Snowdon is the highest peak in Wales, and also the highest in the British Isles south of the Scottish Highlands. At 3,560 feet, this is not a particularly tall mountain, but the views are incredible and the the peak attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year making it the most popular mountain in the UK. One unique feature is the Snowdon Mountain Railway, a vintage steam train that takes visitors straight to the top.
In order to ensure a successful climb, we left a little bit of flexibility in our schedule so that our summit attempt would be on a clear day. We got lucky, the weather forecast on our chosen day was for clear skies with cool temperatures and no possibilities of rain. Perfect! We got up long before sunrise and drove about 45 minutes to the small town of Llanberis where we would begin the hike.
The parking lot was dark and there were only a few other people getting ready. The hike began along the town’s small streets, but after about half a mile we were on the official trail leading to the summit.
We opted to take the Llanberis path which is the most straight-forward approach to the summit. The trail meandered through beautiful rolling foothills, past happily grazing sheep and along the train tracks that lead all the way to the summit. Since we got an early start, there were very few other people on the way up, and we were able to enjoy the pastel-colored sunrise without the distraction of other hikers.
Hiking to the summit of Snowdon is relatively easy, especially after completing the Tour du Mont Blanc. The round trip distance is just under 10 miles, and the elevation gain is about 3,200 feet. We really enjoyed the climb and the weather couldn’t have been any better.
It took us about two hours to reach the summit. There were a couple of steep sections along the way, but nothing too challenging.
The winds were howling at the top, and the crowds were beginning to gather on the tiny little platform at the very peak, making it difficult to stand on top and shoot our summit video.
Instead of lingering on top, we found a small rock outcropping where we could admire the views and watch the people all celebrating their successful summit attempt.
When you hike a mountain like Snowdon, you have to be aware that because of its popularity there will be a lot of other people, and you just have to enjoy it for what it is. With that mindset, this was a very fun day hiking in a beautiful place.
One thing we’ve noticed after years and years of climbing to the summits of all sorts of mountains is that some tall mountains seem small, and some small mountains seem extremely tall. Snowdon, at the mere height of 3,560 feet, is a tiny mountain on paper. When you’re standing on the summit however, it feels enormous. A lot of this has to do with the surrounding landscape, and the views from Snowdon were sweeping, unobstructed, and made it feel like we were on top of the world.
It’s always a gamble trying to summit a mountain in a country like Wales with notoriously unpredictable weather. We were so happy that everything went smoothly on our Snowdon summit attempt. It was a beautiful mountain and really enjoyable experience.