[Closed] Snowdon, Ranger Path - how long?

ir_bandito,

I've hiked it with bike from the carpark following the pig track which is shorter but steeper in about 1.5 hours. Quite hard work at times going up on that route, if I were to do it again I would probably go up the railway route from Llanberis as you describe. I would guess at 2 hours.

I've no experience of going down the rangers path but I'm keen to do it so will be keeping an eye out for responses to your question. bit of a 1/2 answer but perhaps slightly helpful...

the amount of discussion abotu the ranger path over the last few months, i thought someone would know!!

From experience, it took me 2 hours to get up the Llanberis track. It's pretty much exactly 4.5 miles. I think the path has been improved since I rode it, so it may be easier getting up.

Not been down the Ranger/Telegraph route, although looking at it I would allow 2 hours but expect it to take 1.5.

To get up we took 1.5-2 hours i think, and to get down (stopping two or three times) around 30-45 mins? If you believe some people on here it takes about 10 minutes to get down on a 120mm hardtail 🙄

The average seems to be about 2hrs up and 1/2hr down. I seem to remember reading somewhere the record for the down was about 8mins!

I dont know how it can take 30mins to get back to the carpark by the railway station from the summit, i did it yesterday and yes we messed around abit, but it took an hr it takes 15 mins to walk up the stupid grass footpath at the bottom of the techie section to get across to the next valley, the actual part from the summit trigpoint to the right turn off took us around 10mins then 20 mins to up the bloody steep banking and across the 2 false summits then 15mins back across telegraph valley and back to the carpark.
I wouldnt recommend doing it at all, 1 massive push up and the downhill isnt worth it for what it is, there are way better decents in Calderdale. nothing difficult at all to ride down the Rangers path, just hrs of bordum to be honest.

"nothing difficult at all to ride down the Rangers path, just hrs of bordum to be honest"

Against the grain somewhat?

Just being honest, just gald i went to the summit and took some pics whilst on the push / ride as the summit will never see 1 of my bikes up there again, total waste of a day if you ask me.
What needs to happen is the train needs to have a bike rack on the back and take people up on a 1 way ticket for £12 or something, then it MAY be worth doing, not into pushing and bike hiking, maybe i just thought it would be more rideable up to the top than it was and thats why i lost interest after the 1st 30mins, then i expected alot more technical stuff on the down, also not to be broken up with yet another uphill slog half way down. Saying that that was with carbon / Ti hardtails not massive 40LB downhill rigs.
From the station at the bottom it took us 2hrs 10mins to the summit that was with a 20min stop at the half way cafe.

"What needs to happen is the train needs to have a bike rack on the back and take people up on a 1 way ticket for £12 or something,"

I agree with that; they're missing a trick. Somehow I doubt it will happen. I used my 5" trail bike and though it quite perfect for it. I think it took me ~2:20 to summit. I pushed the staircase up to the railway arch then gave up trying to ride half-way up the steep trail after that. Fortunately, I like walking - must have hiked and climbed Snowdon >30x, riding a bike up and down it seemed quite novel :-D. I really enjoyed descending the section below the halfway house as it's much more flowy without being brake melting steep.

I only said it was against the grain because I've heard lots of folk describe the rangers/telegraph as one of the best trails in the UK. It's therefore been on my hit list, esp the "Mordor" section which most people warn is a bit awkward.

Nice idea Buzz but we were there on a Monday in October & every seat on every train was taken (£25 x 56 x every 20 minutes) to take someone for £12 & fit a bike rack would cost them money.
And I bet they'd not want to be seen helping MTBs in case it upset the redsocks.

"nothing difficult at all to ride down the Rangers path, just hrs of bordum to be honest"

obviously wasn't the rangers path I did on Friday. The technical switchbacks halfway down clearly were easy then.

