The Yorkshire 3 Peaks

Region: Yorkshire Dales

The Challenge: To complete the circular walk of the Yorkshire 3 peaks (Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough) in 12 hours. 

Distance: 38km (23miles)

 

The Yorkshire 3 Peaks is set in some of the best scenery the Yorkshire Dales has to offer. It is our most popular challenge,  partly perhaps because for some it easier to get to and more 'achievable' than many of the other challenges, but also no doubt because of its quality and well-deserved staus as a classic.

 

The Yorkshire 3 Peaks challenge presents less technical dificulty than, say the Welsh 3000s, and requires less in the way of sheer endurance than the Lakes 3000s, but those who complete it always agree that having covered almost a marathon in distance, some of it over steep, rocky and boggy ground, and ascended 1600m in vertical height, this is a challenge to be proud of.

The route starts in the village of Horton-In-Ribblesdale an follows paths and minor roads for a short while before beginning the climb to the first peak, Pen-y-ghent (694m). This is followed by its gradual descent, and then a few undulating miles to High Birkwith where you will meet the the first vehicle for refreshments.

There follows a straightforward section which takes you to the foot of Whernside, near the famous Ribblehead viaduct (pictured), and the second stop at the vehicle for refreshments. From here it is a long but straightforward climb to the summit of Whernside (736m) and then a shorter, steeper descent to the third vehicle stop at Chapel-Le-Dale.

A short section of road walking is followed by a footpath through limestone pavements, where, if you have the mental energy you may appreciate the beauty and importance of this unique habitat, before the path steepens as you climb the final mountain, Ingleborough (723m). From here it is a long, scenic, and for some at least, enjoyable, walk back down to Horton.

 

We can run this event by either accompanying your team around the route or by simply giving each team a couple of maps and compasses and meeting them at checkpoints along the way.

 

The accompanied event

We each team will be accompanied by a Mountain Leader as they progress around the course. We will have a support vehicle which will meet up with you at various points with refreshments.

 

The Cost of the event will depend on how many teams you have out on the day. We set a limit of 10 people per team but we would recommend that you work on a basis of 6-8 in a team to enable everyone to get their best time. What follows are the the basic costs of providing your Mountain Leaders, if you would like us to sort out other aspects of the challenge such as your accommodation for the nights before and after then let us know and we'll happily oblige.

1 Team of upto 10 participants - £466

2 Teams - £677

3 Teams - £933

10% discounts apply to mid week bookings) 

 

The unaccompanied (checkpointed) event

If you are confident in your navigating (the route is quite straightforward) you may opt to go out in your own teams and have us simply there as a safety net, meeting you at various points on the route and to provide refreshments in the valleys. Again we can provide other services if required but the basic costs of running the Yorkshire 3 peaks as a checkpointed event are as follows

12 - 15 particpants £55 per head

16 - 20 participants £44 per head

21 - 33 particpants £33 per head

35 - upwards £28 per head

10% discounts apply to mid week bookings)

 

If you wish to download the route to load onto a GPS it can be found here in Memory map format and GPX format (if you would like other formats then let us know and we'll try and convert it.

 

 

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