19c Mostly Cloudy
Barmouth Viaduct at Sunset 
Llanberis from Penllyn 
Morfa Bychan beach near Porthmadog 
NOT even an owl stirs nor a dog barks in the village as the White Horse basks in the chill limelight of a wintery moon. But then again, we are some 800 feet above sea level here in Capel Garmon, in the hills that clamber up the Conwy Valley just a couple of miles above the tourist honey pot of Betws y Coed.
The pair of concrete horses' heads at the car park entrance stubbornly refuse to acknowledge my presence, while the deserted picnic tables hark back to warmer times when ample bottoms warmed up their now shivering timbers.
Popular with walkers and ramblers, and a place to chill out for holidaymakers seeking to escape the suffocating hordes that throng Betws' pubs in the summer, the views from here are to kill for. They are, if anything, accentuated viewed by moonlight.
The White Horse stands on a sharp bend on the narrow lane leading through the village, opposite an old shop full of village character that seems to have long since pulled down the shutters.
The metal mail box and the traditional red telephone kiosk standing to attention next to it indicate that it would at one time have been the post office, an important centre for village gossip and social interaction.
I depress the latch on the pub's tightly shut wooden door, only half expecting it to open, and its loud click echoes through the place as I gingerly make my way inside.
Just a couple of heads turn in the bar this early evening to inspect this stranger in town, but they soon settle down again to watch the news from Cardiff on the huge TV screen on the far wall next to a pool table.
I assume that this is the public bar, an immaculately maintained room that's spotlessly clean and dazzlingly white, with a real fire crackling away in one corner and countless mugs dangling lazily from black-painted beams.
This inn has been part of village life since the 16th century, and stands as one of the last bastions against a total shutdown in rural services. A comprehensive price list of confectionery pinned behind the bar indicates that it doubles up as the local tuck shop.
This is reputedly where former Tory leader William Hague - Mr 14 Pints A Day - met his wife-to-be Ffion, but don't let it put you off.
It's dotted with settles full of country character and oozes atmosphere, even if a little less illumination wouldn't go amiss, and has quite a reputation for its nightly food offering.
The menu is interesting, while the specials board this evening includes simple pub staples such as liver and onions (£7.50) and sausage and mash (£5.95).
