A father died after falling from a mountain ridge while hiking with his son, an inquest heard. Patrick Butler, 54, a bus driver from Thornton Heath, South London, fell approximately 150 feet from a ridge on August 30 during a hiking trip in North Wales.

Butler had traveled about 250 miles with his son to climb Snowdon, where they initially planned to follow the Pyg Track and camp in the wild. However, adverse weather conditions delayed their progress for several hours, leading them to attempt a traverse of the more dangerous Crib Goch ridge instead.

According to the coroner, Sarah Riley, the boy heard his father shout before witnessing him fall over the edge. Rescue teams subsequently located Butler on a ledge, but he was found deceased at the scene. A post-mortem examination indicated multiple injuries as the provisional cause of death.

The inquest, held in Caernarfon, North Wales, was adjourned pending further investigation.