Our work with BMC volunteers
National Trust Cymru are working with the British Mountaineering Council (BMC) to repair eroded paths in Eryri using their committed, mountain-savvy volunteers.
Get Stuck In
The Get Stuck In project sees teams of 10-16 volunteers descend on the footpaths and bridleways of north Wales, ready to lay stepping stones across impenetrable bog, repair eroded sections with traditional materials like sheep fleece, clear drainage ditches, pitch stone steps, re-shape peat hags to prevent further erosion and carbon loss and planting trees to name just a few of the things they do.
Footpath work on Y Wyddfa
The advantage of working with BMC members in these often remote locations with long walk-ins carrying a heavy tools is that they are used to being in the mountains, they tend to be physically fit and they are ready for a challenge in any weather. While they are of course committed to nature and conservation, they also have a vested interest in repairing the paths so it’s easier to hike and climb in the mountains.
Get Stuck In is funded by the Mend Our Mountains Campaign from the BMC’s Access & Conservation Trust - the charitable arm of this membership organisation which represents and lobbies on behalf of hill walkers, mountaineers and climbers.
New footpath Apprentice Ranger
The BMC Access & Conservation Trust are funding a two-year apprenticeship role within the National Trust Cymru footpath team here in Eryri, which is part of the their Mend Our Mountains campaign.
Arwyn Parry Jones, 26, will be based in Beddgelert and along with learning the craft of reparing and maintining footpaths with National Trust rangers, he will also be liaising with local communities, farmers and labourers. Arwyn is a fluent Welsh speaker and will also be leading many BMC Get Stuck In volunteer path repair and landscape conservation events in Eryri.
Funds for this two-year role have been raised by over 100 BMC members and BMC-affiliated club members in the Big Give Green Match Fund in April 2025, a £1,000 gift from the Association of Mountain Instructors (AMI), a £10,000 donation from the Lancashire Group after they participated in a Get Stuck In volunteer day, and a £30,000 grant from Athletic Brewing Company's Two for the Trails programme.