Well, the video of 3 summits..
Making this 15 minute video was the final chapter of something I wish I could do again. Months and months of planning, a lot of time, and quite a bit of money spent- were all worth it. The event couldn't have gone smoother, well we got lost at Brackenclose, and at Fort William, and I got lost on Scafell Pike briefly, yet still finished 32 mins faster than I had planned and still came in as 'silver!. The video took me a while but the result was pleasing. It tells the story better than my text updates or blog posts (which I hope you enjoyed reading by the way as they took a while and reduced my sleeping time throughout the event!). I've already thanked so many people and it's been amazing to have such support. People really want to support youngsters nowadays and so many people have said to me- 'I wish more 16 year olds were like you' which is really moving. Having people and beep at me and shout 'well done!!!' out of their cars in the street is also amazing. It brought a huge smile to my face everytime. The moment when I RAN over the finish with my walking pole thrust into the air, Foo Fighters' Everlong playing loud in the headphones and then walking through the Miners Track gate, shouting 'Booyaka!' and stopping the stopwatch at 21 hours 57 minutes was the happiest moment of my entire life. The acheivement and adrenalin rushed over me.
So yeah, the video is here below, with some of my appropriately chosen favourite music which also accompanied us on the trip, apart from Benny Hill, I hope you enjoy watching it and please leave a comment. As for donations I'm just below £1700 now which is £700 more than I was aiming for!!!! WOW! Thanks so much! I really appreciate it and you're all awesome. I still don't know who donated £50 anonymously but please let me know so I can say a huge thankyou! It's not too late to boost my totals on my fundraising page, or in person, and I'm still collecting off a few family and local people.
Keep tuned for my next project- a slightly bigger and colder Mont Blanc in August next year, where I'll be climbing the highest mountain in Europe at 4800m, with legendary 9-times Everest Summiteer Kenton Cool 1:1 in just 5 days.
Over and out- Living the Dream...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QODoGx5cCxk
Sunday, 31 July 2011
Thursday, 21 July 2011
Friday, 8 July 2011
The full story continued...
So anyway, I started planning my event months and months ago although I initially decided to do this before Christmas. Then all the planning really kicked off. Why did I do this? I'm always up for a challenge and without boasting I'm pretty physically fit too. I love the outdoors and when the idea of the 3 Peaks came into my head after climbing Ben Nevis and Snowdon last year it all seemed to fit into place as I found the walks easy and the feeling of the summit great. My fitness could only improve as time passed while I started doing big walks and hill running (another hobby) and I began to get really excited for the challenge. It got better and better, as I was soon corporately sponsored by my mum's employers, FocusSB, based in Sussex and Peckforton Castle, in Cheshire (which is largely due to my stepdad working for them). I soon had my full set of gear, a full schedule made, lots of sponsorship money coming in, and my fundraising pages and blogs set up. After this it was just a matter of training and waiting for the big day. But this only came with stresses of sponsorship, organisation, heated debates with my family about my logistics and they certainly felt my stresses when things weren't going to plan with ordering things or when I was getting confused/unsure about how to do things. Before I knew it I spent a whole day packing my gear for the event and loading up the minibus...
So with a not-so-early night sleep on Monday the 4th, and fully packed, a huge plate of Spaghetti Bolognese was needed for the carbs boost that evening. Then on the Tuesday morning, I was up at 7.15 and was double checking all the gear and putting in all the food in the coolbox. At about 9.30am, we 'hi-fived' and jumped into the minibus, slammed the doors, put the postcode in sat nav and then off we went (after getting a few pictures of the team). Foo Fighter's- 'Everlong' accompanied us for the first 10 minutes of the 6.5 hour drive to Fort William. We obviously made stops, about 4 or 5, at various services. Not much happened in the journey apart from raiding the coolbox, enjoying the Foo Fighter's new album on full and thinking ahead to the event as well having a laugh, including putting on the accents of the different areas we drove through. We were both chilled out and I felt surreal that the day was finally going ahead. I rested my legs and looked forward to getting there. I felt strong but the pressure was felt.
