Mountain near London?
 

My fiancé and I are going to be in the UK for ten days in July and we are hoping to walk up a mountain.

We’ll start out in London and then hope to spend two days max on this side trip.
Any recommendations where we should go?

Ideally we don’t want to go more than 5 hours away by train or car—and the location of lodging and the mountain are in close proximity. Less transit hassle. But if you know an excursion company that assists with this kind of stuff that is great too!

We’d love to climb Snowdon in Wales, but it might be too far away—especially for train.

Thanks!

What do you mean by "walk up a mountain". Typically one would walk up a hill but climb a mountain. What height mountain are you talking about? Do you have experience and equipment to climb a mountain - or are you really just talking about walking/hiking in the countryside?

To get to real mountains (versus hilly countryside) you would have to go quite far north.

If you can provide more information people can give you more specific suggestions.

Walk, climb, scale, whatever you want to call it--we want to reach the top of a mountain :)

We are experienced, but ideally would like to do an easy to medium path.

Thanks!

Define mountain. England is not generally considered to have any mountains, and one could argue about Wales. If you want to actually climb a real mountain while in the UK I would have thought that meant Ben Nevis, but that's in Scotland. You could take the night train north...

Are you thinking of tall mountains -- like the Alps or Sierra Nevada? If so you are going to the wrong country. There are mountains (though not massive ones) in Scotland and Wales - but none are close to London.

>>if you know an excursion company that assists with this kind of stuff that is great too!<<

Since the UK is not a mountainous country there wouldn't be much call for mountain climbing tours.There are walking tours - but generally in places like the Cotswolds or along Hadrian's Wall, etc. You could go to Scotland or North Wales for a few days. But to actually scale the mountains (as opposed to hill walking) you'd need to be very fit and have foul weather gear.

What is it that made you think there are mountains near London? Maybe your image of England/the UK needs revision . . .

Ain't no such thing by standards of countries that have real mountains. But if something rising to barely 1,000 m strikes you as worthy of the word "mountain", then there are a couple - see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...dom#Marilyns_2

The mountains near London are in France.

Take the train 5 hours to Penrith in the Lake District hire a car then make your way to the top of Scafell Pike. I can recommend the Bridge Hotel in Buttermere. You may also enjoy a walk in the 'mountains' around Buttermere for beautiful scenery, weather permitting. Then return through Windermere to Kendal on to London via train. Two days won't allow you much time but it can be done in a rush.

Perhaps if you stand on the cliffs at Dover, you will feel like you are on top of a mountain.

Actually, if you want to visit Snowden, it's three hours by train from London to Bangor, where you'd probably need to rent a car. Then you can take a train up Snowden....

Jeez guys -- lighten up. "Hill walking" would likely fit the bill. I bet Snowdon has been referred to as a mountain before.

Not sure about the logistics from London, but Snowdon is an obvious choice. So obvious that you will certainly not be alone.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ng-snowdon.cfm

We walked up the less-used Ranger's path and enjoyed it. Public transportation will likely be easier on the other side from Llanberis where you can catch the shuttle to the Miner's Track route as well.

I was going to recommend snowdon as well. Many of my friends have climbed it.

How about one of the lesser peaks in Snowdonia? Far less crowded and far more enjoyable as a result. One of the Carneddau perhaps. They are over 3000 feet too.
You will need good class 3 boots, and the correct clothing. Also make sure someone knows what you are doing, in case of an emergency.
If you want some rock climbing that can be had in North Wales too. Tryfan for instance.
The Brecon Beacons could also offer you the required hill walk, again less popular than Snowdon, which gets packed at the summit, even in pretty bad weather.

Train London to Penrith 3 hrs
Bus Penrith to Glenridding 45 mins

From Glenridding walk up Helvellyn (but not when it's windy)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helvellyn

I wonder about Plynlimon. I don't know if it's a big hill or a mountain but it's the source of the river Severn.
You could stay in Aberystwyth. The area generally is very picturesque and Aberystwyth is one place where you will hear Welsh spoken, if that interests you.
London to Aberystwyth by train takes about 4 1/2 hours

While you've time to plan, you might like to try to get hold of this movie:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eng...own_a_Mountain

or more seriously, see if you can find Julia Bradbury's Wainwright Walks, a TV series and accompanying book about walks in the Lake District.

You will hear Welsh in Bangor and throughout Snowdonia too.

There are plenty of options offering some pretty stiff hill walking, including the Peak District and parts of the lower Pennines too.

I didn't say THE one place. I lived in Aberystwyth for several years. It's a centre for the Welsh language and you hear it in shops, pubs, on buses etc.
If you'd settle for a hill, then Long Mynd is a very pleasant walk, again in a picturesque area with small interesting towns.
http://www.churchstretton.co.uk/dire...ow_to_Get_Here

If you are experienced and have brought the proper clothing, I think Toucan's recommendation of Scafell is excellent.

Snowdon is an interesting mountain. One side is a walk up a gentle slope on a paved path, if I recall correctly. The other is steep enough to have technical climbs and was used in the winter to train for Everest.

The issue in either place is having waterproof jackets and trousers and something more than running shoes (UK trainers) on Scafell and the big side of Snowdon.

There's always Mount Batten near Windsor. It's a popular destination for hikers.