However I would say the telegraph road part needed something extra other than trying to jump the water bars. Next time I'll go down the Llanberis path

ARMCHAIRBIKER, it WAS tha Rangers path, i can read a map, there is plenty of switchbacks but nothing thats too difficult or has to be checked out before rideing, i think diffrent people have diffrent levels and different expectations of every trail, id class myself as an agressive trail rider and done alot more techie stuff / decents in my own area ( Calderdale ), The best trail in the UK i have ever done is Golspie, not the most technical but the most enjoyable.
Id say the only technical part up Snowdon is the steps that lead upto the trig point,from the summit, they are tricky to come down on a bike

MM123 - where in Calderdale are there lots of trails more technical than Rangers? I predominantly ride in Calderdale and 'know where to look' but can't think of many trails more technical than Rangers, especially those steps 1/2 way down....

Well for a start the spiral steps of death are more technicaly hard, there is loads of technical bits and bobs around Calderdale, not long decents like the Rangers path, then there is the steps of death at Heptonstall and the big step on the Bunnyrun, and the tight right hand bend on climbing quarry steps to master, then the long run of steps at underbank, plus the decent down into the Craggs from Widdop road, the left decent im talking about, also the stepping stones in the Craggs.
Plus the top steps on the Mmmbop, first set of steps on the way up i mean, alot harder than the normal way down the Mmmbop,as you have to contend with the big rock half way down.
I suppose thats why i use a hardtail to try and make things a little more difficult than on a FS

I agree, the rangers path is pretty W@ank. Consider it is a 6 hour round trip in the car, a ball acheing 2+ hour slog / push to the top, and a pretty uninspiring descent, of which is only tricky in parts (and dont get me going on them water barrier things!)

Mountainman, you were clearly as dissapointed as when me and mental Sut did it, even he found it somewhat laborious.

Just my opinion, and assuming that we went the right way ?

Must.
Resist.
Flaming.
Calderdale.
Clique......

I did the whole loop a couple of weeks ago and it too 2.5 hours from the car park by the lakeside in Llanberis and back.

mountaingirl123 so you ride steps in Royston vasey get over yourself, the Ranger is a trail on a mountain, suffering on the up is all part of the experience, makes going down feel even better, if you find breath taking views to tiresome go find a berm in an old quarry and session to your hearts content, just don't come on here and whinge about it...i suppose the irony of calling oneself mountainman is lost.

I think the railway company and Thule are both missing a trick... What with The North Face Trail, Kona Darkside, Marin Trail, RedBull Trail...

How about the Snowdon RANGER (Radddd Awesome Narly Grnarr Extra Radd) Trail sponsored by Thule...

Just think, loads of attachment points on the carriage roof bolted through the vents, maybe room for 20 bikes per carriage.... feel free to photoshop....

[img] [/img]

My favorite is the one in a flouro vest licking the window at the front....

Have there been big changes to the Llanberis track up along the railway over the last few years? It's over 5 years since I rode it (on a 4" travel full sus) but I remember it being mostly rideable on the way up - there was one big step up and a few hundred metres of loose gravel but there rest of it was a challenging rocky climb.

YOU CAN NOT BE SERIOUS, uplift on Snowdon can you imagine the carnage, at least having to get up there in the first place eliminates the gimps, a sort of natural selection if you will.

i agree with mountainman get yerself over to Calderdale ( we have the best tech stuff over this area !!!!! 😉 people travel miles just to come here ...this is where its at ! techy, rocky hils/decents singletrack...you cant beat it..just join in the fun fun fun.... 😉

get yerself over to Calderdale

and besdies, I'm going up Snowdon the weekend I'm Wales for the Dyfi Enduro anyway.

I prefer descending the llanberis path myself, the grass hill slog on the ranger route isn't much fun.

A bike ride to me does not include a 5 mile push out of a 6/7 mile route, are you that bad at planning rides that thats just what you have to do and come to expect.
Its my opinion hat the Rangers path is not worth all the pushing,As Portlyone says the grass banking in the middle of the decent just finishes it for me, i have a bike to ride not to push, Also if you wish to pop over to Calderdale to do some techie stuff please contact me and lets just see what you can ride!!!

mountainman- I'm not sure where you are getting your numbers from for pushing but it would suggest that it's probably best you stay away from the mountains until you've HTFU.