We finally got to the destination at about 4.30 but we had a problem. This is not where I set off last time. I was hoping to set off from the Glen Nevis Youth Hostel, which is where I thought I had set off last time.. (although I later found this to be the Ben Nevis Inn at Achintee). So we were at the wrong place. A quick drive down to the Visitors centre (which also joins up to the Achintee path and we realised the Youth Hostel had another path which joined up to the main tourist path and actually chopped off a good half a mile or so (but steeply!). So we got back there, and now in a rush to set off at my 5.30pm time I ran to the toilets to put the vaseline on (a lifesaver!) and got fully kitted out. The footbridge over the road was the start of my path. Got over there, took a little video and then * hi fived * and set off across the bridge with a big wave... maybe never to be seen again :P
I set off up this path really quickly.. it was steep. Got the camera out on several occasions to get pics. Joined the tourist track real quick and climbed about 300-400feet in 10 minutes. The view was scenic and the weather looked good. The path felt familiar and I was at the valley looking across to the stream quicker than anticipated. Kept going until I reached Halfway Lochan (which is nearly halfway at about 2200 feet). Not many people on the path, passed a lot on my way up but there weren't many coming up with me! A lot of these never passed me on my way down, so must have given up at the sight of the cloud which I saw coming across. Feeling strong and good, I had some of my snacks (sausage rolls, muesli bars and biscuits). It all seemed to be going well. At this time Chris would be sleeping in the minibus (although I later found out he'd hardly slept and instead gone to the local restaurant for a salad). I didn't quite manage my 4mph training page but I reached 3mph sometimes...
So I plodded onto the summit. The rain hit me as soon as I got onto the zig-zags at about 3000ft.. it got heavier. I started getting out my GoPro head camera to take little videos to show my progress and the weather.. all my videos ended with 'see you soon...hopefully!' :P
The zigzags were nice and easy then at about 3500ft I saw the sky getting greyer and wispy cloud tickling the top of the rise above me 'SH*T! I said (although I was expecting it from the forecast). Soldiered on. Got windier and on came the anorak. Thought I was all alone now until 2 blokes passed and told me I was an hour away from the top, which was 'fookin' cold' apparantely.. Can't argue there because it really did get chilly as I got higher. Getting anxious, I followed the zig-zags until my view dissipated into nearly nothing and the views across to Loch Linnhe faded. The slope eased now and I followed cairns for a while and felt disorientated. The fog got thicker and so did the rain. It was relatively flat now but needed to watch what I was doing.. Not sure what direction I followed although I remember coming across something which struck my eye. My GPS said I was at 4000ft. There was a patch of snow to my right and nothing ahead. I could see this snow had a slope up it. The fog gave me just 10 metres visibility. The phone signal had gone. So I decided that I was on my own now and I didn't know where I was, still, I decided the only way was up and followed footprints up the small patch of snow which soon cleared and I was pack on a well cairned path again. Then more snow appeared, this time, on the cornices at the edge of the sheer cliff drops. I could just see grey below them, but it sobered me up, I couldn't see anything but I knew the cliff drops dropped down to 3000ft. Thankfully the paths kept me away. And at this point down the slope came two people which was a relief! 'I thought I was the only one up here!' I shouted. 'No there's lots of people up there!' they shouted back over the wind which gusted at 45mph. As I followed the cairns, marking my GPS locations as I moved just in case, a few more groups emerged from the fog and passed me. I passed a group of 3, and then as the war memorial building arrived I was there! Reached the top in 1 hours 59 mins. Texted a few people but there was no signal to call. It was wet as hell and it really was cold, on came the gloves as my hands started to become numb- not good if you need to operate a compass or GPS. The people behind me soon followed and they congratulated me when I told them and got pics of me with my banner (which nearly blew away!) in front of the trig point and the summit shelter which I initially couldn't find. Took some summit videos but you couldn't see much. I was soon off and luckily had no problems getting down. When it came to the snow patch i decided to slide down on my backside thanks to my waterproof trousers, to the amusement of the man and daughter at the bottom. Carried on nice and quickly, even running at times, which was easy enough on my ankles. By now the head camera's batteries had died so no more videos of the Ben. My descent took slightly longer and I made it down in a total of 3 hours 52 mins- thats more than 1 hrs 30 faster than scheduled! I was down by about 9.20pm.. no headtorches needed. My stepdad had gotten no sleep and I was down so quick my pot noodle and hot chocolate wasn't ready when I got down. I was dead chuffed and still felt very energetic (god bless isotonic energy drinks!). Quote from Chris- 'bloody hell Superman, did you run down it?' Set off from the Youth Hostel at about 10pm.
