It is easy to plan the Snowdon Horseshoe as a long path. Crib Goch, its first ridge, is a scramble.
The British Mountaineering Council (BMC), which represents climbers and hill walkers in England and Wales, says there is no escape route until Bwlch Coch.
That asks you to use both hands and feet on rock, with steep drops on both sides. Without scrambling experience, the Horseshoe is not the right day out.
The route and its numbers
The Horseshoe is 11.7 km long with 1,176 m of ascent, according to Ordnance Survey (OS), Britain’s national mapping agency. OS’s time of about 5 hours 30 minutes does not include stops for food or rest.
Plan for 6 to 10 hours, the range the BMC gives, depending on your scrambling speed and fitness.
The circuit starts and finishes at Pen-y-Pass, which OS puts at 359 m. It runs in this order:
- Up the Pyg Track to Bwlch y Moch (the Pass of Pigs).
- A sharp turn right onto Crib Goch, then along Crib y Ddysgl.
- The summit of Yr Wyddfa, the Welsh name for Snowdon.
- The top section of the Watkin Path, down to Bwlch Ciliau.
- Y Lliwedd.
- The Miners’ Track back to Pen-y-Pass.
OS gives the summit as 1,085 m. Wikipedia gives Crib Goch as 923 m, Garnedd Ugain, the top of Crib y Ddysgl, as 1,065 m, and Y Lliwedd as 898 m.
How hard it is, and who it suits
The Eryri National Park Authority, the body that runs the national park, says Crib Goch and Crib y Ddysgl are both Grade 1 scrambles. That means elements of rock climbing, with hands and feet in use at the same time.
Grade 1 is the lowest rating on the scrambling scale, the BMC says. It also warns that Crib Goch is often underestimated and that the exposure is serious.
Eryri describes a knife-edged ridge with significant exposure, including steep pinnacles and steep drops on both sides.
Eryri adds the consequences:
- The exposure often leaves walkers “crag fast”, stranded and unable to climb up or down.
- Accidents are common.
- Many people need Mountain Rescue.
- There have been fatalities.
Wind and wet make it harder.
The BMC says high winds and slippery conditions can easily add a grade. The rock is polished in places, so it can be slippery even when damp.
OS calls the Horseshoe “narrow, high, hands-on and for many the best walk ever, but for some just too scary”. It says only experienced walkers with steady nerves should tackle it.
Adventure Smart Wales, a mountain safety campaign, says Crib Goch is “definitely not a walk” and involves unroped rock climbing above big drops. If you are not an experienced scrambler, it says, Crib Goch is not for you.
You are ready for the Horseshoe if all of these are true:
- You are an experienced scrambler, with easier scrambles behind you.
- You stay steady with steep drops on both sides.
- You can navigate, because the BMC says route finding is not straightforward.
- You are fit for a day of 6 to 10 hours.
- The forecast is dry, calm and clear, with no snow or ice.
- You are not bringing a dog. Eryri says dogs should not be taken on this route under any circumstances.
Crib Goch and Crib y Ddysgl
From Pen-y-Pass you follow the Pyg Track. OS says the Horseshoe shares its start with it, then turns sharp right at Bwlch y Moch towards Crib Goch.
Eryri says Crib Goch is not a primary route to the summit.
Adventure Smart Wales tells Pyg Track walkers to stay on the path and not to turn right, thinking they are heading for the top. Turn right only if you mean to scramble.
Eryri’s Pyg Track page calls Crib Goch a 500-metre knife-edge ridge with no escape route. The BMC says the first way off is Bwlch Coch, by a steep, grassy descent that rejoins the Pyg Track.
Read what Crib Goch asks of you, and who should not go on it, before you set out.
After Bwlch Coch the route continues along the second section of the ridge, Crib y Ddysgl. The BMC says:
- The easier route below the crest still needs good route finding and navigation.
- Staying on the crest is just as challenging as Crib Goch.
Crib y Ddysgl is a second Grade 1 scramble, not a rest after the first.
The summit and Bwlch Glas
Eryri says the Pyg Track merges with the Miners’ Track and joins the Llanberis Path at Bwlch Glas, then continues to the summit. Wikipedia places Bwlch Glas between Garnedd Ugain and the summit.
Bwlch Glas is where the Horseshoe can end early. The Pyg Track and the Miners’ Track both lead back to Pen-y-Pass.
Eryri describes the upper half of the Miners’ Track, above Glaslyn, as steep, with loose rock and scree.
Go down it with care.
