Cnicht

Cnicht – the ‘Welsh Matterhorn’

Height: 689m (2.260ft)

The summit ridge

Cnicht (K-nik-t – The Knight) forms part of the Moelwynion mountain range. Its appearance when viewed from the south-west, i.e. from the direction of Porthmadog, has earned it the sobriquet the “Matterhorn of Wales”.

In reality, Cnicht is a long ridge and, at 689 m, is the fifth-highest peak in the Moelwynion mountain range.  The mountain gets its name from the old English word ‘knight’, the silent ‘k’ being pronounced at that time. It is said that the shape of the mountain bears a similarity to a knight’s helmet.