Got my bag repacked during the journey, we encountered a couple of deer driving down the Scottish roads (one of which, a huge stag, nearly hit us!) and when I'd posted my blog update I had some pasta and got 'in bed' at 11pm. I remember drifting in and out of sleep and at one point waking up at a lay-by where a piss-stop was much needed. The rain absolutely hammered us but I slept through most of it. Chris did a great job as this drive to Wasdale took 6 hours, not much fun on your own in the dark with rain! Coffee in a flask certainly helped.
It wasn't long before we arrived at Wasdale Head, (well, I did manage to sleep some of it but felt no better). The drive down the country lanes was quite pleasant and I got my bags ready to go with the muesli bars and my isotonic energy drinks downed. The drive along Wastwater was also very pleasant at that time of the morning with the low cloud and dawn atmosphere. We encountered a fox, and also learnt that sheep sleep on the road because it's warmer! We literally had to nudge one out of the way! Then we had a bit of a kerfuffle trying to find the start point. I was following a route suggested by a book which started at Brackenclose at the entrance lane to the campsite. But that's all I knew. So we got there ahead of schedule at 3.45am but with much walking around it took us 30 mins to find the sign at the end of the country lane to the start of the path. Not good. Chris dumped the minibus in the car park, filmed me setting off and retreated for a couple of hours kip. Not that he got much though... I sped off feeling strong but slightly weary up a route I was unfamiliar with. But it was clear to follow. I passed over Lingmell Gill and then passed the only 3 people up there who I would see during the whole walk! I followed the Brown Tongue path and then met the fork and followed up to Hollow Stones, which started to get a bit unclear to follow. It was still quite an easy walk but it's a good thing I didn't forget my walking poles like I did on Ben Nevis. At one point I was a bit unsure of my location but soldiered on. Weather wise it was crisp, chilly and clear but it started to rain a bit about 2000ft into the walk. On came the waterproofs. When I reached the top of a rise I could see what I thought was the summit but was actually a different mountain 'Hey, Scafell Pike hasn't got a cliff drop?'. Passing Scafell and Mickledore was quite scenic too. I was now somewhere I'd never been before (when I climbed it in April we went via the corridor route). I carried on too far and I thought 'Am I on the right mountain?'. Then I noticed a cairn and followed this up to the summit after passing the huge boulder with the small cairn on top. Then the slope eased and I started to recognize it a little. Lingmell Col was just below me to my left. Then the summit appeared with the monument. It was a great feeling. I had the summit to myself. The sky was colourfully broken and the cloud filled the surrounding valleys and summits but thankfully stayed above Scafell Pike largely. This was lucky, as once I had texted lots of people, called my mum, had a drink and briefly admired the view I set off. Well, I also got my summit pics (but had to rest the camera on a rock with the self timer as I was at the highest point of England completely alone!). I also got a summit vid. I made the summit in 1 hours 37 minutes approximately, getting there about 5.50am on Wednesday the 6th, ahead of schedule. On my descent, I missed the cairns and ended up down a steeper slope, then realising what I'd done, wasted some time scrambling across a steep slope to get back to the col. I saw the team I'd passed on the way up and told them they were about 25 minutes from the top and warned them not to make my mistake as if the cloud had come in I'd probably not have made it back on track quite as quickly. Cairns are a lifesaver. I followed the same route down in good time. Due to poor signal in the area I could make no contact with Chris. I got down with no injuries and intact in 3 hours 10 mins. I got my mountain whistle out and ran into the carpark to find Chris waiting with the Pot Noodle brewing. 20 mins ahead of schedule. We left on time too.. after speaking to a couple and their son about my attempt who kindly sponsored me £5. They were the only walkers we saw apart from a mysterious car parked there when we got there. The advantages of doing the 3 Peaks in the week! My ankles were surprisingly intact for a Scafell Pike descent. Got everything packed, sorted, binned, refilled etc then got out of there. A 4.5 hour drive to Snowdonia would prove difficult for us both, but 2 down, 1 to go. Getting lost would no longer be a problem but my fitness could be.
