Snowdon Quiz

OK, time for a bit of fun. Here’s some 100+ questions to see how much you know about Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa)! They start easy and largely get progressively harder. (Many of the answers are on this website, but by no means all.)

Which National Park is Snowdon in?
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Snowdonia (‘Eryri’ – pronounced ‘e–ruh–ree’)

What county is Snowdon in?
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Gwynedd

What’s the Welsh name for Snowdon?
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Yr Wyddfa (pronounced ‘uhr-with-va’) and meaning the ‘large tumulus’ or ‘burial mound’

How high is Snowdon?
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1,085 m / 3,560 ft  (or 3,559 ft – see here)

Is the view from the top of Snowdon the best in Britain?
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Yes, according to a national poll held by Samsung in 2017 !  (although it came second the previous year)

Is the summit building (Hafod Eryri) open all year?
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No, it’s only open when trains run to the summit (usually May to October).

Was Snowdon closed to walkers during the Covid-19 pandemic?
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Yes, initially all access was closed (as at other busy locations).

Name the six main paths up Snowdon.
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The Llanberis Path, the Pyg Track, the Miners’ Track, the Watkin Path, the Rhyd Ddu Path, and the Snowdon Ranger Path

Which is the longest of the main paths?
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The Llanberis Path

Which is the shortest of the main paths?
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The Pyg Track

Which main path is the busiest?
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The Llanberis Path (with some 250,000 walkers annually)

Which main path is the least busy?
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The Rhyd Ddu Path (with some 25,000 walkers annually)

Which path has a café half way up it?
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The Llanberis Path

Which path is known for its waterfalls and pools?
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The Watkin Path

Which main path has the most ascent?
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The Watkin Path, starting at just 60m (195 ft) above sea level

Which main paths have the least ascent?
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The Pyg Track and Miners, because they start at a height of 359m (1178 ft)

Is Snowdon public land or private land?
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Virtually all of Snowdon is private land, the main paths following public rights of way across it.

What is the name of the bus service which runs round Snowdon?
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The Snowdon Sherpa  (Sherpa’r Wyddfa)

Which main path joins the Pyg Track at ‘The Intersection’?
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The Miners’ Track

Which main path joins the Rhyd Ddu Path near the summit?
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The Watkin Path, about 300 yards below the summit

Which paths join the Llanberis Path near the summit?
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The Pyg Track and Snowdon Ranger Path, at Bwlch Glas

Which of the main paths is the oldest?
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The Snowdon Ranger Path (because of the good toll road from Caernarfon)

What is the big black pipeline passed on the MIners’ Track?
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It carries water from Llyn Llydaw to produce hydro-electricity at Cwm Dyli power station.

Glaslyn means ‘blue lake’. What gives it its particular blueness?
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The copper in the rocks (which was mined)

Which path used to be known as ‘the Beddgelert Path’?
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The Rhyd Ddu Path (people staying in Beddgelert used this path)

Is there mobile phone reception at the summit?
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Yes, 4G and even 5G

Where is the Park & Ride car park?
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At Nant Peris, between Llanberis and Pen y Pass

Where on the mountain is there an 8ft standing stone?
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At Bwlch Glas, where the Pyg Track joins the Llanberis path, just ⅓ mile from the summit

What is on the top of the summit pillar?
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A brass toposcope (a plate with locations named in all directions)

If it’s too windy for trains to reach the summit, where do they normally only run to?
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Clogwyn station (or occasionally Rocky Valley Halt)

What is the name of the summit building?
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Hafod Eryri (‘Snowdonia’s Summer Residence’)

What is the route of the Snowdon Horseshoe?
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Starting on the Pyg Track – Crib Goch, Carnedd Ugain, the summit, Y Lliwedd, down to the Miners’ Track

Where does Hafod Eryri get its water supply from?
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Fresh water is brought up by train (9,000 litres daily), and rain water services the toilets

Who have the most accidents – walkers, climbers or runners?
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Walkers (because there’s a lot more of them)

Which sort of accident is most common – a slip on something wet, a fall or a temperature-related injury?
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A slip on something wet

In which month do most injuries happen?
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August (because it’s the busiest month)

On which day of the week do most injuries happen?
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Saturday (because it’s the busiest day, by far)

Who have the most accidents on Snowdon – men, women or children?
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Men (because more men walk up it)

What did Prince Charles once call ‘the highest slum in Wales’?
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The previous summit building (built in the 1930s and demolished in 2006)

When was the present summit building (Hafod Eryri) opened – 2007, 2009 or 2011?
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In 2009. It replaced the 1930s building.

