Wild Camping on Snowdon Summit to see the Olympic Flame

Q. I am going to see the Olympic Flame travel up Snowdon and I am travelling up the afternoon on the day before. Will I be able to wild camp or bivvy on the summit?

Chris Homer,

A. Hi! Unfortunately when the olympic torch is taken up Snowdon (10:00AM - 29th May 2012) It won't be visible to the public. You can find all the live route via the London 2012 website.

Iwan James, Caernarfon

A. in response to camping out on snowdon overnight, forget the tent use a bivvy bag instead then you upset anyone by pitching a tent!...much more fun!

Gary Marshall, Anglesey

A. Not sure of the timing - but The Olympic Torch will be taken up to the summit of Mount Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) on the Snowdon Mountain Railway on 29th May, 2012 during its journey from Beaumaris to Chester

Hope this helps . . .

Mike (Editor)

A. I have not been able to obtain the timings of the Olympic Torch on Mount Snowdon. Can anyone confirm the approx times please?

Carl Tover, Towcester

A. Sorry - but officially you are only allowed to camp in The Snowdonia National Park on designated campsites or on private land with the Land Owners' consent. Wild camping is not permitted by the park authority - and this includes Mount Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) itself.

For more information see Questions and answers about Wild Camping on Snowdon and in The Snowdonia National Park

Hope this helps . . .

Mike (Editor)

A. Wild Camping and The Law in England, Scotland and Wales.

Tents cannot be pitched just anywhere because every piece of Britain is owned by some individual or some organisation and according to the strict letter of the law permission must be obtained prior to pitching tent and camping.

In practice however, this is often impractical and wild camping is usually tolerated in the more remote areas - typically, more than half a day's walk from an official campsite or other accommodation providing you:

Keep groups small
Camp as unobtrusively as possible
Leave camp as you found it
Remove all litter (even other people's)
Carry out everything you carried in
Carry out tampons and sanitary towels (burying them doesn't work as animals dig them up again)
Choose a dry pitch rather than digging drainage ditches around a tent or moving boulders
Toilet duties should be performed 30m (100ft) from water and the results buried using a trowel
At all time, help preserve the environment
And if you are in any doubt about what you're doing, find out more

In Scotland, the current access legislation (which came into effect in early 2005) is explicit about your right to wild camp on hill land. However, there are exceptions. Since March 2011 you are not permitted to wild camp between Dryman and Rowardennan on the shore of Loch Lomond. See Loch Lomond Wild Camping Ban for more information.

There appears to be an exception to this with respect to camping in Dartmoor National Park where the right to wild camping is actually enshrined in the National Parks & Access to the Countryside Act, 1949 amendment Dartmoor Commons Act, 1985 - see Wild Camping in the UK for more details.

For the definitive answer with respect to wild camping in Scotland see the answer supplied by the Scottish Natural Heritage

For a few (tongue in cheek) tips on wild camping see Some Wild Camping Tips.

NB. go4awalk.com cannot offer any advice on suitable locations for wild camping - but click here for walks from exisiting campsites.

Hope this helps

Mike (Editor)

Add your answer to THIS question | Ask a NEW question

Return to the main list of Walking and Hiking Questions

Search for an existing Walking and Hiking Question or Answer