Watkin Path via South Ridge
South Ridge, Snowdonia
One of my close friends, Tom (left), decided that for his birthday, he wanted to attempt to climb Snowdon again.
I say “attempt” because earlier this year in January, we tried summiting via the Llanberis Path but due to awful weather conditions (heavy rain and wind speeds of ~50mph), mountain rescue advised us we turn back around and head for shelter.
So, myself, Tom, and two of our other close friends from home, planned another trip together in the endeavour to actually summit the mountain - this time going via the Watkin Path and South Ridge.
Through plenty of experience, we knew just how busy the car parks get around Snowdonia (whatever time of year it is) so, rather than waking up at 4am and making the ~2.5hr drive from Manchester, we opted to stay in a local Air BnB situated in the nearby town of Bethesda.
After fuelling ourselves with a couple of pizzas and beers from the night before, we fought off any desire to stay in bed and set off early Saturday morning - motivated to beat any other group of hikers to the starting point.
We arrived in good time and started walking at a good pace eager to make the most of the (rare) bout of sunshine we had however, in typical Welsh fashion, the grey clouds started rolling in over us and covered the sky in a grey blanket.
The clouds started rolling in over the Cwm Llan valley where the Watkin Path cuts through. The ridge in the far distance on the left is what we were aiming to climb.
Rest point on the South Ridge - views of Cwm Llan valley and the Watkin Path below.
Tom preparing to scramble up the loose slate on the ascent of the South Ridge path
After a brief rest stop, we clambered our way up the South Ridge in a hurried fashion. The rain started getting much heavier at this point and visibility was becoming worse with each meter we climbed.
Damp memories of January’s attempt started seeping back into our minds and we were determined to make it to the top this time.
Halfway up the South Ridge
Last stretch with Yr Wyddfa’s (Snowdon) peak covered in cloud in the distance
As we traversed our way through the clouds and along the South Ridge, visibility became pretty poor and the path started to disappear in front of us rapidly.
We pushed on forward, passing people by as they rushed back down the mountain as quickly as possible.
After a long slog up a steep face of loose scree and slate, we finally managed to reach the summit and celebrate (very quickly before descending and seeking the refuge and warmth of our cars!).
Tom (left), Alex (middle left), me (middle right), Cal (right)
As you can imagine, we fully sent it on our way back down the mountain - opting to go via the Watkin Path rather than the South Ridge as this offered the route of least resistance (for our knees).
For those of you who are familiar with the Watkin Path, I am sure you will be wondering why I have not mentioned yet about the beautiful rock pools and stunning waterfalls which the route is most famous for..
Well, of course, we did visit them, and we did do an obligatory cold plunge..
Despite being close to freezing temperature, that exhilarating feeling you get after dunking your head under the water is unmatched and what better way (in our opinion anyway) to finish off a trek!
Can’t wait for the next adventure..
