Pilgrims Challenge 2014

This weekend was on of my key training events running up to the MdS - the Pilgrims Challenge, a 66 mile 2 day event in Surrey. This would have been a key distance and back-to-back training event but.... My ITB went just after the second check point running down hill. For a little while I wasn't 100% sure it wasn't just general fatigue in my leg so I kept going (I can deal with fatigue!) but after another couple of miles in the valley it became obvious that it was something more significant. I decided to carry on to the next checkpoint which was up a nice steep hill, this was actually a relief because it didn't hurt going uphill. The next 5 miles or so along the top were less fun and I needed up hopping down muddy paths but we got there in the end. Max, one of my tent buddies to-be who I had been running with up til the problems started very kindly stayed with me for 4/5 miles of fast walking and hopping down muddy slopes - despite me telling him to, he refused to leave me on my own. I felt very bad to have to abandon him at the checkpoint, and a huge fraud to have to get a lift to the overnight point - even more so as I got out and walked in next to people who were finishing - not a good feeling! So my first DNF...

...I even finished the Seville Marathon (my first) in a respectable time with my arrhythmia playing up and a heart rate upwards of 240/250 bpm so dropping out isn't something that comes easily. I had to remind myself that this wasn't my target event (if it had been I'm sure I could have finished, just in lots of pain!), and that I had more to loose than to gain by carrying on, potentially preventing me running the MdS if I damaged myself badly enough. So hopefully the right decision to stop where I did and not try starting on the second day. Sophie who I met at the end of the C2C, and had been running near for much of the day actually, told me she would knock me out if she saw me at the start line for the second day - I think she was joking... but it is good to have the support of more experienced runners, knowing when to stop.

Anyway, now the negative bit is out the way, back to the beginning for the positives from the weekend - and there were lots of them. The terrain was difficult - lots of mud which was very tiring and good training for sand. I felt my legs tiring a lot earlier than I expected (probably partially due to a fairly intense training schedule recently) but it was good to have some time running on tired legs knowing that we nowhere near then end - there will be LOTS of that in the desert!

There were also loads of other people doing the MdS and it was great to meet so many of them. Great like-minded people, really up for the challenge. I'm really looking forward to getting to know them better in Morocco, particularly my tent mates to-be. There was loads of conversation about food, weight and kit in general, and the over night camp in the school gave a great opportunity to look at all sorts of different night kit. I also got loads of tips, specific and more general. Danny Kendall's Q&A on the Saturday night was really good - not sure I'm going to be going quite so extreme lightweight (or anywhere like as fast...) as him though!

My favorite part of the weekend however was when the final walkers made it to the finish and came into the canteen. We were in the middle of a talk but everything stopped and they got a round of applause and some hugs. This sport is so inclusive and I think it is great. Even the elites are so friendly and shot encouragement on their way past - so different from a road marathon which is so serious! While we were waiting for our bags back at the start on the Sunday I me a couple of older ladies (at least one of whom was a grandma!) who were just amazing. The had all done the MdS or equivalents and one had done 14 multi-day endurance stage races, including one on every continent (including Antarctica), and the North Pole. How many other events would you meet such amazing and inspiring people?

Overall it was a really friendly and well organised event - definitely one to go back and finish in future. It also struck me how far I have come now that only having completed 26 odd miles was disappointing - a year ago I would have been very happy with that (particularly given it was off-road), and other than the ITB problems, I could have easily carried on and finished in a very reasonable time.  Not all bad then!

Mini-Adventure #3: Isaac's Tea Trail

So, Boxing Day 2013, and time for my next mini-adventure. I had been planning this for a little while, knowing that I needed to find something of the right sort of length to do over Xmas. I searched around on the web and came across Isaac's Tea Trail on the Long Distance Walkers Association and the North Pennines Website. It is a 37 mile circular route around remote villages and hamlets in the North Pennines, following the route of an itinerant tea seller called Isaac Holden.

The area south of the A69 in Northumberland and Cumbria is pretty sparsely inhabited and includes some of the most remote places in England. With the small hidden valleys, hill and high exposed moors, it seemed like a good place to get out and train and experience the landscape.