More to come but I'm off to bed now. Keep checking for updates folks!
So with a not-so-early night sleep on Monday the 4th, and fully packed, a huge plate of Spaghetti Bolognese was needed for the carbs boost that evening. Then on the Tuesday morning, I was up at 7.15 and was double checking all the gear and putting in all the food in the coolbox. At about 9.30am, we 'hi-fived' and jumped into the minibus, slammed the doors, put the postcode in sat nav and then off we went (after getting a few pictures of the team). Foo Fighter's- 'Everlong' accompanied us for the first 10 minutes of the 6.5 hour drive to Fort William. We obviously made stops, about 4 or 5, at various services. Not much happened in the journey apart from raiding the coolbox, enjoying the Foo Fighter's new album on full and thinking ahead to the event as well having a laugh, including putting on the accents of the different areas we drove through. We were both chilled out and I felt surreal that the day was finally going ahead. I rested my legs and looked forward to getting there. I felt strong but the pressure was felt.
We finally got to the destination at about 4.30 but we had a problem. This is not where I set off last time. I was hoping to set off from the Glen Nevis Youth Hostel, which is where I thought I had set off last time.. (although I later found this to be the Ben Nevis Inn at Achintee). So we were at the wrong place. A quick drive down to the Visitors centre (which also joins up to the Achintee path and we realised the Youth Hostel had another path which joined up to the main tourist path and actually chopped off a good half a mile or so (but steeply!). So we got back there, and now in a rush to set off at my 5.30pm time I ran to the toilets to put the vaseline on (a lifesaver!) and got fully kitted out. The footbridge over the road was the start of my path. Got over there, took a little video and then * hi fived * and set off across the bridge with a big wave... maybe never to be seen again :P
I set off up this path really quickly.. it was steep. Got the camera out on several occasions to get pics. Joined the tourist track real quick and climbed about 300-400feet in 10 minutes. The view was scenic and the weather looked good. The path felt familiar and I was at the valley looking across to the stream quicker than anticipated. Kept going until I reached Halfway Lochan (which is nearly halfway at about 2200 feet). Not many people on the path, passed a lot on my way up but there weren't many coming up with me! A lot of these never passed me on my way down, so must have given up at the sight of the cloud which I saw coming across. Feeling strong and good, I had some of my snacks (sausage rolls, muesli bars and biscuits). It all seemed to be going well. At this time Chris would be sleeping in the minibus (although I later found out he'd hardly slept and instead gone to the local restaurant for a salad). I didn't quite manage my 4mph training page but I reached 3mph sometimes...