Andyhilton... Your obviously a weirdo that enjoys this technical uphill riding, probably own a specialised and wear tight shorts, Mountain biking to me is in the name... BIKING not pushing, pushing is not biking.
I can not understand why anyone would want to drag/push a bike for 2hrs just to do a 10min blast down simple straight forward singletrack, dont no what all the hype is about, some people have a strange meaning to the word fun.
P.S Snowdon is not classed as a mountain its a Marilyn ( hill )
A Marilyn is a mountain or hill in the United Kingdom, Ireland or Isle of Man with a relative height of at least 150 metres (492 ft), regardless of absolute height or other merit.
I have probably climbed more 7,000m peaks than you have been on bike pushes so dont start with that carry on ANDYHILTON

Even though you are trolling I'll respond.

From memory the 7000m+ peaks are all in the Himalayas or the Karakorum ranges. So kudos if you have.

I do enjoy riding uphill as it makes the downhills sweeter. I don't own a Specialized and I only wear tight shorts on my road bike.

I suspect that you are an overweight yorkshireman with an Orange 5 and a penchant for foul language and shite beer. For those reasons I'm oot!

Snowdon would be a Munro if it was in Scotland. Good troll mountainman you had me for a while 😆

Right. Had enough now.

mountainman123: Do me a favour and don't post anything else up on this thread. You're clearly too good for the rest of us, and we probably couldn't cope with the hardcore-radness of Calderdale. So you stay there in your comfort zone, and we'll play in our comfort zone in the other mountains.

Ha Ha Ha loving this thread ? 😕

The lad (?) just thought Snowden was not worth the hype, as many on here have allready established, I personaly also thought it was not worth it....but hey thats just my opinion.

Dont understand the harsh reaction to this, inparticular his first post which i think is pretty spot on. But then again sad internet gimps who prey on the "weeka spellaz" from their bedrooms in Redditch are understandably easily offended.

Get over it, its a bloody forum full of emotionless drivel.....he hates it, you love it, this will allways be the case, cant get my head around all the atrition. Jesus ride off on your polished "stumpys" 😆

Ha! Marilyn / Munro

That's almost funny, mountainman123. Well done 😀

I know Andy h very well and he does indeed like the uphills, now. But not just for it's own sake. I speak not just for myself but I'm sure a lot of people when I say Snowdon was something major to tick off their list.

As much as the grassy knoll was a chore it's all something to go into your, so to speak, mtb medal list.

I am really not adding anything

i mean mills just for your info
Definitions of "mountain"

* Height over base of at least 2,500 m (8,202 ft).
* Height over base of 1,500 m (4,921 ft).–2,500 m (8,202 ft). with a slope greater than 2 degrees
* Height over base of 1,000 m (3,281 ft).–1,500 m (4,921 ft). with a slope greater than 5 degrees
* Local (radius 7,000 m (22,966 ft). elevation greater than 300 m (984 ft)., or 300 m (984 ft)–1,000 m (3,281 ft). if local (radius 7,000 m (22,966 ft). elevation is greater than 300 m (984 ft).

mountainman123: I bow to your mountain radness. You are my new esteemed prophet to follow willfully and without question. 😀

And remember - only the true messiah denies that he is the messiah!

What a charming discussion, with such depths of mature insight and wisdom. Nevertheless, I shall pose the following related question, though I very much doubt I shall get any sense from the dying embers of this maladjusted thread:

I'm thinking of heading up there on my Orange 5 for a mid-summer's night bivy (don't ask!), yet I'm not too keen on anything downward that's massively technical and rocky. So going down on the Ranger's path looks like a no-no. However, if the Llanberis path is 60% ridable (upward), it must be an absolute peach going down, surely?

Up AND down the Llanberis path, a solution, perhaps?

