Rock Climbing in Snowdonia

The now late Paul Williams’ guidebook has been around for some time now, and despite new and more modern guidebooks appearing since it release, it remains to be a popular choice among Britain’s climbers. The book is a general guide to the climbing in North Wales, and as such covers areas as diverse as Snowdonia proper, Meirionnydd, the Lleyn Peninsula, Clwydian Limestone and Gogarth. A far wider remit than the books name suggests. For a general guide it is also surprisingly comprehensive, giving details, providing diagrams and photo topos for both trad and sports crags, and gives coverage to both popular and rarely visited areas. Even more remarkable is the fact that the guide has been researched and written by a single person.

Being a general guide, most attention is of course given to the climbs considered to be of a higher quality. The difficulty of routes described are also quite well balanced, with lines beginning at Moderate and ascending into the high E grades. Photos and diagarams are not just restricted to the more popular accessible areas, and it is a pleasure to see photo topos of areas such as Craig yr Aderyn and Craig Cywarch making an appearance, something that is even missing from the more detailed guide for the area. With new guides appearing all the time, it is likely that this book will be surpassed sometime in the near future, however, for now, it is a superb and inexpensive option for those who visit the area frequently as well as those who don’t.