Updated September 2026. Written by James, founder of Flaming Phoenix and the maker of Phoenix Bars.

The Welsh 3000s is the challenge of standing on all 15 summits in Wales above 3,000 feet within 24 hours. The peaks sit in three groups inside Eryri National Park, the Carneddau in the north, the Glyderau in the middle and the Yr Wyddfa massif in the south, and the accepted route links them on foot with roughly 3,800 to 4,200 metres of ascent.

Why nobody agrees on the distance

Look up the Welsh 3000s and you will find it described as 24 miles, 30 miles, 35km and 51km. All of those are correct, and that is the problem.

The 24-mile figure is the straight-line summit-to-summit distance, which no human being actually walks. The 35km figure is close to the racing line used for fastest known times, taking the most direct descents including the steep drop off Foel-fras. The 51km figures usually come from GPS tracks that include the walk-in from a car park and the walk-out to a road at the far end, plus the wandering you do while navigating in cloud.

So the honest answer is this. Summit to summit you are looking at about 30 miles. Door to door, from where you park to where you finish, most people record 32 to 34 miles. The ascent figures split the same way: about 3,800 metres if you measure clean summit gains, closer to 4,200 metres once every reascent and dip is counted by a watch.

Plan on 34 miles and 4,200 metres. If it comes in under that, good.

Is it 14 peaks or 15?

Both names are still in use and both refer to the same walk. The list was long described as 14 peaks. Carnedd Gwenllian, the summit between Foel Grach and Foel-fras, was previously called Garnedd Uchaf and was not always counted as a separate top. It was renamed in 2009 and is now normally included, which makes 15. If you hear someone talk about the 14 Peaks, they mean this.

The 15 peaks in order, south to north

Most people go south to north, getting the hardest scrambling done while they are fresh and finishing on easy ground in the dark.

You start on Yr Wyddfa, the highest at 1,085 metres, then Garnedd Ugain and Crib Goch. Crib Goch is a grade one scramble along an exposed knife-edge ridge and it is the single thing that stops this being a walk. In wind or wet rock it is genuinely dangerous, and there is no shame in taking the Pyg Track and accepting that your round is not a full one.

Then down to Nant Peris, up Elidir Fawr, and along the Glyderau: Y Garn, Glyder Fawr, Glyder Fach and Tryfan. Tryfan's north ridge is the second scramble and the descent off it into the Ogwen valley is slow and awkward when you are tired.

From Ogwen the Carneddau give you the long finish: Pen yr Ole Wen straight up from the road, then Carnedd Dafydd, Carnedd Llewelyn, Yr Elen, Foel Grach, Carnedd Gwenllian and Foel-fras, before the long drop to Llanfairfechan or Abergwyngregyn.

How long does it take?

Fit hill walkers doing the full round south to north typically finish in 16 to 20 hours moving. Add stops and most groups are out for 18 to 22. Under 15 hours means you are moving fast and navigating cleanly. Fell runners have done it in well under five, which tells you more about them than about your day.

The two things that decide your time are not fitness. They are the Crib Goch decision and the Tryfan descent. Both are slow, both are where groups get separated, and both punish being tired.

Is there a two-day route?

Yes, and for most people it is the better trip. Split at Ogwen after Tryfan, which gives you a big first day with both scrambles and a long but simple second day over the Carneddau. Camping high has the usual problem that Wales gives you no legal right to do it, so read our guide to where you can legally wild camp in the UK before you plan a pitch, and treat Eryri's requests seriously. The alternative is a night in the valley and a second start.

Splitting it means you are no longer doing the 24-hour challenge, and that is fine. You still stand on all 15 summits.

When to go, and where to start

April to September, and mid-June for the longest daylight. Sixteen hours of light changes the Tryfan descent from a headtorch problem into a normal one.

South to north from Pen-y-Pass is the standard start, with the advantage of getting Crib Goch done early and finishing on gentle ground. North to south from Aber or Llanfairfechan front-loads the easy miles and leaves you scrambling on tired legs, which I would not recommend for a first attempt. Either way you need transport at both ends, because the start and finish are about 25 miles apart by road.

Kit for a 20-hour mountain day

The things that go wrong are light, weather and water. Two light sources rather than one, because you will almost certainly finish in the dark. Full waterproofs regardless of the forecast, because the Carneddau make their own weather. Map and compass, and the ability to use them on the Carneddau plateau in cloud, where the ground is featureless and a GPS trace will not tell you about the crags below you.

Water is the quiet problem. There is almost nothing drinkable along the Glyderau ridge, and the reliable fills are at Nant Peris and Ogwen. Carry two litres out of each and plan around it. Our ultra marathon kit list covers the same ground for racing, and what to pack for a multi-day hike is the two-day version.