What does ‘Snowdon’ mean?
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‘Snowy Hill’ (from Old English/Saxon ‘Snaw Dun’)

If you needed Mountain Rescue, what number would you dial, and who would you ask for?
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Dial 999/112 and ask for the Police, then Mountain Rescue

The Miners’ Track originally ran up to the Snowdon/Britannia Mine at Glaslyn. What was mined here?
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Copper

Half way up the Watkin Path is an old quarry. What did it produce?
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Slate

Which two paths go up on the west side of Snowdon?
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The Rhyd Ddu Path and the Snowdon Ranger Path

What is the old ruined building on the shore of Llyn Llydaw?
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A former copper-crushing mill

What is the name of the location where the Crib Goch path turns off the Pyg Track?
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Bwlch y Moch

What is the name of the flat area ⅓ mile from the summit where the Pyg Track and Snowdon Ranger Path join the Llanberis Path?
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Bwlch Glas

Which rare plant, first discovered in 1682, grows on Snowdon?
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The Snowdon Lily  (Lili’r Wyddfa)

Which paths are also bridleways?
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The Llanberis Path, the Snowdon Ranger Path, the Rhyd Ddu Path, and the Miners’ track (only as far as the old crushing mill by Llyn Llydaw)

How many 3000ers are there on the Snowdon Massif?
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Three – Snowdon (3,560 ft), Carnedd Ugain (3,494 ft) and Crib Goch (3,028 ft)

If you walk up the Llanberis Path, how many times do you cross the railway?
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Twice – at Halfway Bridge and Clogwyn Bridge

On which path would you encounter Bwlch Main, a narrow section?
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The Rhyd Ddu Path

The South Ridge (Allt Maenderyn) is an increasingly popular route. Between which two main paths does it lie?
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The Watkin Path and the Rhyd Ddu Path

According to legend, who died at Bwlch y Saethau (‘Pass of the Arrows’) on the Watkin Path?
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King Arthur

Folklore states that King Arthur commanded Sir Bedivere, one of his knights, to throw his sword Excalibur into which lake, thereby returning it to the Lady of the Lake?
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Glaslyn

Which is the second highest peak on the Snowdon Massif?
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Carnedd Ugain (1,065 m / 3,494 ft)

Which path sees you crossing a causeway across the lake?
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The Miners’ Track, where it crosses Llyn Llydaw

What are the largest mammals seen on Snowdon?
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Cows, sheep and goats

What colours is the Search and Rescue helicopter?
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Primarily red and white, with a few tiny blue stripes

Name the three lakes passed on the Miners’ Track.
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Llyn Teyrn, Llyn Llydaw and Glaslyn

Who was the Watkin Path named after?
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Sir Edward Watkin, a Liberal MP, who owned the land and built the path from the quarry upwards. It opened in 1892.

Which ‘Carry On’ film was partly filmed on the Watkin path?
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‘Carry on up the Khyber’

In which James Bond film was the Cwm Dyli pipeline featured?
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‘The World is Not Enough’

In what decade did the Snowdon Mountain Railway open – 1890s, 1900s or 1910s?
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1890s (1896)

Is Hafod Eryri the highest building in the UK?
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No. The Ptarmigan restaurant on Cairn Gorm in Scotland is nearly 100 ft (28m) higher.

What type of fossils can be seen in places on the bedrock at the summit?
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Brachiapods

How old are the fossils on the bedrock at the summit – 150m years, 300m years or 450m years?
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450 million years

What’s the name of the large lake passed on the Snowdon Ranger Path?
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Llyn Ffynnon y Gwas

Where does the Afon Glaslyn, Snowdon’s main river, reach the sea?
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Porthmadog

Which is the deepest lake on Snowdon?
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Llyn Llydaw (58 m / 190 ft), passed on the Miners’ Track

In which century was the first reliably documented ascent of Snowdon – 15th, 16th or 17th?
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The 17th century (1639, by Thomas Johnson)

According to legend, who was buried under the original summit cairn?
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Rhita Gawr, a giant (killed, according to legend, by King Arthur)

The South Ridge is not named on maps; however, it’s Welsh name is. What is it?
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Allt Maenderyn

What’s the proper (Welsh) name for Telegraph Valley (which links the Snowdon Ranger Path with Llanberis)?
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Maesgwm

What is the strongest wind ever recorded on Snowdon – 120 mph, 150 mph or 180 mph?
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About 150 mph (despite what it says on the floor of Hafod Eryri). The strongest gust ever recorded in the UK was 173mph, at Cairn Gorm summit in Scotland in 1986.

