THE UK’s busiest mountain rescue team has warned the number of people getting into difficulty in the mountains is becoming unsustainable, after recording its busiest month on record.
Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team attended 59 callouts during August, according to a statement issued by the team, which says it is now on course for around 440 incidents during 2026.
If that projection is realised, it would represent a dramatic increase from the 147 callouts recorded by the team in 2020.
The figures have risen steadily since then, with 237 callouts in 2021, 233 in 2022, 308 in 2023, 327 in 2024 and around 359 in 2025. The team says the latest figures should prompt a serious discussion about what is happening on the mountains.
Llanberis MRT is the busiest mountain rescue team in the UK and operates across Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) and the surrounding mountains of Eryri. Its members are volunteers who respond to incidents ranging from lost and injured walkers to serious mountain accidents and technical rescues.
The team says August was particularly demanding, with volunteers carrying out prolonged rescues in darkness and poor weather and dealing with serious injuries, heat-related incidents and people becoming stuck in difficult terrain. It also attended incidents in which people and animals died.
But it is the changing nature of some of those callouts that is causing particular concern.
‘The mountains have not suddenly become more dangerous’
In its statement, Llanberis Mountain Rescue makes a point of distinguishing between the danger presented by the mountains themselves and the number of people now attempting challenging terrain.
“The mountains have not suddenly become more dangerous,” a statement read.
“More people are visiting them, and the way routes are discovered and accessed has changed.”
It points specifically to the way social media can present difficult mountain routes to a much wider audience.
Crib Goch, the exposed Grade 1 scramble on Yr Wyddfa, is given as an example. Photographs and videos can make the ridge appear to be another spectacular route to the summit, but they cannot necessarily convey what it is like in poor visibility, heavy rain or strong winds.
The team says routes that were once attempted by experienced hillwalkers and mountaineers are increasingly attracting people with little or no experience of the terrain.
Llanberis Mountain Rescue has previously warned about people underestimating Crib Goch, while the British Mountaineering Council has also highlighted the way apparently straightforward photographs can conceal the difficulty and exposure encountered in the mountains.
The concern for 2027 is that even more people may now be arriving in difficult terrain without understanding what they have taken on.
Crib Goch is a particularly useful example of why rescuers are concerned by how the mountains are perceived on social media because it illustrates the gap between seeing a route and understanding it.
In good conditions, photographs of the ridge show an extraordinary line of rock with Yr Wyddfa rising behind it. Those images have helped make the route one of the best-known mountain challenges in Britain.
What they do not show is the effect of wind and rain on exposed rock, the consequences of losing the route in cloud, or what happens when somebody who has never scrambled before reaches a section where turning around feels considerably more difficult than continuing.
Eryri National Park Authority has itself been considering how to improve information around Crib Goch. Minutes from a local access forum meeting recorded concerns about people taking an increasingly hazardous unofficial path around the ridge, with Llanberis Mountain Rescue highlighting a rise in incidents in the area. The authority has discussed additional information and signage intended to give visitors an opportunity to reconsider their route before committing themselves to difficult terrain.
That reflects the wider problem facing the rescue team. Information about a route is now easier to find than ever. Knowing that a route exists, however, is not the same thing as possessing the skills required to complete it safely.
The pressure on mountain rescue volunteers
The increasing number of incidents is also putting pressure on the people who respond to them.
Llanberis Mountain Rescue is a volunteer organisation. Its members have other jobs and responsibilities but remain available to respond to emergencies around the clock.
The scale of that commitment has already been recognised in Parliament. During a Westminster debate on mountain rescue in April, Llanberis was described as the busiest mountain rescue team in the United Kingdom, with around 360 callouts in 2025 representing approximately 10 per cent of all mountain rescue incidents in England and Wales that year.
The team’s own charity records show just how much time its volunteers already contribute. In 2023, members had provided more than 8,800 hours responding to rescues by the time the annual report was prepared, before the additional training, administration, equipment maintenance and other work required to keep the team operating was included.
“The answer cannot simply be more Mountain Rescue,” the team says. “There has to be greater focus on prevention and personal responsibility.”
It is a significant statement from an organisation whose entire purpose is to help people when things go wrong.
There is little suggestion from the rescue team that people should stay away from Eryri. On the contrary, its statement acknowledges the physical and mental health benefits of spending time in the mountains and makes clear that its volunteers will continue to respond whenever somebody genuinely needs help.
The message is instead about understanding the environment before entering it. That means considering whether the route is appropriate for your experience, whether you have the necessary skills and equipment, whether you understand the weather forecast and whether you have enough knowledge to recognise when conditions have deteriorated beyond what you can safely manage.
Eryri is one of the most popular outdoor destinations in Britain, and the pressure created by that popularity is not confined to mountain rescue.
North Wales Police and Eryri National Park Authority have previously urged visitors to Yr Wyddfa to prepare properly, asking people to consider whether they have the skills and knowledge required, whether they understand the weather and whether they have the appropriate equipment before setting out.
“Enjoy the mountains, but please try to understand the environment you are entering and if the terrain or conditions don’t feel right, turn around.”
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