Snowdon dedicated as a Peace Blosssom Mountain.

The clean fresh air was a total tonic as we left Pen Y Pas on Saturday morning to take part in the dedication of Snowdon as an inspiration for Peace. The World Harmony Runners gathered at the foot of Snowdon where they presented the torch to Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas, the Presiding Officer of the National Assembly of Wales and Mrs. Meinir Owen, Chair of Gwynedd County Council, Mr Vince Hughes, Manager of the Snowdon Mountain Railway, Mr Chas Chapp, Retail, Catering and Purchasing Manager of Snowdon Mountain Railway and Charana Evans, Co-ordinator of the World Harmony Run, Wales. Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas offered a few kind words of welcome.

This was followed by a short video about the World Harmony Run in Wales and the presentation of a cake to Mrs. Owen.

The focal point for the runners this morning was a 5-mile Race Against the Train - a permutation of an annual event that pits runners against the train in a race to the summit of Snowdon - not an easy feat.

6 runners were up for the challenge and at the signal from Mrs Owen, the runners took off.

It's a long way to the top but first up was Stefan with Colm right on his heels and Mattheus in third spot,...

Roger fourth, Dhavala fifth and Abichal bringing up the rear. All the runners managed to beat the train to the top, though I have to admit that the train had to wait at Clogwyn for the track to be cleared of construction activity.

The weather was fairly clear at the top, though windy - as one would expect on the top of Wales, and the view is tremendous.

There is a triangulation point on the summit and all the runners gathered around with the honourable guests and several photographers, and the runners were awarded medals for their efforts.

Lord Thomas and the harmony runners share a special moment on top of Wales.

A nice moment to celebrate something in such a great place.

Several runners elected to race the train down and it made the journey for the passengers on the train all the more interesting.

Again the runners were victorious and were waiting at the station for the train to arrive.

Trains passing on the mountain.

When the train did arrive, it signalled the gathering to unveil the plaque dedicating Snowdon to Peace.

The harmony runners are very grateful to Kaivalya and to his wife Bhavani, who was inspired to begin this project several years ago.

The management at the station has been most helpful and generous in the realisation of this project, which could not have been completed without its assistance; the generosity of the management included erecting the plaque on the platform for all to see. Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas unveiled the plaque and said some nice things about the need for Harmony.

The restaurant at the station also very generously provided a sumptuous packed lunch for the runners and team members and included a slate coaster as a gift as well. Very kind.

So after refuelling, the Harmony Runners along with Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas set off to run up toward Pen y Pas.

The Harmony runners are very grateful to Sanjaya for his untiring support and his videoing of the World Harmony Run in the UK.

The next section had been covered the previous day so we began running at Chester, toward Birkenhead and the famous Ferry Across the Mersey.

The Beatles weren't the only group who made an impact on British and Liverpudlian culture, with Ferry Across the Mersey immortalised by Gerry and the Pacemakers in the 1960s.

The Mersey Ferry Company kindly offered The World Harmony Run free passage across the river and just before we docked, we heard a few bars from the iconic song.

View across the River Mersey, Liverpool.

Abichal in a reflective mood, contemplating the day's events and the journey across the river at the end of the day.

Ticket to ride?

Messing about on the river.

That was the end of the day's running and then it was off to our accommodation. Some lucky runners were able to stay at Hope Street Hotel, at which we were also offered accommodation on the 2006 World Harmony Run.

The final meal of the day was at The Red Fort, an Indian restaurant that served great food at a special price for the runners.

– Abichal Watkins

Distance: 94 km

Team Members:
Ondrej Vesely (Czech Republic), Stefan Ehrenfellner (Austria), Colm Magee (Ireland), Kamilla Hozlarova (Czech Republic), Matthias Eckerle (Germany), Rosta Vagner (Czech Republic), Balavan Thomas (England), Mark Collinson (England), Abichal Watkins (Wales), Sanjaya Spettigue (England), Kaivalya Torpy (England), Preramrita Fox (England), Artur (Poland), Janek (Poland)

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