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INTRODUCTION

Snowdonia can justifiably lay claim to the finest mountain walking in Britain. That’s a bold statement to make but the only serious challengers are the Scottish Highlands and the English Lake District and this magical, mystical corner of Wales contrives to combine the best features of both.

The mountains in the north of Snowdonia National Park are big and raw-boned, matching the majesty of their Scottish counterparts. Rock is never far from the surface, giving them a challengingly rugged texture. They are armour-plated with vast sweeps of naked stone and embossed with crags that gleam in the sunshine and glower in the rain. They are indelibly scarred by deep, rocky cwms where long-gone glaciers have taken huge bites from their flanks. They bristle with jagged ridges, which set scramblers’ pulses racing and spirits soaring, and are crowned by sharp, spiky summits.

Lliwedd, the last nail in the Snowdon Horseshoe (Walk 16)

At the same time, like the Lakeland Fells they are closely packed, clustered round intimate valleys and bound together by high ridges that lend themselves to satisfying horseshoes or long, high-level treks, picking off summits as you go.

They are also in exactly the right place, sufficiently close to the major centres of population to be accessible for a fleeting weekend yet just far enough away to retain an essential aura of remoteness. The widespread use of Welsh as the day-to-day language of the locals, overheard in villages with near-unpronounceable, tongue-twisting names, only adds to their sense of otherworldliness.

They also have an extra dimension that only proximity to two coasts can bring. With the Menai Straits to the north and the great sweep of Cardigan Bay to the west, the sea is a feature in many a summit view, projecting its own constantly changing charm and ever-shifting light. There are few pleasures to match dropping into a swiftly darkening valley after witnessing the sun sink into a blood-red sea.

Sychnant Pass in the Carneddau (Walk 1)

And they pack in an astonishing variety. At first glance the Carneddau in the north seem to be huge, grassy mounds, but closer exploration reveals that they are not without drama, as some of the national park’s most impressive and least frequented crags are tucked away beneath their seemingly innocuous flanks. Across the deep trench of the Nant Ffrancon stand the Glyderau, huge, crag-girt fortresses of solid stone which rival and sometimes even outshine Snowdon itself in their rocky challenges, especially on the sharp crest of Tryfan.

Tryfan’s North Ridge (Walk 8)

But Snowdon will not be outdone. Although surrounded by a cluster of equally dramatic acolytes, the highest mountain south of the Roman Wall refuses to be ignored and seldom is. Don’t expect to have it to yourself, no matter how unpromising the weather may be. The Horseshoe, starting on the tightrope of Crib Goch and ending on the double summit of Y Lliwedd, is unrivalled as the area’s most famous and most challenging short(ish) walk, a must for every ambitious walker and scrambler. In all, 15 peaks that top the magic 3000ft contour are crammed into this northern sector of the park.

The Welsh 3000s
Snowdon
Snowdon/Yr Wyddfa	3560ft (1085m)
Garnedd Ugain/Crib y Ddysgl	3494ft (1065m)
Crib Goch	3028ft (923m)
Glyderau
Elidir Fawr	3031ft (924m)
Y Garn	3107ft (947m)
Glyder Fawr	3283ft (999m)
Glyder Fach	3262ft (994m)
Tryfan	3002ft (915m)
Carneddau
Pen yr Ole Wen	3208ft (978m)
Carnedd Dafydd	3425ft (1044m)
Carnedd Llewelyn	3490ft (1064m)
Yr Elen	3156ft (962m)
Foel Grach	3201ft (976m)
Garnedd Uchaf/Gwenllian	3038ft (926m)
Foel-fras	3089ft (942m)

The Miners’ Track with (l to r) Lliwedd, Snowdon and Crib Goch beyond (Walk 17)

To the south the heights diminish – although Cadair Idris, a scant 71ft shy of the magic figure, can hold its own in any company – and the valleys soften a little but the mountains lose nothing of their challenge and character. Each range – the Moelwyns, Rhinogs, Arans, Arenigs and Tarrens – has its own appeal and character. They are by turns magnificent, magical and melancholy. These are big mountains with big personalities and they leave an indelible impression.

