The Olympic Flame has visited the summit of Snowdon/Yr Wyddfa, the second highest peak in the UK, on Day 11 of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay.
The Flame was carried 1,085m to the peak in a miner’s lantern on the Snowdon Mountain Railway, in the Snowdonia National Park in North Wales.
At the summit the Olympic Flame was carried to the highest point on the Relay by world-renowned mountaineer Sir Chris Bonington, who was returning to the place where he started climbing. He went on to lead the first successful ascent of the south-west face of Mount Everest in 1975, and reached the summit of Everest in 1985 with a Norwegian expedition.
Sir Chris said: 'This was a very special moment for me and it totally exceeded all my expectations. I think it's not only the honour of carrying the Olympic Flame to the top of Snowdon, but also the fact it’s part of a long journey for me which goes back to 1952 when I first started climbing here on Snowdon and spent New Year’s Eve in an empty cafe in the bitter cold.
This was a very special moment for me and it totally exceeded all my expectations.
Sir Chris Bonington, mountaineer
'So this really is a lovely exercise of passage for me and it was lovely to share it with my fellow climbers and people who love the hills and to feel their warmth and approval.'
Carwyn Jones, First Minister of Wales, said. 'The Olympic Torch Relay has provided Wales with a wonderful opportunity to show the world just what we have to offer as it has travelled past some of our best known landmarks, through our towns and cities and along our stunning coastline.
'What better way to show the natural beauty of our country than to have the Torch visit our highest peak with one of the world's best-known adventurers.'
