Peak District Challenge

You should carry with you everything that you need to keep safe and comfortable during the event (with the exception of water, food, and for 50-100km challengers a “half way” bag). There are no indoor or undercover resting areas during the event, (only at the start and finish), so you need to prepare to be outdoors for the entire event.

Each participant must be equipped with:

- Waterproof jacket with taped seams and hood. Softshell or “coated” products are not suitable.

- Waterproof trousers with taped seams.

- Walking boots or shoes with a good tread and ideally with high ankle support.

- An extra, spare warm jumper/fleece/primaloft, not worn at the start (not compulsory for 10km Back Before Dark event.) Real down not sufficient

- Any personal medication you need, eg Inhaler, Epipen.

- A headtorch per person (Compulsory, for all challenges except Copper. Strongly recommended for Copper). A good quality headtorch will make a big difference to your speed and safety overnight, and we’d particularly recommend the Petzl Nao and Myo headtorches. Expensive, but really worth it.

- Drink bottle (can be refilled at all checkpoints) and personal snacks (you can top-up with food every 2-3 hours). (Not compulsory for 10km Back Before Dark event)

- Hat and gloves

Each self-navigating team (including teams of 1) must also carry:

- Waterproofed physical maps of the Peak District eg British Mountaineering Council Dark Peak, or both Ordnance Survey Outdoor Leisure Dark Peak (known as “OL1”) and White Peak (“OL24”). Electronic mapping and the route guide we provide are not sufficient on their own.

- Minor first aid kit including blister and wound dressings. This can be self-assembled or shop-bought.

- A spare headtorch and adequate spare batteries, including for Copper and solo challengers.

- Separate, spare emergency food, not intended for consumption. (Not compulsory for 10km Back Before Dark event)

- Whistle

- Compass, for all teams except Copper Challengers. We strongly recommend a “reputable” brand of compass (eg Silva)– in our experience, with compasses, you really do get what you pay for.

- Charged and waterproofed mobile phone (such as this 53g option). (Not compulsory for 10km Back Before Dark event)

- Emergency shelter large enough for the whole team as below:

Bronze Challengers

Solo entrants
a) Survival Bag or
b) SOL Emergency Bivi

Teams of 2+
a) Survival bag each or
b) SOL Emergency Bivi each or
c) Group bothy bag

Silver and Gold Challengers

Solo entrants
a) Survival Bag with Sleeping Bag or
b) Emergency personal shelter providing significant thermal protection: eg 3-layer Blizzard Bag, or SOL Escape Bivvy, or SOL Escape Lite Bivvy.
NB: SOL Emergency Bivi, or lightweight “2 layer” Blizzard Bags are not acceptable; Nor are any other bag not pre-authorised prior to registration.

Teams of 2
a) A “Solo” shelter as listed in the left column, for EVERY member of your party, or
b) One bothy bag large enough for your whole team AND one “Solo” shelter as listed in the left column (for an injured member of your team.)

Also consider

Bearing in mind that minimising weight will maximise your speed and comfort:

- A pair of walking poles

- Lightweight camera

- How much water is appropriate, based on the conditions on the day (You’ll be able to refill at refreshment checkpoints).

- Suncream and sunglasses.

- Dry socks and a change of shoes (Only on 50-100km distances, we can drop these off for you at a “half way” checkpoint if you bag them up and clearly label them. There is no facility for “half way” bags to meet you on 10-25km routes).

- Lightweight travel cup to mitigate the event’s environmental impact. Available for sale at Registration.

- Powerbank for your phone if you won’t be keeping it turned off.

How hard is the Peak District Challenge?

There are five levels of difficulty, to cater for all participants. You will need a basic level of fitness for all of the challenges, and the Silver and Gold challenges in particular should not be entered lightly. If entering the Silver and Gold challenges, you’ll start the event at 9pm, walking or running in darkness. For all five challenges you have the choice of self navigating, in which case you’ll be walking unaccompanied, met only at checkpoints, and covering a large distance. The 25-100kms route are NOT flagged, so a minimum level of navigational skill is required. For those without good navigational skills, we offer the option of joining a led group on the Copper, Bronze, or overnight leg of the Silver challenge (before completing the daytime leg of the Silver challenge in daylight).

