On Saturday 29th July myself and 7 members, recently completed the 24-mile long trek of the Yorkshire Three Peaks, (which included a huge 5,200ft/1,585m of ascent) to raise money for Niamh’s Next Step.
Sam Curry (Niamh’s Mummy) was also part of our amazing team in which we managed to complete the challenge in 12hrs 30 minutes, despite awful weather conditions.
We were well prepared for the event and had been training regularly with long walks over different terrains, along with faithful squats and lunges. I made a point to include plenty of eccentric quad exercises during sessions, for the downhill stints of the peaks, so exercises that worked the front of the thighs during the negative phase. (This is when the muscles lengthen during the contraction rather than shorten.)
Sadly, the weather was wet and windy which made the first peak, Whernside, really challenging. The long ascent and reduced visibility meant we almost missed the summit! If it wasn’t for our Guide we would’ve probably trekked past it.
The descent was quite slippy so we took caution here as one of our team members incurred an injury on a previous attempt of the challenge. We made it down safely and proceeded to the 2nd peak, Ingleborough.
The rain passed thankfully, so we took the opportunity for a quick refuel at the bottom and I did a short video of our impending hike.
This climb was spectacular as the waterfall was next to us and the sunshine began to shine through the clouds. The colours from the scenery were so vivid, beautiful greens and purples.
The ascent was certainly more challenging as it was steeper and narrower…. Enough to make you feel a little queasy. Anyhow we made it up by 11:45am, which meant we were on target for our goal of 12 hours.
The feeling of completing 2 peaks and having just one left is really motivational, but then you see the 3rd peak in the distance and realise you have to walk there first! This took approx 2 hours with a couple of toilet stops and the sun came out so the views were absolutely beautiful.
We reached Horton by 2:05pm and stopped for a re-feul and change of socks… it’s amazing what a fresh pair of socks can do for your feet!
Back on our feet and ready to tackle the 3rd peak, the ascent began immediately. Although it was gradual it was enough to get your butt working and by now my calves were aching too.
This peak was the most challenging to reach as we had to climb parts and use our hands to help us clamber up onto the next ledge. Even after reaching the top (or what we thought was the top) there was still an incline to walk to reach the summit.
We all got a surge of energy at this point and upped the pace to the top. We celebrated our achievement with the release of rose petals for Niamh and another team members nice, Alessia,
This moment was really emotional and one I’ll cherish for a long time. I’m so proud I shared this moment with the most amazing, inspirational and strong women.
Our challenge managed to raise over £1100 in donations which we were delighted with.
Pushing on with only 8 miles left and approx 2 hours to get back to the start, we stormed it down the peak. Ou expectations at this point was it would be plain sailing but there were still another 3 big hills we still had to tackle before we reached the village of Ribblehead.
Armed with an empty camel pack and low energy I considered running the last 2 miles to try and make it back inside of 12 hours. However, I couldn’t even lift my legs to run!!!
Admitting defeat but satisfied we gave it our all, we arrived back at the car just outside of the goal at 12 hours and 30 minutes.
It was a fantastic weekend and one I remember for a long time!
You can watch the highlights from our day, below.
