Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) attract some three-quarters of a million people every year, so it’s only natural that it also draws its fair share of celebrities — however we choose to define that word.
Earlier this season (in late June), Catherine, Princess of Wales, ascended Yr Wyddfa as the final leg of her National Three Peaks Challenge — climbing Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon within 24 hours to raise funds for The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. She completed the final descent alongside her brother, James Middleton, and was met at the bottom of the Snowdon Ranger (Cwellyn) path by Prince William and their children in a moment widely documented by the press (after official photos had been released).
Some three months later, Wayne and Colleen Rooney walked up the Llanberis Path, later posting pictures on Instagram. The BBC website, later reporting on the event, described them as “one of Britain’s most famous couples”.
In truth, we wardens quite often encounter famous people on Yr Wyddfa. They might be working (perhaps filming) or at leisure, but most don’t want any fuss, and make use of modest disguises, such as a pulled-down cap, a hood or dark glasses. (Both Kate and Wayne Rooney adopted this style, though Rooney still acquired a bit of an entourage along the way). Countless other “celebrities” likely also ascend the mountain, largely unnoticed, largely due to our shifting definition of fame. (I too have been on TV, radio and in the papers, and have authored many books; what does that make me?) When the latest series of Strictly Come Dancing launched, social media was filled with comments from viewers admitting they had no idea who most of the “celebrities” were. Contrast that with Celebrity Traitors, where those taking part are genuine household names —A or B-listers, as opposed to the Z-list unknowns so often foisted upon us.
In this day and age, we’d have to ask who actually counts as a “star”? Well, I’d say that on Yr Wyddfa we see stars every day, but they’re not famous in the traditional sense. Our stars are the ordinary people pushing their limits for a cause — raising millions of pounds for charity every year through sponsored walks; they are the hikers trudging upward, struggling one foot in front of the other, having a genuinely tough time yet fiercely determined to reach the summit; they may even be in pain. In fact, the more pain you’re in, and the less fun you’re having, the higher this promotes you in our ‘star’ stakes. Yes, these are the true stars we meet and chat with daily, even if most would never describe themselves that way.
And let’s also not forget that other group of stars – the Mountain Rescue teams – who give of their time voluntarily to help others in need, and by the nature of their work often get called out at anti-social hours and in inclement – even brutal – weather. They seldom criticise or rebuke those they save (maybe they should), maintaining a strict policy of not judging people in public regardless of the mistakes made. However, they regularly admit that the vast majority of call outs could be avoided with a little more forethought, preparation and planning on the part of the ‘casualties’ – what they call ‘human error’.
Next time you’re on the mountain, have a look around for stars. Unless they’re in your group or you’ve chatted with them, you probably won’t know their names or backstories, but they’ll be there.