Three separate parties got stuck on Tryfan's North Ridge. Photo: Terry Huges CC-BY-SA-2.0

A family group was rescued after getting stuck on a Snowdonia mountain.

The four were tackling the North Ridge of Tryfan when they strayed on to steep ground on a rock climb and were the third party to call for help from the route.

The father, two daughters and a son-in-law called for help shortly after midday yesterday from the East Face of the mountain.

Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation was alerted and used the Sarloc smartphone system to pinpoint their position.

Chris Lloyd of the team said two of the walkers had been on the mountain recently and were trying to repeat their experience.

“Setting off mid-morning up the nose of the North Ridge they seemed to have traversed much of the East Face,” he said.

“Low cloud made route finding difficult and they soon found themselves on a small grassy ledge on one of the classic rock climbs. The cloud lifted and revealed their predicament.

“They correctly decided to telephone for assistance just after midday. Once they were located using Sarloc, they could be seen through binoculars from Oggie Base.

“As members gathered at base and the cloud cleared, there was an opportunity for 22 Squadron [from RAF Valley] to fly in and winch the four to safety. They were flown down to Oggie Base by about 2pm.

“The four from the Birmingham area were very grateful for the lift.

“It was unfortunate that this incident occurred as they were all suitably equipped and they had just become disorientated on the craggy rocks of Tryfan in low cloud.”

The team was called out the previous weekend to Tryfan to help walkers in difficulty.

Mr Lloyd said: “Late on Saturday afternoon, two separate couples set off up Tryfan. One Romanian couple in their early 30s were not really equipped for their scramble. They had a guidebook, but little else.

“It would appear that they had reached the North Tower. They were not tempted by its daunting crags and so tried to traverse to the right. Their progress had been slow and with the onset of dusk, they tried to descend.

“They ended up cragfast on the West Face. They made the 999 call at about 8pm. With two spotters located on the A5, a team of three was guided to them. They were escorted to safety and were walked off the mountain in the early hours of Sunday.

“Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountain, a well equipped young couple from Reading had become stuck on the Eastern Traverse where it enters the amphitheatre of the North Gully.

“The two were going wild camping and were very well equipped for a night out. As they had also set out late and made slow progress, by the time they got to their location and looked into the swirling cloud in the top of the gully, the girl lost confidence and did not want to continue.

“So at about 9pm they made the 999 call. Their lights could be clearly seen from Oggie Base, so a party of four set off up the North Ridge and Eastern Traverse. The two were then assisted up the North Gully and down the Western Gully.

“Progress was slow, with this party arriving back to Oggie base shortly after 4am. The young couple stayed the remainder of the night in the comfort of the bunkroom at Oggie Base.”