There is a Welsh word, hiraeth, which defies exact translation into English but might best be rendered as ‘a wistful longing for Wales’. Spend much time among these mountains and anyone with an ounce of romance in their soul will learn its meaning, and will feel the deep pull of these mountains whenever they are far away.

Geology

Although relatively compact, at just 2132km2 (823 square miles) Snowdonia reveals an astonishingly diverse geology born of fire, water and ice. The most eye-catching peaks, such as Snowdon itself, the Glyderau and Carneddau are the children of long-extinct volcanoes that spewed out molten lava to create rock hard-wearing enough to resist the glaciers of the last Ice Age, which gouged huge valleys and hanging cwms from the mountainsides more than 10,000 years ago.

Cwm Idwal (Walk 10)

Yet almost as significant – perhaps even more so in the life and history of the area – are the sedimentary rocks, laid down on ocean floors and long-vanished estuaries. Today the most noticeable of these are the huge slate deposits which, in turn, spawned the vast caverns, quarries and spoil heaps that still overshadow the towns of Llanberis and Blaenau Ffestiniog. But scarcely a hillside or a valley totally escaped the delvers and quarrymen, and almost every view will include at least some workings, no matter how small.

To the west the Rhinogs, overlooking the sea, contain another geological surprise with outcrops of gritstone, more usually associated with the Pennines and the Peak District. This is a land of constant revelations, where nothing can be taken for granted.

History

The story of man is written deep into this landscape although, this being Wales, it can sometimes be hard to differentiate myth and legend from fact. Early man certainly left his mark in the shape of stone circles and standing stones, such as those seen on Tal y Fan (Walk 1), as well as in huge mounds of stones, built for unknown purposes with enormous effort on some of the highest peaks.

Later men built even bigger mounds of stones in the quest for slate. This was already an industry when the Romans arrived in the area, and the earliest written records date from the 14th century. Large-scale production began towards the end of the 18th century, with the need to roof the booming towns and cities of the Industrial Revolution, and by Victorian times Wales was the biggest slate producer in the world, with much of its output coming from the north.

Between pre-history and modern times came the rise and fall of the independent Princes of Wales, who finally perished in bitter wars with the English. The names of the last two are commemorated in the names of great peaks, Carnedd Llywelyn and Carnedd Dafydd, but works of the English victors are more ubiquitous, in the form of a ring of grim fortresses, such as Conwy, Caernarfon and Harlech, built to subdue the locals.

Harlech Castle

Wildlife

The Snowdon Lily is the emblem of the national park

With its wide range of habitats, from high mountains to lush valleys, Snowdonia is home to an astonishing array of species, including some, like the Snowdon lily – the emblem of the national park – which are unique to the area. Another rarity is the Gwyniad, a unique sub-species of fish which lives in Llyn Tegid (Bala Lake), where it was trapped after the last Ice Age 10,000 years ago.

Otters and polecats are to be seen in the park, and the shy pine marten is thought to breed in the extensive conifer forests, although it is hard to track down. In the air birds of prey, notably peregrine falcon, merlin and red kite, patrol the skies. Ravens are frequent visitors to the highest ground although, given the proximity of the coast, you are just as likely to share the summits with gulls, which have learned that there are easy pickings to be had from walkers’ rucksacks. Osprey also breed at Glaslyn, near Porthmadog, where a viewing station has been set up.

Ravens are frequently seen on the highest ground

Some of the easiest ‘wildlife’ to spot are the semi-wild ponies which graze the Carneddau, and the feral goats which are to be found almost everywhere.

Getting there

Most visitors will arrive by car from the M6 motorway, either via the A5 or along the much-improved A55 coast road. For those who prefer to use public transport the area has two main network railway lines. The holiday resorts of the north are served by the North Wales Coast Line, which runs on to Bangor and Holyhead and also has connections down the Conwy Valley Line to Betws-y-Coed and Blaenau Ffestiniog. The Cambrian line comes in from the south east via Shrewsbury and Welshpool and then up the coast to Porthmadog and Pwllheli. National Express Coaches also serve the area.

