Croeso i Eryri
Situated at the top of Llanberis Pass is Pen-y-Pass bus interchange at an elevation of 359 metres (1,178 ft) – maybe the highest in Britain. Located in the Snowdonia National Park, which covers an area of 823 square miles and is home to over 26,000 people, Pen-y-Pass is the starting point for most walkers attempting to reach the summit of Snowdon (1,085 metres or 3,560 ft). The area is hugely popular and, consequently, parking and traffic congestion are major problems, more so in 2021 with staycations being the order of the day. To help placate the situation, the National Park and Gwynedd Council have, for many decades, supported a small network of bus routes known as the Snowdon Sherpa. Over the years, many operators have been involved: Express Motors, KMP, Padarn Bus, Arriva, GHA, O R Williams who traded as Whiteways, Crosville, and Alpine.
Geographically, the Snowdon Sherpa covers just a small area in the north west of the national park with the remainder of the park being covered by conventional bus and Traws Cymru services provided by operators such as Arriva, Llew Jones and Lloyds. In 2021 the entire Sherpa network is operated by Gwynfor Coaches of Gaerwen on the Isle of Anglesey, using a local base in Caernarfon. The network consists of six routes with five operating daily and the S6 operating weekends and bank holidays. The most popular route being the S1 between Llanberis and Pen-y-Pass, a relatively short journey of 5.5 miles. This route also acts as a park-and-ride service from Nant Peris, a small village five minutes outside Llanberis which has a large pay-and-display car park. From Monday to Friday this service operates on an hourly headway between 7.30am and 5pm, whilst on weekends and bank holidays the operation becomes far more intensive, starting at 6.45am and finishing at 6.50pm. On weekends and bank holidays, the hourly service from Llanberis is supplemented by two additional short workings per hour from the Nant Peris park-and-ride. Also departing Llanberis is the S2 on an hourly headway, giving this stretch of road to Pen-y-Pass a service every thirty-minutes. Unlike the S1, the S2 continues over the pass for another 11 miles to Betws-y-Coed and twice a day beyond that to Llanrwst.
Gwynfor Coaches KX15 BMV, an Optare Solo M710SE B19F which was new to Courtney ascends the A489 on service S4.
The third daily service, the S4, approaches Pen-y-Pass from the east by climbing the A489, having commenced in Caernarfon, but, unlike the S1 and S2 which are worked by double-deckers, uses Optare Solo’s to comply with width restrictions near the summit. Rather confusingly the S4, whilst marketed as part of the Sherpa network, is aimed more towards locals wanting to travel between Beddgelert and Caernarfon. To add further confusion for the visitor, some journeys on the S4 weekday timetable are shown as short workings, whereas in reality they continue to/from Beddgelert as S97 to Porthmadog. Sundays and bank holidays are made easier as both the S4 and S97 are shown on one timetable as a coordinated service. Beddgelert is a tourist destination in its own right and is a traditional village set beside two rivers, the Glaslyn and the Colwyn which meet at a picturesque bridge in the centre of the village. The Welsh Highland Railway coming from Porthmadog has a station in the village making it an ideal interchange with the bus, especially in 2021 as the station is also the terminus for the railway, the line onward to Caernarfon being out of action.
Gwynfor Coaches YJ10 MBO an Optare Solo M780SE B27F, new to Heyfordian, descends from Pen-y-Pass on service S4.
Many bus routes in Britain contest the accolade of ‘most scenic’ but there can only be one winner of the ‘most scenic network’ - the Snowdon Sherpa. Dramatic landscapes viewed from the top deck of a bus as it clings to the mountain side and travels through lush, lake filled valleys take some beating. If you also factor in the ease of access by public transport into the network and the availability of several different good value travel cards from both rail and bus companies, Snowdonia National Park can be an enjoyable car free holiday.
Gwynfor Coaches LG52 DBU, DAF SDB250/Alexander H45/20D, new to Arriva London sits at the High Street lay-over point of service S1. The timetable shows the service starting from the interchange but on this journey the bus continued on a one-way loop along the A4086 and turning left into the High Street.
Gwynfor Coaches, on loan from Dawson Rentals, LK04 NME, a Volvo B7TL with Alexander H43/24D body, new to Metroline London Northern as VPL583. Seen loading at Llanberis interchange on the 12-noon departure of service S2 for Betws-y-Coed.
Gwynfor Coaches operating service 88 from Caernarfon with YJ61 JHV, an Optare Solo M780SE B27F which was new to Connect Transport. The service has just entered the High Street from the A4086 which runs parallel to the High Street acting as a by-pass. Gwynfor Coaches also operate the 85/86 from Bangor to Llanberis. All three services are frequent but have irregular headways. A more limited timetable operates on Sunday but has better clockface timings.
Llanberis, population 1,844, sits on the twin lakes of Llyn Padarn and Llyn Peris, and the national park boundary dissects the town that today counts tourism as its main industry. Most of the attractions are centred on the southern end of the town: Snowdonia Mountain Railway, Llanberis lake railway, the wonderful Electric Mountain, and the National Slate Museum amongst others.