So I plodded onto the summit. The rain hit me as soon as I got onto the zig-zags at about 3000ft.. it got heavier. I started getting out my GoPro head camera to take little videos to show my progress and the weather.. all my videos ended with 'see you soon...hopefully!' :P
The zigzags were nice and easy then at about 3500ft I saw the sky getting greyer and wispy cloud tickling the top of the rise above me 'SH*T! I said (although I was expecting it from the forecast). Soldiered on. Got windier and on came the anorak. Thought I was all alone now until 2 blokes passed and told me I was an hour away from the top, which was 'fookin' cold' apparantely.. Can't argue there because it really did get chilly as I got higher. Getting anxious, I followed the zig-zags until my view dissipated into nearly nothing and the views across to Loch Linnhe faded. The slope eased now and I followed cairns for a while and felt disorientated. The fog got thicker and so did the rain. It was relatively flat now but needed to watch what I was doing.. Not sure what direction I followed although I remember coming across something which struck my eye. My GPS said I was at 4000ft. There was a patch of snow to my right and nothing ahead. I could see this snow had a slope up it. The fog gave me just 10 metres visibility. The phone signal had gone. So I decided that I was on my own now and I didn't know where I was, still, I decided the only way was up and followed footprints up the small patch of snow which soon cleared and I was pack on a well cairned path again. Then more snow appeared, this time, on the cornices at the edge of the sheer cliff drops. I could just see grey below them, but it sobered me up, I couldn't see anything but I knew the cliff drops dropped down to 3000ft. Thankfully the paths kept me away. And at this point down the slope came two people which was a relief! 'I thought I was the only one up here!' I shouted. 'No there's lots of people up there!' they shouted back over the wind which gusted at 45mph. As I followed the cairns, marking my GPS locations as I moved just in case, a few more groups emerged from the fog and passed me. I passed a group of 3, and then as the war memorial building arrived I was there! Reached the top in 1 hours 59 mins. Texted a few people but there was no signal to call. It was wet as hell and it really was cold, on came the gloves as my hands started to become numb- not good if you need to operate a compass or GPS. The people behind me soon followed and they congratulated me when I told them and got pics of me with my banner (which nearly blew away!) in front of the trig point and the summit shelter which I initially couldn't find. Took some summit videos but you couldn't see much. I was soon off and luckily had no problems getting down. When it came to the snow patch i decided to slide down on my backside thanks to my waterproof trousers, to the amusement of the man and daughter at the bottom. Carried on nice and quickly, even running at times, which was easy enough on my ankles. By now the head camera's batteries had died so no more videos of the Ben. My descent took slightly longer and I made it down in a total of 3 hours 52 mins- thats more than 1 hrs 30 faster than scheduled! I was down by about 9.20pm.. no headtorches needed. My stepdad had gotten no sleep and I was down so quick my pot noodle and hot chocolate wasn't ready when I got down. I was dead chuffed and still felt very energetic (god bless isotonic energy drinks!). Quote from Chris- 'bloody hell Superman, did you run down it?' Set off from the Youth Hostel at about 10pm.
Got my bag repacked during the journey, we encountered a couple of deer driving down the Scottish roads (one of which, a huge stag, nearly hit us!) and when I'd posted my blog update I had some pasta and got 'in bed' at 11pm. I remember drifting in and out of sleep and at one point waking up at a lay-by where a piss-stop was much needed. The rain absolutely hammered us but I slept through most of it. Chris did a great job as this drive to Wasdale took 6 hours, not much fun on your own in the dark with rain! Coffee in a flask certainly helped.
It wasn't long before we arrived at Wasdale Head, (well, I did manage to sleep some of it but felt no better). The drive down the country lanes was quite pleasant and I got my bags ready to go with the muesli bars and my isotonic energy drinks downed. The drive along Wastwater was also very pleasant at that time of the morning with the low cloud and dawn atmosphere. We encountered a fox, and also learnt that sheep sleep on the road because it's warmer! We literally had to nudge one out of the way! Then we had a bit of a kerfuffle trying to find the start point. I was following a route suggested by a book which started at Brackenclose at the entrance lane to the campsite. But that's all I knew. So we got there ahead of schedule at 3.45am but with much walking around it took us 30 mins to find the sign at the end of the country lane to the start of the path. Not good. Chris dumped the minibus in the car park, filmed me setting off and retreated for a couple of hours kip. Not that he got much though... I sped off feeling strong but slightly weary up a route I was unfamiliar with. But it was clear to follow. I passed over Lingmell Gill and then passed the only 3 people up there who I would see during the whole walk! I followed the Brown Tongue path and then met the fork and followed up to Hollow Stones, which started to get a bit unclear to follow. It was still quite an easy walk but it's a good thing I didn't forget my walking poles like I did on Ben Nevis. At one point I was a bit unsure of my location but soldiered on. Weather wise it was crisp, chilly and clear but it started to rain a bit about 2000ft into the walk. On came the waterproofs. When I reached the top of a rise I could see what I thought was the summit but was actually a different mountain 'Hey, Scafell Pike hasn't got a cliff drop?'