In which decade were the first wooden huts built on the summit – the 1840s, the 1860s or the 1880s?
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The 1840s

Who owns Hafod Eryri, the summit building?
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Snowdonia National Park Authority. (It is leased to the railway company, who wholly operate it.)

Roughly how many people walk on Snowdon a year – 400,000,  500,000 or 600,000?
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600,000

When are bikes not allowed on Snowdon?
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There is a voluntary ban on bikes from 10.00 a.m. to 5 p.m. from 1st May to 30th September.

Where is the only official trig point on the Snowdon Massif?
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On Carnedd Ugain

What is the popular climbing cliff of Clogwyn Du’r Arddu commonly known as?
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Cloggy

In 2021 a TV advert saw Welsh actor Tom Ellis being shaved remotely by a robotic arm on Snowdon. What was this an advert for?
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EE 5G

What was largely responsible for the shape of Snowdon’s pyramidal peak?
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The Ice Age (glaciers scooped out the cwms below Snowdon’s summit)

By which route was the copper from the Snowdon/Britannia mine by Glaslyn originally transported down the mountain?
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The Mule Track up to Bwlch Glas, then down the Snowdon Ranger path

In 1904 the first car was driven to the summit. Which route did it take?
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The ascent was made on the permanent way of the railway from Llanberis, and took 3 hours 35 minutes.

Roughly how many hot drinks did they sell in Hafod Eryri (the summit building) in 2019?  60,000, 90,000 or 120,000?
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120,000

Where does Y Gribin walk/scramble start and end?
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It runs from near Glaslyn’s outflow up to Cribau / Bwlch y Saethau

What are the names of the two steep sections on the Llanberis Path, leading up to Clogwyn bridge and beyond it?
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Allt Moses (‘Moses’ Hill’) and Allt Goch (‘Red Hill’)

What is the name of the large cwm below the western side of the summit?
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Cwm Clogwyn

What is the name of the wide cwm that the Llanberis path and railway largely overlook on the way up to Clogwyn?
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Cwm Brwynog

How much rain falls annually on Snowdon – about 4m, 4½m or 5m?
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About 5m (200 inches)

Name the three lakes in Cwm Clogwyn.
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Llyn Nadroedd, Llyn Coch and Llyn Glas

Which paths does the Cambrian Way use to traverse Snowdon?
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The Watkin Path, Allt Maenderyn (the South Ridge) and the Pyg Track

Name the four summits of the North-west ridge.
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Moel Eilio, Foel Gron, Foel Goch, Moel Cynghorion

Why were there huge bonfires at the summit in 1887 and 1897?
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To celebrate Queen Victoria’s golden and diamond jubilees

What words are engraved on the wall by the entrance to Hafod Eryri?
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Copa’r Wyddfa: Yr ydych chi, yma, Yn nes at y nefoedd.  /  The summit of Snowdon: Here, you are nearer to heaven.

What is the gauge of the Snowdon Mountain Railway – 600mm (2ft), 800mm or 1m?
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800 mm (2 ft 7½ in)

Why did the Snowdon Mountain Railway close on its opening day?
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There was a derailment above Clogwyn and an engine plummeted down into Cwm Glas (the crew leapt clear). The line re-opened a year later with more safety measures in place.

On the side of the summit cairn is a plaque to Princess Gwenllian. What was her connection to Snowdon?
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She was the daughter of Llywelyn the Last (13th century), the last native Prince of Wales, but was exiled to a priory in Lincolnshire as an infant by Edward I and has no direct connection whatsoever.

How many steps go up each side to the summit pillar –  12, 16 or 20?
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There are 20 on the south side, though only 19 on the north side.

What is the record time for the Snowdon Race (up and down the Llanberis Path)?
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The men’s record stands at 1:02:29, set by Kenny Stuart in 1985. The women’s record stands at 1:12:48, set by Carol Greenwood in 1993.

The rocks which today make up Snowdon were formed during which geological period?
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The Ordovician Period (i.e. 443.8 – 485.4 million years old)

How many mountains in Britain are higher than Snowdon?
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Scotland has 75 peaks higher (with a prominence of over 30m/98ft). However, if considering a prominence of over 600m (1,969ft), Snowdon is listed 19th.

What is the code number of the Search & Rescue flight from Caernarfon which services Snowdon?
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Rescue 936

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