Groan Rubicund :-D

Anyone who doesn't consider the ascent of Snowden, from Trefyn and Cym Idwal to be a mountain has my respect.

What if you went up a hill but came down a mountain? ;^)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eng...own_a_Mountain

There is a debt mountain in Madrid.

From the wikipedia entry on The Englishman Who . . . :<i>In regard to its humorous and affectionate description of the locals, the film has often been compared with Waking Ned Devine, a comedy film written and directed by Kirk Jones.</i>

I saw both. Waking Ned Devine was far superior.

And in the UK, mountains are little more than large hills - the highest isn't even 4500 feet (4435 = Ben Nevis), less than 85% of Denver's official elevation.

Anyone who doesn't consider the ascent of Snowden, from Trefyn and Cym Idwal to be a mountain has my respect.>

Me too having gone from the summit down that route and it was very hairy and turned out to be rather scary for me - I did not realize how rugged the trail would become. This is a mountain for all reasons OP want.

the main trail up Snowden is easy - a wide path along the railway but going down to the east needs proper shoes (which I did not have) - so anyone who says Snowdon ain't a mountain simply has not climbed it from what Dickie Gr says don't know what they're talking about.

From Bangor you can take buses to the city where the steam train trundles up Snowdon - if you go down the rugged way I did then you can get a bus after you reach the bottom back to Bangor - Llandudno makes a sweet base as does Conwy - Bangor being a rather blah city IME.

"...And in the UK, mountains are little more than large hills - the highest isn't even 4500 feet (4435 = Ben Nevis), less than 85% of Denver's official elevation...."

The funny part about that: Denver is on the flat, not in the mountains, but at mile-high altitude.

http://hillcraftguidedwalking.com/pa...download=nokia

I wouldn't take this likely, we are joking but this route is dangerous in anything but good weather.
Devil's Kitchen is not to be taken lightly.

Altitude : same issue with Jo'burg, nearly 6000ft.

"take this lightly" : sick of this iPad.

Ah Dickie - that rocky cascade leading down to the lake - I had to scramble from boulder to boulder - thank God I could see the lake and the end of the scramble or I would have freaked out not knowing if I was going on the right course!

Thanks for the memories!

Pedant alert. It's Tryfan. :) Cwm Idwal is glorious.
You need really good footwear, and clothing for such things, even in July.
Personally I would not consider Snowdon in July. Just too crowded, a real anticlimax after a good walk up. Plenty of other challenging mountains in the area. A good map is essential, a guide maybe helpful.

There is actually no real definition of a mountain, so any disagreement about whether something is or isn't one is meaningless.

One definition is: "a large natural elevation of the earth's surface rising abruptly from the surrounding level; a large steep hill." That 'large
steep hill' allows pretty much anything to be called a mountain.

What I think is more important is how difficult getting up may be and whether the person attempting it is properly equipped and experienced. People have died on relatively small 'mountains' such as Snowdon or Ben Nevis because they thought it would be a simple walk in the park. On Ben Nevis, little as it is in relative terms as a mountain, very experienced people have literally walked off the edge in cloud cover.


Given the way the OP worded his question, I would wonder if they have any actual experience in 'hill walking' or 'mountain climbing'.

I would not personally plan to go up Snowdon or Ben Nevis without proper gear including hiking shoes/boots, food, water, rain gear, emergency shelter.

Yes - but the OP hasn;t made it clear if they will have appropriate shoes/gear for mountain climbing (not something one would usually take on a vacation to London).

Hence the question about walking/hiking versus actually climbing.

Funny how the pendulum has swung from ain't no mountains here to "emergency shelter".

Recall that it is July -- I don't think anyone is going to starve to death. Check the weather before you go but no need for the scare tactics. Good shoes, a waterproof jacket and some water should be fine. Pick one of the numerous paths that can be completed without scrambling.

http://www.mountainwalk.co.uk/walkingsnowdon.html

. Check the weather before you go but no need for the scare tactics>

Well I was scared to death, kind of - but I did not do research and may have lost the official trail - anyway ending up scrambling from boulder to boulder and fear of falling and breaking a limb did indeed scare me - so do some research to take a proper trail - I must have got off the trail and ended up inching down to safety.

I hope the OP doesn't mind too much, but this has been a very amusing thread, as I knew it would be when someone asked for a mountain outside of London.

So thanks, OP for being a good sport, and in the end you did get a lot of very good information!

And I enjoyed reading it, tho' there is not mountain climbing in my future, there will be a trip to London.

Yes it is July, but it is also quite possible to have thick cloud, sudden storms or just plain get lost. I know a guy who is with the mountain rescue in the Lakes. He regularly has to risk his life, in the summer, to rescue people ill equipped on mountains on the Lakes.
I know Snowdonia, and n
know what the weather can be, even in July.
Why should others have to risk their lives to rescue people who don't take the mountains seriously?

English/Welsh weather ?

In each of the last 10 odd years, at least one of my friends has done the 3 peaks on the longest day.

Last year was the first year in many that the conditions have not been diabolical.

Of course the weather north of Gretna is always glorious from March to September.

Just climb to the top of St.Paul's Cathedral. You'll feel like you climbed a mountain.

((H))