Getting around

It must be admitted that a car is the most convenient form of transport for walkers, especially for reaching some of the more out-of-the-way starting points: however, Snowdonia does enjoy some wonderful alternative transport options. Perhaps the most romantic are the ‘Great Little Trains’ – the preserved and restored lines that once served the thriving slate mines but which now carry tourists, bustling and wheezing their way through the very heart of the mountains. The combined Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railway offers a wonderful way to reach some of the routes, notably Walks 22 and 23 which start at Rhyd-Ddu station and Walk 25 starting from Beddgelert. The 200-year-old Ffestiniog Railway, running 22km (13½ miles) from the harbour at Porthmadog to Blaenau, claims to be the oldest narrow gauge railway in the world and runs three engines which are over 150 years old yet still manage to climb 700ft into the mountains. The Welsh Highland’s claim is to be longest heritage railway in the UK, running 40km (25 miles) from Caernarfon to Porthmadog via Beddgelert. In the south, squeezing between Cadair Idris and the Tarrens, the Talyllyn (this time the oldest preserved railway) runs 12km (7½ miles) from Tywyn to Nant Gwernol, and serves Walk 33. There is also, of course, the railway up Snowdon, but that’s hardly relevant to this guidebook other than as either a quirky novelty or intrusive irritant, depending on your point of view.

Beddgelert is well placed for walking

Less romantic but perhaps more useful are the local buses, particularly the Snowdon Sherpa which has routes to Betws-y-Coed and Capel Curig as well as the Ogwen and Llanberis passes.

Details of services change to a greater or lesser degree each season but Conwy Council (www.conwy.gov.uk) has published a combined timetable which draws together local bus services. This is also available from tourist offices and is very useful for planning journeys which may entail routes operated by different companies.

Where to stay

Snowdonia is a big place – more than 80km (50 miles) from north to south – and mountain roads are not the fastest, especially at peak holiday periods. So it pays to pick a base which will allow you to explore a given area, rather than trying to cover the whole park in a single trip. Fortunately most places are supplied with a variety of accommodation, from basic campsites and bunkhouses, to youth hostels, B&Bs, pubs and hotels.

For the Ogwen Valley, Bethesda and Capel Curig offer plenty of options with a youth hostel and camping at Ogwen itself. Betws-y-Coed is also an attractive option with plenty of hotels, B&Bs and campsites for those who prefer a greater choice and a more picturesque setting. For Snowdon and the Glyders the youth hostel at Pen-y-Pass could not be better placed, on a high col between the two ranges, though some may find it a little isolated on its high perch. Llanberis at the foot of the eponymous pass is a popular though less picturesque option.

Beddgelert is another attractive village, well placed for walking and with plenty of accommodation options. Visitors to the southern part of the national park may want to consider Bala or Dolgellau, while out west the coastal towns and villages around Harlech and Abermaw/Barmouth and the idyllic Mawddach Estuary have bags of appeal, especially if a walking trip is being combined with a family beach holiday.

Tal-y-Lyn

When to go

There’s no getting away from the fact that Snowdonia can be a bit moist. In fact it is officially one of the wettest places in the UK, which will come a no surprise to regular visitors, boasting – if that’s the right word – more than 4.4m (15ft) of rainfall in some years on Crib Goch. That’s a lot of rain in anyone’s book, but there are plenty of fine days too.

Llyn y Cwn and Tryfan (Walk 12)

Like all mountains, Snowdonia’s tend to make their own weather, and conditions can vary widely across the park. It is possible to stand on one massif in bright sunshine while looking across at Snowdon and the Glyderau swaddled in cloud. The proximity of the sea only complicates matters for the forecasters, but if the cloud on Snowdon is down to your ankles it is sometimes possible to rescue a day by heading south to the lower hills or out to the west to the Lleyn Peninsula, itself an area of outstanding beauty where conditions can be better.

In general, spring and early summer, from April through to June or July, often offer the driest weather. September and October also give some spectacular days, but August, by contrast, can be disappointing. During the coldest months the closeness of the sea can take the edge off winter temperatures, making them higher than might be expected on such high ground – much to the annoyance of ice climbers. However there are still plenty of days when temperatures at high levels are below freezing, which make conditions treacherous and demand ice axes and crampons. As with many UK mountains their most predictable feature is their sheer unpredictability.