Here are some comparisons with other challenges:

• 2km fun run – most reasonably healthy people could walk this in under an hour with little difficulty.
• 5km Park Run or Colour Run – You’ll need to train a little to run the whole way.
• Back Before Dark 10km Peak District Challenge – With some training you’ll run the whole way, but a healthy person will be able to walk 10km if you have to! Don’t walk too slowly though, otherwise you won’t be Back Before Dark.
• Tough Muddy obstacle courses. Typically 20km, 4 hours, with physical wet / icy / electrified obstacles.
• Peak District Challenge Copper route: 25km, 9 hours, 700m of ascent. You will need to maintain a steady, but not extremely fast walking pace throughout the day. We expect most reasonably fit people could manage this challenge in under this time, with a little perseverence, and you should have time for a break or two along the way.
• Yorkshire three peaks challenge – 39km, 12 hours, 1600m of ascent. The Yorkshire three peaks challenge can be completed by most reasonably fit and active people, but about 10% of those who attempt it do not complete it, and about a further 30% don’t achieve the 12 hour target.
• Peak District Challenge Bronze route. 50km, 12 hours, 1200m of ascent. You’ll need to maintain a fast walking pace for the entire 12 hours, and are not likely to have time for long breaks. A fit, regular hillwalker, who has walked 20miles / 30km or more in one go previously, is likely to complete this challenge with enough perseverance.
• National three peaks challenge: 44km, 2900m of ascent, 14 hours of walking in total, broken up with ten hours of rest breaks.
• Peak District Challenge Silver route. 75km, 24 continuous hours 2000m of ascent. You’ll need to be physically fit with plenty of perseverence to find your way around this course.
• Welsh 3000ers. 48km in 24 continuous hours, about 3500m of ascent.
• Lake District 3000ers. 72km in 24 continuous hours, 3823m of ascent.
• Peak District Challenge Gold Ultra route. 100km, 24 continuous hours, 3000m of ascent. The ultimate challenge, for experienced walkers and runners with extensive reserves of perseverance, who have successfully run marathons previously.

How much does it cost?

We charge an entry fee (of between £20-70 depending on challenge chosen) to cover all the arrangements for this event. On top of this, your expenses are really minimised:

• You don’t have to travel over the whole of the UK to attempt a really difficult challenge. Why drive to three corners of the country for a challenging walk? That also means…
• Your fuel and vehicle costs are minimal, and you’re saving the planet!
• No fundraising requirements.
• We provide delicious vegetarian drinks and snacks. You won’t be buying all your food from motorway service stations over the weekend.

We can do all this, because we ask for supporters to volunteer for us over the weekend.

Is fundraising compulsory?

No, your entry fee covers the whole cost of putting on the challenge to professional standards.

When must I enter by?

The sooner the better so you can train appropriately!

Main entries close about 3 weeks before the event. Late entries will be taken after this date, but Finishers Packs (which add a t-shirt and medal to your goody bag) will not be available.

Do I need to provide my own support team? Am I allowed a personal support team or spectators?

We ask that you do not bring a personal support team, but instead your supporters are asked to volunteer to assist with the running of the event. This may also keep them entertained whilst you are on the furthest summits and out of sight! We are looking for friendly volunteer marshals to provide encouragement, drinks and snacks. Safety and navigation advice will be managed by mountain leaders from Wilderness Development. If you do bring supporters and friends with you, we ask that they do not shadow you or provide additional personal support.

What to expect on the day

How many checkpoints are there? How far apart are they?

• The Gold Ultra route has approximately 16 checkpoints (In line with UTMB regs, food is provided at just 8 checkpoints, approximately every 3 hours)
• The Silver route has 12 approximately checkpoints (with approx 8 having food)
• The Bronze route has 8 checkpoints (approx 4 have food)
• The Copper route has 5 checkpoints (approx 3 have food)
• The Back Before Dark route has 1 checkpoint with water only.

Checkpoints will be crewed (with water available) at least every three hours on overnight events and every two hours on daytime events. This doesn’t mean you can top up with water more frequently if you’re a faster runner, as reaching a checkpoint faster may just mean that you arrive before the checkpoint is crewed! You should therefore bring sufficient carrying capacity to go for this long between water top-ups. If you are completing the challenge at “on target” pace, you’ll find all checkpoints are crewed by the time you reach them.

What is provided at checkpoints?

• Water bottle refills
• On 25-100km challenges, light snacks like
  • sandwiches,
  • savoury pastries
  • cold pizza
  • sweets, cake and flapjack
  • fruit
  • cereal and energy bars
  • pasta pots
• At many checkpoints, a member of the volunteering team to cheer you on and give you any help you need.
• At some checkpoints, hot squash to drink

There is no full meal provided on the way around, so if you have special dietary requirements or will want to eat more than “grazing” food it’s advisable to carry additional food yourself.