I walked down the Llanberis path a while ago as part of the Welsh 3000 walk (we went up Crib Goch)
From what I saw at dawn, it'll be a dead easy descent and I imagine is climb-able if you've got the legs as its a big wide trail.
I'm looking forward to riding the Rangers, hopefully on royal wedding day. i shall report back with comparisons to Calderdale. (Yes, I have ridden there)

yet I'm not too keen on anything downward that's massively technical and rocky. So going down on the Ranger's path looks like a no-no.

There are only a couple of "massively technical" sections.

Did it the other weekend and it's mostly fast, rocky and fun with smallish drops - relatively technical but also with long fast open sections where you just jump (easy) waterbars.

Very enjoyable.

no_eyed_deer,

i guess it depends how techy it is before you stop enjoying it! even the llanberis path has sections that some might describe as 'techy' series of rock steps, some lumpy bits of rock, drop offs etc. nothing massive but not all of it is flowy. maybe rhyd ddu would be better? although that has some techy moments and some steep moments they arent usually at the same time and, once you are past the first exposed part, its generally a bit more mellow but still very enjoyable.

Just caught up on this thread and the response I got. Definitely people have different views of difficulty and fun. But isn't having different views the joys of being all individuals. However, I did think the telegraph road bit a bit dull - but at least I've ticked off that route now.

Rangers path aint tech one bit! I cud do it on my road bike! (if i ad one) rangers is piece o piss! If yer a shredder anyway! 8)

What, so you guys stick to the trails - Losers! The only way to get down Snowdon is straight down the scree slopes!

The best one I've found is from the higher railway bridge on the Llanberis track - straight down to the road from there is proper "techy" 8)

What, so you guys stick to the trails - Losers! The only way to get down Snowdon is straight down the scree slopes!

The best one I've found is from the higher railway bridge on the Llanberis track - straight down to the road from there is proper "techy"

Pah - I do that on my unicycle!

"However, if the Llanberis path is 60% ridable (upward), it must be an absolute peach going down, surely?"

I rode down all of it except the steps from the trig point as I didn't want to crash with an audience!

1. The section from the steps, down to Bwlch Glas with the finger-stone was tricky in parts and I had one light OTB incident.

2. The section from Bwlch Glas bypassing Carnedd Ugain and then down to the railway arch is a long, continuously fairly steep trail, wide but extremely loose. I found this part the most difficult to stay in control with a fair bit of sliding and overheated my brakes. If you ride up all of this - your are strong and fit.

Below the railway bridge is a pitched stone section that is essentially a wide, very long, irregular, but shallow staircase. Easier than it looks to descend - just point straight down and drag the rear brake a tiny bit. I was a bit breathless at the bottom from taking all the bumps. If you can ride up this you are a trials god.

Below that the trail is wide and fast with fun rocky interludes all the way past halfway house, down to the gate.

I enjoyed the whole solo summer evening experience, there were just a few friendly people walking, all encouraging me. Was it worth it? Yes, it was a lovely experience and not as difficult to climb as I expected, great views and with a long and interesting descent.

I was tempted to do The Rangers but it was deserted and with no-one to scrape me up, I though it unwise to do. But I do want to do it with friends.

Come with us??

Buzz-L - yeah that sounds sensible! If I do do the midsummer Snowdon summit bivi thing* (gloriously weather dependant, obviously), I don't really fancy trying to go down something that is several shades of gnar, while bleary-eyed and cold first thing in the morning, while carrying overnight gear. The solitary mess I could make on the rocks would not be nice... 😯
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* I may very well not actually do it, it's just a whimsical idea after all!

Guy Fawkes night 1995 I climbed and bivvied on top of Snowdon with several equally drunk students. Cloud base was about 100ft below the summit with a full moon. When the sun came up it turned everything orange, glorious.

I'll be riding with ir and several others on middleton b0llocks day and I will love it as it's riding with friends, what more can you ask? 🙂