In a display of bare faced cheek UKC stalwart Dan Arkle has made the national papers this week, with a selfie taken in the buff (OK, not even in a Buff) on a wintry Crib Coch (sorry, Goch).

Dan, a professional photographer, took the series of self timer shots last winter. He was worried about frost bite, he tells us, and he doesn't mean his feet. What possessed him?

'I actually took the photo before UKCs spate of nude photos last year, but couldn't decide if it was one to go public with as I was aware the genie would not go back in the bottle!' he explains.

'I had been waiting for good conditions for some dawn photos on the ridge and finally got the forecast that I wanted at 10pm the night before, so I drove through the night to Wales and climbed the mountain by torchlight to be up there for the dawn.'

'One of the reasons people go into the mountains is for a feeling of awe at being surrounded by powerful and elemental forces. I took the photo to highlight how weak and vulnerable humans are in such a place without modern technology and protective equipment. I think the image works as I look so out of place, and in danger, although with those particular conditions and my experience I was actually safe.'

'It was surprisingly mild at just below zero with no wind which is a good job as I was worried about getting frostbite. I walked a few hundred yards naked until my feet got too cold. It felt very free to not be weighed down by my usual equipment and to feel the snow crunching between my toes. There was a huge sheer drop to each side so I needed to go very slowly and carefully. However the snow was fresh and grippy rather than icy, so it looks far more dangerous than it actually was.'

'The dawn came, and was spectacular, shining golden light through the low cloud. I decided a photo would look better with someone in it. So I set the camera on a tripod and modeled myself.'



'I think this picture shows how vulnerable humans are in the mountain environment. The mountains are special places and it's a privilege to be amongst them. It looks unnatural in the sense that we can't survive up there without our equipment.'

Well, you did have one wee bit of equipment on you, Dan.

For more of Dan's fab photos, most of them fully clothed, see his website