Can my specific dietary requirements be catered for?

Where dietary requirements are mentioned on your booking form, we’ll do our best to ensure there is at least one food choice at each checkpoint that is suitable for you. If you didn’t mention requirements on your booking form, it’s likely there will still be a suitable choice for you at most checkpoints – but we have only planned for dietary requirements that we know about!

In either case, as this is a mass-catered event, we advise that you check the individual packaging to be sure an item is suitable on each occasion; the checkpointers can help you with this. We’d advise that you avoid mass-packaged foods like tray bakes or trays of sandwiches, as although we take normal food hygiene precautions, these are more likely to have some low level of cross-contamination than individually packaged items.

If your allergy or requirement is serious, it’s important that you check at each food serving location – the checkpointers and HQ volunteers are able to help you.

Are there toilets at checkpoints?

In general, no there are not, however a few checkpoints are adjacent to public toilets, and these are spaced out approximately every 6 hours throughout each challenge. The details of which checkpoints are near public toilets are provided in your pre-event briefing.

There are also more public toilets spaced out around the route, although these will require deviations from our suggested route, and will add some mileage to your challenge!

Do I get a medal and a T-shirt?

Finishers packs including a t-shirt and medal are available to pre-book when you register online. We’ll look forward to giving you one!

The Peak District Challenge is designed from the ground up to be an extremely ethical event, and for years we’ve resisted the temptation to give medals. Why? Because we only wanted to hand out momentos which are useful, welcomed and don’t risk becoming dust-gathering trinkets. So to minimise the waste (and cost!) of giving out unwanted merchandise, this year you can order a tee and medal at registration if you’d like one.

What kit do I need? What if it rains? Is there shelter on the way round?

The Peak District Challenge will go ahead come rain, wind or shine. You should expect to carry with you everything that you need to keep safe and comfortable during the event (with the exceptions of water, food, and for 50-100km challenges a “half way” bag). There are no indoor or undercover resting areas during the event, (only at the start and finish), so you need to prepare to be outdoors for the entire event with all the kit from the Kit List. In the event of extremely strong winds or lightening, shortened low-level routes may be used, or the event may be postponed to a later date.

Navigating yourself or joining a led group with a guide

What level of navigation or map reading ability do I need?

Only the Back Before Dark 10km is flagged, on longer challenges (25-100km) you’ll be met by volunteers only at checkpoints. If taking on the Copper or Bronze Challenge, we would expect you to be honestly able to state: “I can make sense of a normal ordnance survey map to find my way around, even if I don’t use the compass”. This is the minimum level of navigational ability required to take part in the Copper or Bronze Challenge. If this isn’t you, we ask you to book a beginners (Level 1) navigation course with Wilderness Development or a different organisation, or join a led team around the Peak District Challenge.

Guides on the Silver challenge are available only overnight, and during hours of daylight all Silver challengers will need to self-navigate, to the standards outlined above.

If taking on the Silver challlenge as a self-navigator, or the Gold Ultra (no guides are available on the Gold Ultra), the route involves some navigational challenge, including night time navigation, and we would expect you to:

• Have successfully completed comparable navigationally challenging walks or runs, including night-time navigation. These do not necessarily need to be part of an organised event. Or
• Have completed the NNAS Silver award and have experience navigating at night. Or
• Have completed a level 2 navigation course with Wilderness Development or a different organisation

Self-navigating Solo and Duo Teams have higher navigational and experience requirements, see below…

Additional entry criteria for self-navigating Solo and Duo teams

The Peak District Challenge is a team event, however Solo and duo entries on the 25-100km routes are permitted from runners with extensive comparable experience. This is not the place to try your hand at your first solo or duo Ultra Marathon. Solo entries are accepted on the Back Before Dark 10km.

To enter the 25-100km Peak District Challenges as a solo or duo team, you must have successfully completed a comparable “qualifying” walk or run in the 18 months prior to the Peak District Challenge. Your qualifying walk/run does not necessarily need to be part of an organised event. Qualifying events must be:

• completed as a solo or duo entrant (matching your entry to the Peak District Challenge!)
• of 50km or longer (25km or longer if entering the copper challenge)
• require navigation and not follow a way-marked route
• include a section at night, (for all levels except copper)
• not be all on paved roads.