. Passing Scafell and Mickledore was quite scenic too. I was now somewhere I'd never been before (when I climbed it in April we went via the corridor route). I carried on too far and I thought 'Am I on the right mountain?'. Then I noticed a cairn and followed this up to the summit after passing the huge boulder with the small cairn on top. Then the slope eased and I started to recognize it a little. Lingmell Col was just below me to my left. Then the summit appeared with the monument. It was a great feeling. I had the summit to myself. The sky was colourfully broken and the cloud filled the surrounding valleys and summits but thankfully stayed above Scafell Pike largely. This was lucky, as once I had texted lots of people, called my mum, had a drink and briefly admired the view I set off. Well, I also got my summit pics (but had to rest the camera on a rock with the self timer as I was at the highest point of England completely alone!). I also got a summit vid. I made the summit in 1 hours 37 minutes approximately, getting there about 5.50am on Wednesday the 6th, ahead of schedule. On my descent, I missed the cairns and ended up down a steeper slope, then realising what I'd done, wasted some time scrambling across a steep slope to get back to the col. I saw the team I'd passed on the way up and told them they were about 25 minutes from the top and warned them not to make my mistake as if the cloud had come in I'd probably not have made it back on track quite as quickly. Cairns are a lifesaver. I followed the same route down in good time. Due to poor signal in the area I could make no contact with Chris. I got down with no injuries and intact in 3 hours 10 mins. I got my mountain whistle out and ran into the carpark to find Chris waiting with the Pot Noodle brewing. 20 mins ahead of schedule. We left on time too.. after speaking to a couple and their son about my attempt who kindly sponsored me £5. They were the only walkers we saw apart from a mysterious car parked there when we got there. The advantages of doing the 3 Peaks in the week! My ankles were surprisingly intact for a Scafell Pike descent. Got everything packed, sorted, binned, refilled etc then got out of there. A 4.5 hour drive to Snowdonia would prove difficult for us both, but 2 down, 1 to go. Getting lost would no longer be a problem but my fitness could be.
More to come but I'm off to bed now. Keep checking for updates folks!
Thursday, 7 July 2011
From what seems like a long time ago... The full story.
So despite having to keep my blog updates short-ish through the event I really should write a big post summing up what formed a smooth and successfully unproblematic event which will live with me for the rest of my life.. Here's the last minute prep and team before departure!
But for those who want to know the basics and nothing else-
Set off over the footbridge and started the timer at Glen Nevis Youth Hostel, at 5.31pm on the 5th of July. Summitted Ben Nevis in 1 hours 59 mins. Arrived back at the minibus about 9.23. Total descent time- 3 hours 52 mins. WELL ahead of schedule.
Set off from Brackenclose at Wasdale Head at just after 4.15am on Wednesday morning. Summitted via the Brown Tongue path/Hollow Stones route in 1 hour 37 mins (5.50am). Arrived back at Brackenclose at about 7.25am.. in 3 hours 10 mins total time. Still on schedule. We departed soon after.
Set off from the Pen-y-Pass car park up the Pyg Track for Snowdon at about 12.23pm. Summitted in nearly 1 hours 30. Arrived back at the bottom of the Miners Track at about 3.24pm. Total time 3 hours.
So that means I completed the National 3 Peaks Challenge in... 21 hours 57 minutes! I'm now the youngest person to complete the challenge solo in under 24 hours. That's a brilliant feeling. I couldn't have done it without my stepdad driving me though, which was just as hard physically. I owe him. I'm now going to get my name in the press and on the 3 Peaks database, and soon on their records page on their website (www.threepeakschallenge.org.uk). Sadly G.W.R showed no interest!
But there's more to the story. It was an adventure of a lifetime and a lot happened in 24 hours!
But for now folks I'm off to bed afraid. There's a lot to be written and lots of pics to upload. It will be here very soon and then you'll see all the pics and anecdotes of the most rewarding yet hardest 24 hours of my life
But for those who want to know the basics and nothing else-
Set off over the footbridge and started the timer at Glen Nevis Youth Hostel, at 5.31pm on the 5th of July. Summitted Ben Nevis in 1 hours 59 mins. Arrived back at the minibus about 9.23. Total descent time- 3 hours 52 mins. WELL ahead of schedule.
