Yr Wyddfa

1. Leave the Parking for Snowdon car park using the same ramp you used to enter it (see red arrow on image 1), cross the road and turn left. Walk along the path until you reach a roundabout, you should be able to see the Royal Victoria Hotel on your left, take a right here (see image 2). Walk on the path until it ends and you will now have to walk in the road; pass the Snowdon Trading Post on your right, and continue down the road for around 300 meters (just under 5 minutes' walk) until you reach the cattle grid (see image 3 for an overview of this first section from the car park to the cattle grid).

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2. Use the gate to the left of the cattle grid, making sure to close it after you go through (or if you're dead adventurous, navigate the cattle grid while humming Indiana Jones), and follow this path for around 320 meters (roughly 8 minutes' walk), were you'll pass the Penceunant Isaf cafe (see image 4). This is the last place you can stop to buy refreshments, use a proper toilet or get some Wi-Fi until the visitors centre near the summit (which isn't always open). If you don't want to stop, continue on the same path passing the cafe on your left, and keep walking for around 500 meters (about 13 minutes) until you see a stone sign with the words "LLWYBER LLANBERIS PATH" (see image 5) and an arrow pointing to a gate to the left, which you will be heading through. Image 6 shows an overview of the route from the cafe to the sign.

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3. Head through the gate, it has a sign on it saying "Llwybr i Gopa'r Wyddfa Path to Snowdon Summit". As before, the onward path is very defined and easy to follow with no confusing side paths. More likely than not, there will be many other people heading up Yr Wyddfa using this popular route, so a detailed guide isn't really needed (but I've got nothing better to do, so I'm writing these overly detailed instructions anyway 🤷🏽). After about 725m (around 15 minutes' walk), you will reach the gate and stile shown in image 7. Go through the gate (or head over the stile) and continue along the same path, eventually, you'll see the train track winding its way up the mountain on your right, and not much further on you'll pass under the tracks (see image 8). 

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4. From the railway bridge, your journey will continue along the same path, and after around 900m (around 17 minutes' walk) you will be greeted by the Halfway Cafe which is located just beyond the halfway point between Llanberis and the summit (the name refers to its height above sea level, 542m, which is half the height of Yr Wyddfa). The cafe is open seasonally (after Easter I've read online) but it has never been open when I've been past, most likely as I hike Yr Wyddfa late in the day on winter months to avoid the crowds. After passing the cafe, keep walking along the same path for around 850m (roughly 20 minutes' walk), until the path starts heading uphill and slightly to the left, it's just after the fence to your right ends. At this point, there's a faint path that runs straight ahead which you don't want to take, but the main path you need to follow is very obvious as it's much wider and more prominent (see image 9).

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5. This ascending section of the Llanberis Path is called Allt Moses (Moses Hill), and it is approximately 550m long. It consists mainly of a cobbled path, which can be very slippery when wet or icy. The true ascent towards the summit starts from here, and the route becomes tougher than what comes before, nevertheless, the stunning views are more than a just reward. Depending on your level of fitness, it could take anywhere from 10 minutes to half an hour or longer to walk this section. Once you reach the top of Allt Moses, you should be able to see a stone building to your left off in the distance (see image 10), and in front of you, there will be another railway bridge (see image 11) which you need to walk under to continue on towards the summit. After you pass under the bridge, the views in front of you of Llanberis Pass are unbelievably stunning and one of my personal favourites on this hike. See image 12 for a high-level view of the route up Allt Moses, under the railway bridge, and up the killer convex (see next step).

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6. Important:.The section between the railway and the stone sign at Bwlch Glas is called the Killer Convex and can be extremely dangerous during icy or snowy conditions. Please don't attempt it unless you have the correct equipment (crampons and ice axe as a minimum). Continue to follow the clearly defined pebbly/rocky path as it heads up the mountain; after a short while, you'll be walking right next to the train tracks. The next major milestone is the stone "Copa Summit" sign at Bwlch Glas (see image 13), which is around 800m from the railway bridge and takes around 15 minutes to walk to. The path between the two points is easy to follow in all but snowy conditions. The standing stone to the left of the sign shows where the Pyg Track and Miners’ Track meet the Llanberis Path; the Ranger Path also converges here, but from the right, crossing the train tracks. Due to the intersection of various trails, Bwlch Glas can get very busy. 

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7. Head past the "Copa Summit" sign, following the path whilst keeping the railway tracks on your right. From here you should be able to see the summit ahead and slightly to the left of you, it's about 550m from Bwlch Glas, which should take around 10 minutes to walk. As you get closer to the summit, the path changes from gravel to cobbles and starts to ascend. Eventually the summit station and visitors centre will come into view, and just to the left of it, you'll be able to see the toposcope at the summit (and possibly a long queue of people). As you approach the summit plateau, there will be a series of stone steps which as you ascend split into two; take the left set of stairs heading upwards as this continues on to the summit (the right set take you to the visitors centre and train station). Once you're on the summit plateau, there's a final set of stairs to reach the toposcope and the highest point of Yr Wyddfa. Admire the unreal views and give yourself a pat on the back for making it. If you want to sit at the summit for a while and fancy a read, check out my own epic hike to the summit here. See image 14 for a high-level view of the route from Bwlch Glas to the summit.

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8. Once you're ready (I know, you'll never truly be ready to leave), retrace your steps back to the start point (see image 15 for an overview of the route from the summit back to the start point).