Accidental verdict on Bognor mountaineer

Mr Barber, 39, whose friends and family paid glowing tributes to him, had fallen near the summit of Pen yr Ole Wen in the Ogwen Valley in January.

At the hearing in Caernafon last Tuesday, coroner Dewi Pritchard Jones said Mr Barber had been behaving sensibly during his mountain ascent.

The carpenter with an adventurous streak was an experienced climber. He had worn micro-spiked boots but did not have an ice-axe with him.

In judging the case, the coroner said it was difficult to know if a lack of such kit would this have made any difference under the circumstances.

Mr Barber's close friend and climbing companion David Golding told the hearing he had tried to save him but was unable to do so.

Mr Golding said: "I want to thank the Ogwen mountain rescue team and the RAF, they have been phenomenal."

Mr Pritchard Jones recorded accidental death. He said: "It goes back to the old comment that there's no such thing as a safe mountain '“ that's just part of the risk of the sport."

Mr Barber's family held an event celebrating his life following a funeral service in Chichester.

Mr Barber was a skilled craftsman well known in the area for his warm sense of humour and practical joking.