Set off from Brackenclose at Wasdale Head at just after 4.15am on Wednesday morning. Summitted via the Brown Tongue path/Hollow Stones route in 1 hour 37 mins (5.50am). Arrived back at Brackenclose at about 7.25am.. in 3 hours 10 mins total time. Still on schedule. We departed soon after.
Set off from the Pen-y-Pass car park up the Pyg Track for Snowdon at about 12.23pm. Summitted in nearly 1 hours 30. Arrived back at the bottom of the Miners Track at about 3.24pm. Total time 3 hours.
So that means I completed the National 3 Peaks Challenge in... 21 hours 57 minutes! I'm now the youngest person to complete the challenge solo in under 24 hours. That's a brilliant feeling. I couldn't have done it without my stepdad driving me though, which was just as hard physically. I owe him. I'm now going to get my name in the press and on the 3 Peaks database, and soon on their records page on their website (www.threepeakschallenge.org.uk). Sadly G.W.R showed no interest!
But there's more to the story. It was an adventure of a lifetime and a lot happened in 24 hours!
But for now folks I'm off to bed afraid. There's a lot to be written and lots of pics to upload. It will be here very soon and then you'll see all the pics and anecdotes of the most rewarding yet hardest 24 hours of my life
Wednesday, 6 July 2011
I've done it folks! The whole thing!
Bloody delighted to announce that I completed the 3 Peaks this afternoon about 3.30pm after just 3 hours on Snowdon in 21hrs 57 minutes! Set off up the Pyg track from Pen-y-pass on time and made it up in 1hr 30. Very very hard underfoot due to sickness, tiredness and lack of sleep (probably all related)! The last one is always the hardest! Much much busier than the paths of Scafell Pike, of which I had the summit to myself when I got there which was awesome! I need an early night as I've had 6 hours sleep in 36 hours and 22 miles of walking and 10,000ft of ascent! Getting lost on Scafell Pike didn't even put me off.
I need to sleep now so I'll just go and have a long bath and either today or tomorrow I'll upload all the details and pics for you to enjoy! :)
Live the dream folks!
I need to sleep now so I'll just go and have a long bath and either today or tomorrow I'll upload all the details and pics for you to enjoy! :)
Live the dream folks!
Summit number 2
Despite being unable to find the start and getting lost on the descent I summited Scafell Pike in 1 hr 37 (5.50am) via Wasdale Head and down in overall total of 3hr 10. Had summit to myself and luckily good weather! Back's killing me now but off to do the third and final peak. Both tired. Well on schedule but feeling sick. 2 Down 1 to go! Thanks for all messages so far they mean a lot :D
Will update in more detail when home.
Will update in more detail when home.
Tuesday, 5 July 2011
1 down, 2 to go!
Summited Ben Nevis in 1 hrs 59!! Not the best start originally as I couldn't find our starting point and forgot my walking pole! (Back hurts now!). Finished it in a total of 3hrs 52. summited faster than I planned it would take to get down! Brilliant. Set off from the Glen Nevis Youth Hostel just afte 5.30. It felt weird that I was doing something I've been planning for so long! Hugely relieved, as forecasted, the weather was dire. I was walking about 3mph then as I got to the zigzags I felt great. Got to the 'halfway lochan' in 45 mins which means the steepest bits are done with. I took a few breathers but it was all good. At just over 3000ft the cold came in and a bit higher up (as warned by a Walker who told me it's effing cold up there!!) the fog started tickling the path ahead. 'Crap' I said, but all electronics were stashed away, on came the anorak and I soldiered on. The paths stayed clearish but I was almost alone apart from some folk who told me I was 15 mins away. Soon I was engulfed in fog, wind picked up with 45 mph gusts and blissful silent gaps now and then. The heavens opened and the rain got heavier. The vis got to about 10 metres. But thanks to the cairns I made it. I'd love to tell you more but we're driving to Wasdale now (5 hours) for number 2. Feeling strong and buzzing. Off to bed now and i'll keep you posted. Will go into detail when I have my beloved laptop! Over and out living the dream! :D
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