Not surprisingly weekends and school holidays are the busiest times. On the weekends around the longest day in late June people attempting the Three Peaks Challenge – summiting Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon within 24 hours – only add to the crowds, and you may well find yourself queueing along Crib Goch, while the popular PyG Track from the Pen-y-Pass car park to Snowdon’s summit can be a crowded trudge.

Equipment

Clothing will vary with the time of year and from person to person but remember that conditions in the valley may bear little resemblance to those on the tops, where temperatures can be much lower and wind speeds much higher. Make sure your rucksack contains adequate spare clothing and waterproofs, no matter how blue the morning sky may be. Also carry extra food and drink in case of emergencies, or if the day turns out to be longer than expected.

The rucksack should also contain a first aid kit, torch with spare batteries and bulbs if necessary.

Always carry a compass and map. Do not rely solely on the maps in this book, which, to keep things to a manageable size, are mostly based on the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 scale, although for clarity some of the shorter routes (Routes 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 20 and 30) are shown at 1:25,000. All show only the immediate area of each walk, so that should you inadvertently walk ‘off the edge’ you will be lost. Hence it is also recommended that you carry the larger-scale 1:25,000 OS Outdoor Leisure or Explorer maps, as detailed at the beginning of each route, which not only include more detail but will allow you to identify surrounding tops and other features. Harvey Superwalker 1:25,000 maps cover the area, as do the Harvey British Mountain Maps at 1:40,000. Maps should be carried even if you prefer to use a GPS handset to navigate. Paper maps may be scornfully dismissed by some as ‘dead tree technology’ but at least they never run out of battery at the crucial moment and they still work after being dropped off an outcrop.

Mountain rescue

Snowdonia is covered by several mountain rescue teams, all made up of volunteers who give their valuable time unpaid. Please do not abuse their goodwill by making frivolous calls.

If you do need the team dial 999 and ask for the police, who will alert the appropriate team which will then call you back. Having made the call, keep the line clear. It may seem counter-intuitive, but if you have no signal at the site of an accident it may be easier to find one by gaining rather than losing height, as masts work on line of sight.

To help them get to you quickly make sure you have:

 the grid reference of the incident

 the nature of the incident

 the number of people involved

 age and medical information on the casualty

 an alternative phone number if possible.

Using this guide

Distances are given in kilometres and miles, heights in metres and feet. Because of the nature of the terrain some of the walks demand a greater degree of mountaincraft than others. Some of the routes, including popular rounds like the Snowdon Horseshoe, ascents of Tryfan and parts of the Glyderau also involve scrambles which call for a certain degree of agility and a head for heights. Please heed the warnings in the text and pick your routes accordingly, using variations where they are given if you are unsure of your ability or if the weather or conditions are against you. Remember the sobering words of the mountaineer Don Whillans, who was no shrinking violet: ‘It’ll be there next year. The trick is to make sure you are.’

Weekend crowds on Crib Goch

Timings are as walked by me, a bus pass holder with high mileage knees, and are inevitably subjective. They should be treated as a rough guide only until you have walked a few of the routes and had a chance to compare our respective paces and you have got the measure of my timings, which do not allow for stops.

Likewise the grade of difficulty is as I personally found it. Easy routes are fairly gentle strolls. Moderate walks demand more effort and may involve rough going. Strenuous routes are demanding days, often with steep climbs. The scrambles are about Grade 1 but may be exposed. Although they are well used some do call for a little route finding ability.

Place names

So far as place names are concerned I have tried to use the Welsh wherever practicable while also falling in with general usage. These days most visitors seem happy to use the Carneddau for what used to be called the Carnedds and the Glyderau is also gaining currency over the anglicised Glyders. Snowdon, however, is so far resisting all attempts to re-brand it Yr Wyddfa in the popular consciousness, and the National Park remains resolutely Snowdonia rather than Barc Cenedlaethol Eryri.

Despite my family roots in the Principality I am definitely no Welsh scholar, so where there is a dispute over spelling, such as Cadair/Cader, in the interests of consistency and avoiding confusion with the mapping I have appointed the Ordnance Survey the arbiter of correctness.