So, having organised my bag the day before (5 Kg), I started out from the market place in Allendale Town where the trail starts half an hour before dawn in attempt to maximise the amount of daylight available (only four days after the winter solstice, this was going to be the biggest issue).  It was a beautiful clear frosty morning and there was a very satisfying crunch underfoot as I started up the valley alongside the River East Allen. The pack didn't feel too heavy and my legs felt fresh which was good but progress was hampered by the number of gates and stiles and working out where the path went across each field - the route is probably more obvious if its light and you're walking! The only company at this point were the sheep in some of the fields who kept following me, evidently convinced I was there to feed them. The only unfriendly on was rather a grumpy looking up in one field, though fortunately I managed to navigate around him without upsetting him - I had a long way to go and didn't fancy being chased!

Frosty road at the top of Allendale before starting out over the moors.

Along the Black Trail looking towards Allenheads

After about 5 miles the trail turns out onto the moors, initially climbing on a well defined track and then heading off to the west over the moors. The views were absolutely stunning and it was clear from the snow on the ground that I was the first person up there that day (probably unsurprisingly!), and could well have been the first person to travel along the path in several days. I felt really privileged to be up there, on what felt like the roof of the world with these amazing views all to myself. I did have camera out a fair few times which hampered progress a little but I was never stopped for long - the wind was whipping across the moor and it was very chilly. These were clearly not conditions reminiscent of the Sahara, however the snow lying on frozen grass and heather on the trail made a good approximation of sand, so I may not have been moving fast (with the rucksack it wasn't so much as a run as a fast walk and bounce between tufts of grass and peat at this point) and been pretty cold, but the terrain was good practice.

View south from the path down to Coalcleugh

There is something about grouse - they never seem to want to fly away until you are within a couple of meters of where they are hiding, and then they jump into the air with very loud squawks, almost as if they are trying to give you a heart attack. Even though this was happening every couple of minutes, it still took me a good couple of hours to stop jumping out of my skin.

Having made it over the moors, admittedly slowly with the terrain and the photo-taking, but feeling fresh, I passed through a gate with a little Welcome to Cumbria sign on it and headed down into Nenthead. It was a little odd to suddenly be down in some form of civilization again and the next section was down the valley to Alston. At this point I was a little concerned about the time, so after following the trail for half an hour or so up and down through fields and round the back of some gardens (one of which had an interesting collection of old red telephone boxes and model villages in), I decided to drop down to the road of a little bit which wouldn't be any shorter but would allow me to make faster progress.

 After rejoining the path and following it down by the river I got to Alston. I took the South Tyne Trail along by the steam railway and I started to make faster progress, rejoining the trail at Kirkhaugh Station and crossing the river. At this point I was starting to feel the distance and was a little worries about the time, knowing I had a fair way to go. I organised to be picked up by the pub in Whitfield instead of going back to Allendale - not too far from the end but I knew the route.

Anyway, the brief section on the road from the river crossing was very pretty and I came within a few meters of a red squirrel on the wall- I haven't seen one in years. The trail then veered off up the side of the valley through some fields to Ayle. At this point I started to feel something pulling slightly in my left hamstring but it didn't get any worse. Another short section on the road and some backwards running up a hill to help with the hamstring and the trail joined a track below some old mine workings. I've seen these from the road above before and always been curious - all part of the adventure.

Abandoned buildings above Nenthead

 Next it was up a rocky track and up over the main road and past the pottery (another thing I've driven past many times over the years but never gone into). Then it was back up onto the moors with the sun getting lower in the sky and casting a lovely golden glow. At either end of the track I came across some old rea advertisements attached to the gate posts which was a nice curious touch. The views were stunning again in the evening light as I got up over the moor and started the descent on the icy track down towards Ninebanks. It was at this point I saw the only other runner I saw that day, dressed in red and coming in the opposite direction. It turned out to be my brother with two dogs which was a nice surprise - he had come with my mum and dad to meet me in Ninebanks which was a nice moral boost - I had started to feel a little tired. 

My brother joined me for the last few miles which was nice company having spent the previous several hours in my own company. We carried on up the road, through the village and then up the hill and through some final few fields and into the woods above Whitfield Hall. I had a surprising amount of energy left and enjoyed the last few miles and it was a lot more fun with the company. 