Adventure Smart Wales advises walkers on the upper Pyg and Miners’ Tracks to stay high until they reach a prominent standing stone, some 3 m high.
The stone marks the junction of the two tracks. Adventure Smart Wales says the paths are difficult to follow in fog or mist.
Do not count on shelter at the top.
In bad weather the summit railway and café are frequently closed. They are never open in winter. Adventure Smart Wales says it is best to turn back rather than carry on hoping for shelter.
Leaving the summit for Y Lliwedd
The BMC warns about the way off the summit.
A direct line over the top of Clogwyn y Garnedd is easy to take, but it leads onto a treacherous scree slope. It has caught people out, sometimes with tragic results, the BMC says.
Do not take the direct line off the summit.
Instead, the BMC gives two steps:
- Go south-west for a short distance.
- Pick up the top section of the Watkin Path down to Bwlch Ciliau, then carry straight on to Y Lliwedd.
Adventure Smart Wales describes a similar mistake on the East Ridge. Walkers follow what look like eroded paths towards Y Lliwedd, but they are sheep trails that end above a very big drop.
Adventure Smart Wales says this direct route is very dangerous at all times of year. Falls there are frequent, with tragic outcomes.
The safer way, it says, is to go south from the summit until you reach a standing stone.
Only then turn left (east) onto the Watkin Path.
The BMC says there is more exposed scrambling on the other side of the Horseshoe. Route finding can be tricky coming off the mountain as well.
OS describes a vertigo-inducing view (one that can make you dizzy at height) down to Llyn Llydaw.
Y Lliwedd has more exposed scrambling, after the ridges and the summit.
Time, parking and buses
The BMC’s range is wide, so plan for the long end if you are unsure of your scrambling speed.
Carry a torch, Eryri advises, in case you are caught on the mountain after dark. A head torch leaves both hands free for the scramble.
Eryri says that between March and November, planning how to get to Pen-y-Pass in advance is essential. Its car park page says pre-booking through the JustPark website remains in place until 1 November 2026.
As of 19 October 2026, the Authority has not given the arrangement after that date. The tariff is (Eryri National Park Authority, October 2026):
- Up to 8 hours: £25.00
- 8 to 12 hours: £35.00
- Full day: £45.00
A Horseshoe of 6 to 10 hours can fall in the first or second band, and extensions to existing bookings are not possible. Book the longer band if you are unsure. Drop-offs are allowed at Pen-y-Pass.
Sherpa’r Wyddfa, the bus network for the Snowdon paths, runs the S1, S2 or S5 from Llanberis and Nant Peris to Pen-y-Pass. The S2 runs from Bangor and the S4 from Porthmadog.
The council’s timetable lists times from 28 March 2026.
Eryri gives the car park’s grid reference as SH 647 557. It lists OS Explorer OL17 (Yr Wyddfa and the Conwy Valley) for the Pyg Track.
Conditions that end the day
Eryri says the Crib Goch scramble is not suitable in wet and windy weather. It calls Crib Goch a serious mountaineering undertaking in wet weather, wind, snow, mist or ice.
Adventure Smart Wales adds that the exposure to high winds here can be fierce.
Read the mountain forecast before you go, and check the ground conditions.
If the weather starts to get too much for your ability, turn back immediately, Eryri says. Adventure Smart Wales asks you to be honest with yourself about your knowledge, fitness and ability.
In snowy conditions the BMC calls Crib Goch a Grade 1 winter climb. It needs crampon and ice axe skills, and in winter on Snowdon the BMC says it is best left to those with plenty of experience.
In an emergency, Eryri says to call 999 and ask for the police and the Mountain Rescue service.
We compile and explain public route and safety information. We guide nobody and sell nothing on the hill.
Where the day can still change
Five points let you change the day, in this order:
- Bwlch y Moch: stay on the Pyg Track instead of turning right, if the ridge is wet, windy, misty or icy, or you are unsure.
- Bwlch Coch: take the steep, grassy descent to the Pyg Track. This is the first way off Crib Goch.
- Crib y Ddysgl: use the bypass below the crest. The BMC says it still needs good route finding and crosses steep terrain.
- Bwlch Glas: go down the Pyg Track or the Miners’ Track to Pen-y-Pass. In mist, stay high until the standing stone.
- The summit: decide here whether to go on to Y Lliwedd, which has more exposed scrambling, or return to Bwlch Glas and go down.
After Y Lliwedd the walk finishes on the Miners’ Track, which OS calls relatively easy. Eryri describes the whole track as passing the shores of Llyn Teyrn, Llyn Llydaw and Glaslyn.
