The Bog forms the route from CP1 (south of Thirlmere reservoir) up to High Raise. Leading up to the 2010 event ground water levels were near an all time low but those who dared to enter The Bog found that there was plenty of water around! So what is the solution? Baring in mind you are only a couple of hours in to an event which is likely to take the best part of a day to complete?

1. Do you plod on, get wet and get on with it?

2. Take the high ground (off the track) with the knowledge that you are taking an indirect route?

3. Take a change of shoes and socks with you and change once you are near High Raise?

I think I would take a spare pair of socks and some water proof socks. Once I am through The Bog (and wet) I change in to my water proof socks while my shoes dry, then change back in to the spare socks.

I’d be interested to hear your opinions on the best way to tackle the wettest part of the course?

WINTER SUNSHINE or not, we will be packing our rucksacks and heading off for a day’s walking, but I wonder how many of us will pack less drinks in the winter believing that it’s colder and we drink less?

Any form of exercise will necessitate extra fluid intake and the funny thing about winter is that we apply extra layers of technical clothing to maintain our core body’s warmth. Therefore when walking in winter do we need to consider drinking as much as we do in summer?

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An alarm went off, are my eyes actually open? It’s too dark to determine that, an abrupt awakening revealed it was 3am and time to get up and get ready for the 10 Peaks Challenge, the inaugural Charity event around the 10 highest peaks in the Lake District. After a quick breakfast consisting of a 500ml bottle of spring water and a white chocolate chip cookie I was away with the rest of the team, Rambo, Gromit and ShatNav to the start point – Swirls Car Park on the Eastern side of Thirlmere Lake. We (including ShatNav, who was joining us up the first three peaks) set off from the car park around 4am along with around 50 others, up to the first three of the ten highest peaks, namely; Helvellyn Lower Man, Helvellyn and Nethermost Pike. Going was very good as the biting wind cooled us down nicely once we reached each summit. Rambo making sure we left the path to reach the summit of Helvellyn Lower Man, this reassured me (not that I needed any reassurance) that we were being led by a man who not only knows the area like his own back yard but has the ability to navigate to anywhere in any situation, whilst allowing for and regularly checking the ability and the condition of his fellow team members.

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Saturday 31st July 2010 was no ordinary day. 52 very abnormal people gathered at 3:45am in a car park at the foot of Hellvellyn in the Lake district to embark on the inaugural 10 peaks Challenge. This challenge is a charity event that involves completing a route that takes in the 10 highest peaks in the Lake District, some 18,000 foot of ascent and descent, 45 miles and a 24 hour time limit.

Me? Well, I’m as abnormal as they come. Never walked in the lakes, never been up a mountain before. Luckily I had secured the services of Stewart Bondi (aka Rambo) and Martin Stewart (aka Gormless), supported by Pete Johnson (aka Shatnav) and four Sainsburies cheesecakes.

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Took Gromit & Gormless on a little jog over the 10 highest Peaks in the Lake District covering a distance of 45 miles with 18000′ ascent on Saturday 31st July starting at 04:00 going up Helvellyn. Now this would be a real challenge when you consider Gromit has never been up a mountain before (unless you count Houndtor)!

52 started this inaugural charity event in what were reasonable conditions with cloud on the summits but otherwise dry with a fresh breeze on the tops. Shat Nav joined us on the first three peaks that went well and in good time with no difficulty. There followed a long trek up an appropriately named valley called “The Bog” to reach High Raise, while not one of the ten highest tops it is still a summit in its own right. As we started a traverse over to Angle Tarn the cloud started to blow off Bowfell allowing Gromit the treat of seeing the big mountain he had to climb! I wouldn’t say he jumped up and down with joy but was not intimidated by it and set about its ascent with a grin (or was it a grimace) of determination while Gormless responded with his usual enthusiastic exclamation of “Wow”. Once we arrived on the summit the mist came back to greet us to make sure we couldn’t see the fantastic views from the summit. Thereafter, the rest of the day saw the realisation of the MET Office forecast as bands of heavy rain swept through (I must bash up Mini Baah from the MET Office for not generating the better forecast for us that I had ordered). Combined with thick fog limiting visibility often down to as little as 10 metres, going was going to be slow.

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On Saturday July 31st 2010, 52 people gathered at the foot of Helvellyn to attempt to climb the 10 highest peaks in the Lake District in 24 hours. Competitors including armed forces, adventure racers, triathletes, ultra distance and elite marathon runners travelled from as far afield as Germany and the Channel Islands to take part in the inaugural event created by Race Director, Paul Smith. Paul’s motivation was to raise money for two charities who helped in his father’s battle against cancer. A battle which he lost on 1st August 2009. Paul said, “I wanted to create an event which made people question what they could endure. An event which pushed people close to their limit before giving them a chance to recover and do it all over again – much as cancer suffers have to do with each dose of chemo. The Lake District seemed like the best place for such a challenge as it was an annual holiday destination for our family and a great place to remember my Dad.”

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