The walkers were stuck all day on Tryfan. Photo: Bob Smith/grough

Two walkers were plucked from a Snowdonia mountain by a rescue helicopter in fading light after spending the day stuck on steep ground.

The pair became stuck on Tryfan after retreating from a scrambling route, but ventured on to difficult terrain by mistake.

Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation was alerted on Wednesday when the pair called for help when they became cragfast on a ledge. A team spokesperson said: “Two walkers had attempted the North Ridge of Tryfan but had found the icy conditions high up challenging.

“In an attempt to retreat they unfortunately chose to descend North Gully and then traverse out below North Buttress, until they could go no further.”

Because of the impending darkness and difficulty of the terrain the two walkers were on, the team requested the help of the Caernarfon Coastguard helicopter.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency released footage of the rescue operation.

An MCA spokesperson said: “Perched precariously on a steep cliff ledge, the two climbers called the North Wales Police and the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation for help just before 4.30pm, reporting that they’d been stuck since early morning.

“Due to their difficult position, the HM Coastguard helicopter had to be called in.

“They were winched onboard and taken to the Ogwen Valley mountain rescue base.

“Thankfully both casualties were uninjured and required no medical treatment.”

Seventeen volunteer members of the Ogwen Valley MRO were involved in the rescue for 1½ hours. The team was called out to incidents on Tryfan 22 times in 2017.