All walks › Eryri: Yr Wyddfa and Llanberis
Eryri: Yr Wyddfa and LlanberisYr Wyddfa by the Llanberis Path
The longest, gentlest and busiest way up the highest mountain in Wales. It follows the railway most of the way, which tells you both how steady the gradient is and how many people are on it.
- Distance
- 9.0 mi / 14.5 km
- Time
- 5 hr 30
- Ascent
- 950 m
- Difficulty
- Strenuous
- Shape
- There and back
Where it is
The circle shows the general area, not the exact start. Use the directions link below to get to the car park itself. Contours and paths shown are OpenTopoMap, drawn from OpenStreetMap data.
The route
The path climbs steadily from Llanberis, passes under the railway at Clogwyn, and joins the final ridge to the summit. It is the same way back down. Nine miles and nearly a thousand metres of climb.
Worth knowing
- Steady rather than easy. Five to six hours for most people, and the last section is exposed to weather.
- Do not rely on the summit café or the train. Both are seasonal and both stop in bad weather.
- Start early. The path carries thousands of people on a summer weekend.
What you’ll see
The Llanberis Pass, Clogwyn Du’r Arddu’s cliffs, and on a good day Ireland from the top.
Background
Yr Wyddfa means the tumulus or barrow, traditionally the grave of the giant Rhita Gawr. The railway to the summit opened in 1896.