We will ask for a brief description of your qualifying event on your registration form and will take your word – we do not require proof. A sentence along the lines of “In 2019 we completed the 56 miles Bullock Smithy challenge in 20 hours” or “In July 2019, we navigated the whole route of the Pennine way from Kirk Yetholme to Edale (270 miles) including sections at night” will suffice.

I am looking to join a team, what should I do?

If you’d like to join a team, we advise anyone in this position to post on our Facebook group to try to track down other people in the same position who might like to join up into a team together.

The Challenge Routes

What are the grid references for the checkpoints?

These are emailed to participants 7 days before the event takes place. 7 days before the event has been chosen to make it long enough to copy it on to your own maps, but deliberately not long enough to give you time to recce the whole route in advance! Navigating yourself between checkpoints is a key part of the challenge. We do show you rough outlines of the Peak District Challenge routes here.

What is the route between checkpoints?

You should use the shortest route between checkpoints, while avoiding major roads. The Back Before Dark 10km route is flagged and marshalled.

On 25-100km challenges, a route guidance booklet is provided, which highlights “out of bounds” areas. In a few areas, there is a specified compulsory route, but in most (more than 80% of) areas you are encouraged to chose your own route between checkpoints. GPX waypoint files will be available for download from this website from 7 days before the event for use with GPS devices or mapping software.

The routes only follow good, obvious paths, and are generally waymarked national routes and easy to spot. If you find yourself on a small, overgrown, dangerous or unmarked path, you may have veered off track!

There are extra checkpoints for the longer challenges, so if you go through all the checkpoints for your challenge and take the shortest-cut you can find between them, then you have completed the challenge!

Can I recce the route?

We don’t provide routes to recce in advance for two reasons:

Firstly there are no fixed routes. You can chose the quickest and easiest route between checkpoints that most suits you. Have a look at the FAQ “What are the routes between checkpoints?” for more info.

Secondly, we don’t provide the exact locations of checkpoints until 7 days before the event. That’s deliberately long enough to mark the routes on to your maps, but deliberately not long enough to allow enough time to recce the whole route in advance, because navigating yourself around the route is a key part of the challenge. Have a look at the FAQ “What are the locations of the checkpoints?” for more info.

We do show you rough outlines of the route here:

A keen map reader will be able to make a reasonably accurate judgement about the likely route using the info above, by taking a look at the Ordnance Survey map of the area and following the general route description given. There are further hints contained within these FAQs.

Baggage and logistics

Can I have a bag meet me halfway around the challenge?

Yes, for Gold, Silver and Bronze challengers, we will bring a “halfway” bag to meet you approximately half way around the challenge. To take advantage of this, please label a suitably non-valuable and waterproof bag and drop it off in the “bag drop off” area at HQ. We will return your halfway bag to HQ for you after you have had a chance to go through it. Whilst we will do our best, please be aware this is a public event and your bag will be brought to meet you in a public car park which is not lockable. We advise against bringing valuables.

It is not possible for 10km and Copper Challengers to have a bag meet them half way.

Can I leave my bag in Hathersage HQ whilst I’m taking part?

Yes, we are happy to store labelled (non valuable!) bags in HQ for you whilst you are taking part in the Peak District Challenge. No valuables please, and whilst we will do our best, please be aware this is a public event and our storage facilities are not lockable.

What if I struggle to maintain the target pace?

Whilst we’ll do all we can to help you achieve your challenge, the volunteers crewing the checkpoints can’t stay in place indefinitely. If you are slower than target pace and miss the “cutoff” time at a checkpoint, your entry will be moved down to a lower-level route (Gold to Silver, Bronze to Copper etc), and you will be able to continue your attempt at the lower-level challenge.

If you more are one hour or more behind target pace, we will leap-frog you forward on your (new) route by car, allowing you to finish the challenge by foot.

Can I bring my dog?

As a result of different distances of the challenge being overseen by different national governing bodies, we can accept dogs on some distances of the Peak District Challenge but not others. Well behaved dogs on leads accompanied by responsible owners are welcome on the…

• Bronze 50km
• Silver 75km

(Dogs are not permitted on Copper or Gold Challenges)

We aren’t able to accommodate hounds within the event venue, but if he’s happy waiting for you in your car before and after the run then a well behaved pooch accompanying you out on the hill will be welcome on Silver, Bronze or Back Before Dark 10km routes. We’re not able to put in additional canine support I’m afraid, so you will need to be able to look after him yourself – we haven’t got a doggy-drop-out bus. This may require a willing taxi – please research your contingency plan in advance!

