mount snowdon, any advice welcome!

[Cycling Naturalist]

Unlike Snowdon which is a mere pimple of a hillock.

You've obviously spotted that at 3,000 posts you get a years free subscription to the Daily Mail.

 

[Chris James]

5. Even innocuous paths like the Llanberis can be treacherous in bad weather and can require crampons, expecially on the bit by the saddle where the wind is very strong.

True enough, more than one fatality this winter on this 'path' as it banked out with snow and then froze.

Having said all that, and in a general spirit of adventure, walking up Snowdon is an absolute piece of cake.

If you pick reasonable weather and a weekend your main problem will be avoiding the hordes of otehr people who will be on the same path as you. Mostly it is just a case of common sense, mountain summits tend to be cold, windy places and your body temperature can drop alarmingly if you get wet due to rain or sweat. Likewise the summits are often in low cloud so require some form of navigation.

Pyg and Miner's paths are very popular and the shortest and involve the least height gain. The paths have been massively resurfaced and strengthened in recent years and it would be going some to get lost on them if you have common sense.

 

[Chris James]

Did Helvellyn on Sunday - tis still a serious place this time of year.

I was up there on Saturday. Striding Edge up, Swirral Edge down. We used crampons and axes on the descent. It was literally blowing a gale on the summit too - my wife's glasses froze up twice!

There were plenty of people wandering around aimlessly on the summt (someone asked us which way down as we got to the end of Striding Edge) and I saw one person wearing trackie bottoms and trainers.

 

[cisamcgu]

 

[Cycling Naturalist]

I was up there on Saturday. Striding Edge up, Swirral Edge down. We used crampons and axes on the descent. It was literally blowing a gale on the summit too - my wife's glasses froze up twice!

There were plenty of people wandering around aimlessly on the summt (someone asked us which way down as we got to the end of Striding Edge) and I saw one person wearing trackie bottoms and trainers.

It really gets me when having struggled to the top, there's a group wearing flip flops and shell suits complaining that it's only a short boring climb.

 

[papercorn2000]

Was it on the saddle going up the Llanberis path past Cloggie? I've been up in Mid May and the snow was quite deep on the top and visibility was about 20 yards.

It was near the top of the PYG track!
Had contemplated Crib Goch from the safety of the car park. I would probably still be in orbit had I tried that!

 

[papercorn2000]

Bloody hell, I must side with Patrick against Redcogs here! Having climbed extensively in both Wales and Scotland, Snowdon is still one of my favourite hills for running, walking and climbing.

 

[Chris James]

Small world eh! Same route here. It would have taken a brave man to stand upright on the ridge of Striding Edge in the wind!
.

I think it was windier on Sunday, but if I was at home I could have posted a picture of me standing on the top of the arete! Perhaps more daft than brave though.

I remember the first time I did Crib Goch I was overtaken as I inched my way along the arete (I was more nervous of heights in those days). A guy wearing approach shoes thrust past me and promptly fell flat on his face directly on top of the narrowest point of the ridge. About a foot further to the right and he would have dropped the entire cliff. He was a bit slower after that!

 

[Cycling Naturalist]

About a foot further to the right and he would have dropped the entire cliff. He was a bit slower after that!

I was on Y Gyrn a couple of years ago scanning Crib Goch with my binoculars at the time when a 56 year old teacher was blown off. Co-incidently, one of my staff who is a trainee climbing instructor was 200 feet below him at the time.