United Kingdom Electric Mountain
Electric Mountain Bike Climb - PJAMM Cycling

10.8
PDI
4.8 mi
DISTANCE
1,769 ft
GAINED
6.9 %
AVG. GRADE
FULL CLIMB STATS
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INTRO

A longer and epic Welsh bike climb beginning at Llyn Padarn, a beautiful glacially formed lake in Snowdonia.   This is ranked the 4th most difficult climb in Wales and #9 UK as well as Wales 6th most epic hill climb. 

Visit our Top UK and also our Top Welsh hill climbs pages for photos, summaries and statistics for their respective top hill climbs. Also check out our UK Top 10 Epic Hill Climbs and our Top 10 Epic Welsh Hill Climbs pages for more epic climbs in Wales. 

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CLIMB SUMMARY

PJAMM Cyclist rides up narrow one-lane roadway, large white country house in distance

Cycling Electric Mountain, Wales

Ride 4.8 miles gaining 1,775’ at 6.9% average grade (7.7% climb only)

This is the second Top 10 Wales Most Epic Bike Climb that begins near the lovely village of Llanberis in Gwynedd, northwest Wales (Llanberis Pass is the other). Before traveling to the UK in 2022 for our second trip to document its top bike climbs, we asked Simon Warren (100 Greatest Cycling Climbs, UK) what his Top 10 Most Epic Climbs were for Wales (along with England, Scotland, and the UK as a whole).  Simon listed Electric Mountain as the sixth most epic Welsh climb and Llanberis Pass as #7.

photo collage, bike parked at various points along the climb, one-lane country roadway

aerial drone views of climb's start, bridge over Llyn Padarn lake, lots of greenery

Climb start.

aerial drone view of Llyn Padarn lake, Snowdonia, northern Wales

Aerial photo from start looking southeast from the northwestern edge of Llyn Padarn.

Llyn Padarn is a glacially formed lake in Snowdonia, north Wales.

Beginning on a Lakeside stone bridge, you’ll start ascending on a road as narrow as they come, with no line of sight ahead. Fortunately, this road seems to be almost solely traveled by residents of the numerous rustic houses that line the street. It had the feeling of riding back in time and I can imagine that not much has changed in hundreds of years in this area.

extremely narrow, one-lane roadway surrounded by rock formations on both sides

views along the climb, including foxgloves, greenery-lined roadways, red buildings in town, sign for Rheilffordd Llyn Padarn Llanberis Lake Railway 

There are a series of turns that take you out of the residential area and up onto the high mountain. You’ll be greeted by the eternal Welsh wind here, you can bet on that. The rains came and went sporadically on the day we rode Electric Mountain in early June 2022.

photo collage shows Welsh countryside views along the climb, including stone walls, greenery, purple wildflowers 

large stone building at mile 1.7

Mile 1.7.

photo collage shows cows grazing in pastures, bike parked next to gate in roadway 

This typically remote Welsh road takes you through lush green forest, to farm towns, and quickly leads you to a gate. At this point, the road starts to pick in grade, farm life, and weather.

PJAMM Cyclist rides on one-way country road surrounded by lush green hillsides and rocks

As you climb the wind howls, and you can expect gusts that could knock over a light rider. From the top you can meet folks working on the damn and see the rolling green hills. The cows wander and the wind is no joke on this one, but it is well worth it to see the change in scenery and the epic view at the top. There are a few turns, and if you don’t pay attention or have the PJAMM App, you can easily miss a turn.

Marchlyn Mawr 

Marchlyn Mawr.

The summit point is marked by a Dam. There were some industrial workers at the summit when I got there, but when I tried to chat with them they said they only spoke Welsh. 😞  

PJAMM Cyclist stands next to bike at climb finish

small glacial lake at climb finish