How do I get to Hathersage? What is the postcode for the venue? Is it easy to park?

By far the best way to arrive is by train! There is a train station five minutes walk from the event base, and the event has been specifically timed so that you can travel to the event from Manchester or Sheffield by train.

There is limited pay and display parking in the village, and more P&D parking available at a distance from the event base at postcode S32 1DU. Maps of parking locations will be provided in your 7-days-to-go event briefing email.

When do I have to get to Hathersage to pick up my race pack and route guide? When is registration?

Please help us keep the event running smoothly by registering and collecting your registration pack only during the times listed below.

All self-navigators, should register (on Friday night if possible!) during the windows below.. Once you have your registration pack, you should go directly to the event briefing room for your compulsory safety briefing, 30 minutes before your wave’s start time. There’s no need to register a second time on the morning of the event.

Guided Groups should register during the registration windows below.

When is the latest I can arrive on the day of the event? When is the safety briefing?

You must have collected your registration pack and route guide from registration before your briefing – see times above.

Your safety briefing is compulsory. Please arrive in the Briefing Room 30 minutes before your planned start time to receive your briefing.

You can chose your own start time and wave from the options above at any time up to the day of the event, there’s no need to let us know in advance which wave time you’d prefer. Just be in the briefing room 30 minutes before the wave you want to start with, and you will be able to start with that wave.

What time do led groups depart? Can I chose which led group I depart with?

Please arrive to register at the times above, ie 90 minutes before your challenge’s start time.

At registration, the guides will assemble the first 12 guided walkers together in to the first guided group, brief them, and then depart as soon as you’re all ready. Then the second guide will assemble the next 12 arrivals in to the second group, brief them, and then depart as soon as they’re ready, and so on.

As you’re joining an open led group with a guide, it is possible that you may need to wait for a group of 12 to assemble – such is the way with public events I’m afraid. But in reality, usually this doesn’t take long. The last group will be briefed at the scheduled “briefing time” above, and depart on schedule with the self-navigating entrants.

If you have a preference which group of people you walk with, please just request this on arrival.

Guided groups can only register from 90 minutes before your Challenge’s start time – you cannot register on Friday before 7.30pm.

Gold
To be successful, you’ll need to maintain over 4kph to complete the Gold Challenge inside your 24 hour target. If you fail to meet a cutoff on the Gold challenge, you will be able to continue on the 75km Silver route, which follows the shortest, flattest distance between checkpoints.
Featuring 3300m of ascent, the 100km Gold Ultra route is the ultimate Peak District Challenge, and should be attempted by teams of fit and experienced trekkers or runners who want to see the best that the Peak District has to offer. You’ll visit high points and viewpoints on your way between checkpoints, and there is a lot of climbing involved. You’ll leave Hathersage at 9pm on the night of Friday. Night navigation experience is essential.

Silver:
Take on 75km (47 miles) with a 24 hour target and 2,235m of ascent, the Silver Challenge is shown with silver lines on our route schematic. Not to be underestimated, this route follows the easiest and flattest routes between approximately 8 refreshment checkpoints, but still covers a huge mileage. During the initial overnight leg, you can chose to join a led group walking with a guide, or navigate yourself. During the daytime, you’ll navigate yourself.

Bronze:
The Bronze challengers starts at 7.30am on Saturday morning. Confident fast walkers and runners have the option of joining a fast wave that starts at 8.30am.
You will leave Hathersage in the Hope valley and walk up the Hope Valley on good paths past Hope and Bamford until you reach Castleton. From here, you will turn south to join the Limestone Way past Peveril Castle and trek through the valley nature reserve of Hay Dale.
Leaving the Limestone way you will meander through idyllic White Peak villages and the Derbyshire Dales nature reserves on your way up to Middleton Moor. A tracked section through the Peak District’s working landscape brings you to pretty Baslow and the final climb up to the Eastern Edges.
You pass above Baslow, Curbar and Froggatt edges with iconic Peak District views until you reach Padley and Grindleford, from where you will rejoin the Derwent Valley heritage trail, and follow the course of the river back home to Hathersage. The total ascent is approx 1300m over the 50km.
Will you make it inside your 12 hour target?

Copper:
The Copper challengers starts at 9.30am (Main Wave) or 10.30am (Runners and Fast Walkers wave) on Saturday morning. Challengers can chose which wave they’d prefer on the day – there’s no need to decide in advance.
The route follows a circular route from Hathersage to Baslow along riverside paths and back along a hilly route via Curbar and Frogatt edges.