Conditions
There was new snow on the mountain today, with snow above about 400m. The snow was quite soft, wet and thin to begin with, but it was a bit thicker as you went higher up the mountain, increasingly affecting walking the paths.

Overall the main effect of the new snow underfoot was to make it generally slippery, but it also made it much more difficult to see and follow the paths on the mountain. It also hid the areas of old snow that still exist in some places, which are by now hard, icy and slippery.

On the PyG (and miners) path apart from the new snow the main difficulty was the area of old hard snow below Bwlch Glas above about 900m, with the possibility of serious slips off the route in some places. Conditions will have changed significantly again by morning, with the possibility of more icy areas and drifted snow (see Additional Information below).

There was snow on the Llanberis path above about 450m, with the snow being very soft and wet above this, with large areas that may become very icy by the morning (see Additional Information below). There was more snow cover from the bottom of Allt Goch, with a combination of thin new snow, areas of old snow along the path, and thicker drifts of new snow along the path.

It was clear wind influence could be seen on the snow increasingly during the day, with strong drifting on easterly and northerly winds. The effect of the wind was not significantly visible on the PyG path in the morning, but with the stronger more northerly winds in the afternoon it is likely that snow has drifted on some parts of this route later in the day. On the Llanberis route there were more localized drifts to be seen in a number of places, with significant areas being scoured by the wind leaving areas of thin but hard and icy snow.

Above Bwlch Glas on the Llanberis, PyG, miners and Cwellyn (Snowdon Ranger) paths the route was completely covered by a layer of icy, hard and slippery snow in some places.

A cloudy and foggy day with persistent snow, the snow falling heavily for periods during the morning. Significant winds, being calmer in the morning, and strong higher on the mountain and in the afternoon.

Essential equipment
Suitable seasonal walking equipment, including lighting (such as a headtorch or two each).

Carrying an ice axe and mountaineering crampons will offer safer options on the mountain. Microspikes could also be beneficial in addition to this with thin, icy and variable conditions likely across some areas of the mountain.

Carrying goggles (such as ski goggles) will offer a means of protecting the eyes to see more easily in order to travel more safely on the mountain.

Additional Information
On the Friday of the report the forecast suggests that there will be very variable weather in the coming days, with varying challenges from day to day, causing conditions underfoot to change rapidly. A combination of very low temperatures, snow, varying winds, being very strong at times, all seem to bring their own issues at different times.

On the day of the report the forecast suggests that the temperature on the summit will be below freezing for a large part of the period until the next report, being several degrees below freezing at times. The temperature at the summit is forecast to be as low as -6ºC (feeling like it is as low as -18ºC at times).

Precipitation is also predicted at times, with snow likely higher on the mountain, but also across the mountain at times. It seems that the snow is most likely on Saturday night and into Sunday, but possible at other times as well.

With times of low temperatures across the mountain, and wet areas and half-thawed snow, icy conditions are likely at times (on Saturday morning particularly), especially at middle elevations on the mountain.

The wind will also add to challenges on the mountain, being a danger of itself at times, but also affecting visibility and drifting snow (which can contribute to the risk of  avalanches). To complicate matters further the direction will also vary significantly.

Periods of very poor visibility are likely when it will be impossible to see the paths in order to follow them.

With some nice weather forecast for Saturday it is also worth noting the challenging circumstances that already exist in terms of snow, the possibility of very icy conditions, and the deterioration in the weather that is predicted for the end of the day. The increase in the wind, and the possibility of new snow could easily affect the end of the day with any change in timing, or from being a little late coming down from the mountain