors seemed to do a good job of making the ride interesting. The bloke in the middle doesn't seem to be enjoying it much though.

After the rafting, we spent a short time (cough) looking for our intended campsite, and here it is - Rynys farm camping site, near Betws-y-coed. The view was even more impressive than it looks from here.

After being woken early by a child and a dog, we met up with Matt in Betws-y-coed to ride the Marin trail. This is the 'before' shot, although there isn't an 'after' one. Shame about the blink.

Matt in action on the Marin trail. Full suspension essential.

Vicki tried to get past without being photographed, but she didn't quite escape, apart from the blur.

This is the photo you've been waiting for! Matt hits some air with both wheels. This was a very fast section as you can see.

One of the really great things about the Marin trail is the fantastic scenery. Wait, it's going to get even better.

Matt tries out one of the bikes we hired. This one was worth 1200 quid and had been assembled only the day before. Look closely in the background and you can see snow on the distant peaks.

Matt and Andy try to balance for a manly pose. After at least five attempts, this was the best photo we managed.

Awww, the happy couple. Thanks to Matt for the cheesy photo.

Scenery!

More scenery, this time snapped by Matt. Entirely un-digitally enhanced in any way.

Matt and Vicki stop to chat and admire the view.

This was meant to be an awesome action shot, set against a majestic backdrop, but it just looks like some bloke balancing on a bike. He was moving quite quickly, darn this advanced digital technology. Photo by Matt.

More scenery. It really was the perfect day for it as you can see, but it was also just the right temperature.

Still more scenery. The route goes right out into the hills, which is great because you feel like you've really escaped from civilisation.

Vicki in action after a particularly tricky climb.

This was probably the section called Pandora's rocks, which was quite rocky.

This shot taken seconds later to include the view.

I was going to crop and adjust this one but actually I think it looks big and quite epic already. Photo by Matt.

Matt at quite high speed on a rocky pavement. As previously stated, full suspension was essential, and made the ride that bit more enjoyable.

Vicki does the same section. This is getting near the end of the ride - 28km in total, took around four hours including stops.

Back in Betws-y-coed at the end, relaxing with a drink by the falls. Manly cut on Andy's shin sadly not due to bike ride (actually indoor climbing the previous day). Photo by Matt.