I had only drunk 1.5 liters (all I had carried with me) over the course of the route and two and a half Clif Bars - not ideal for speedy progress but good practice I think (hope!). We made it down to the pub just after 4.30, completing 8 and a half hours and 32 miles of trail running - a great day out and mini-adventure in a stunning part of the world that I now know that bit better... Onto the next one! 

Mini Adventure #2: The Edale Skyline

My second mini-adventure started with an unwelcome alarm at 6 am on Saturday morning signalling the need to get out of my nice warm bed in time to get over to Edale in time to see the sun rise. I was planning to run the route of the Edale Skyline,  an annual fell race race of 21 miles and 1400 m of ascent, starting at Edale and hugging the skyline around the valley.

I crawled out of bed, got some porridge and coffee down me and headed off in to the Peaks. After some minor unplanned detours due to a road closure and a stupid car park ticket machine not wanting to let me buy a ticket until 8 am, I set off from the car pack by Mam Tor (just missing the first bits of the sunrise as a result of that ticket machine!). 

There was biting wind but I warmed up quickly, gaining a bit of height getting up onto the ridge and then quickly getting cold again as I got the camera out – couldn’t resist, it was a stunning morning.  The ridge took me up over Lords Seat and after a bit of indecision as to the best route to take over to Brown Knoll I found the path.  This section is hard going over the bog (good training for the sand!) and I wished it had been a little colder over the preceding days as there was only a thin skin of ice over the peat.  I can be a real wimp when it comes to first getting my feet wet, so there was a bit of fannying about trying to keep my feet dry. Once even a tiny dibble of water gets into my shoes I don’t care anymore and will run through anything – you would have thought I’d have grown out of this by now!

Anyway it was a beautiful morning, I had only the grouse and skylarks for company and I was buzzing – definitely worth getting out if bed for. Once I had got by feet wet I was really enjoying the terrain – not moving terribly fast it has to be said, but this wasn’t about speed. I got up onto Brown knoll, had a quick breather (not the first I have to confess, but the earlier stops were mainly driven by photo opportunities), and headed off over towards Kinder – more fun bog and then… out on to a walkers motorway – not nearly so much fun! I met my first people on my way up toward Kinder Low – all nice and cheery having been up for the lovely rise too.

I briefly departed from the route here to pop up to the trig point on Kinder Low.  I’ve only ever been up on Kinder Scout in the cloud so I was curious to get a view over the plateau – and this was supposed to be about exploring after all.

After this point the trail becomes quite rocky with lots of amazing weathered rock formations in a strangely alien looking landscape. I may have been hallucinating, but I was sure I saw what looked like the outline of a family in one of the formations (sculpture not real of course – I’m not that loopy yet). There was a really fun bit with the trail going between the rock in a formation, with some rock acting as stepping stones over a small gully. I was glad I wasn’t doing this bit in the dark!

After a couple of miles I reached the path split down to Edale and having been robbed my opportunity to do the route from the correct start point by the stupid ticket machine, decided I had to go down to the bottom of the valley to make sure I didn’t miss any height gain. The sensible people out for their Saturday walk evidently thought I was out of my mind as I passed them for the second time on my way back up.

As a reward I stopped back on the top for a little lunch and to take in the view. Then set off again round the edge of the moor with a wide open view over to Win Hill. The downhill stretch was lovely but I realised on the way back up again that I hadn’t been quite vigilant enough with my sugar and suddenly found myself very grumpy at the path for daring to go upwards, however gently. That uphill seemed to take ages (I wasn’t moving very fast) but the views were lovely and the sun surprisingly strong. From the top of Win Hill it was a quick (or not so quick) downhill into Hope, past the Cheshire Cheese Pub which looked far too inviting. The final uphill was a 300 m ascent up to the top of Loose Hill, which wasn’t too far but it felt like a very long way with my knackered legs. The views were definitely worth it though, and I could see the entire route.  From there it was just a last couple of miles along the ridge back up to Mam Tor, into the sun. I was rewarded with some spectacular views of some hang-gliders to finish off with.