Yorkshire 3 Peaks Charity Challenge

As we launch our Charity Appeal aiming to raise money for St Rocco’s Hospice in Warrington, Gareth takes a sideways look at the why’s, what’s and how’s of our charity Yorkshire 3 Peaks Trek on the 21st July..

Rambling on to a Ramble..

I think it’s human nature to moan, well that’s my excuse! People moan when it rains and as soon as it is sunny they will be moaning that we need rain. Well my answer to that moan is simple….”at least you’re not dead!”

As far as I am concerned there is always someone who is worse off, and that I suppose is the point of our Yorkshire 3 Peaks Charity Walk. In the past few years most people have taken a battering. People are worried about jobs, not being able to pay bills etc. However even in this climate its easy to forget that on the whole we still are better off than lots of people in that we have our health. So that’s why as a group we decided that we would try and raise some cash for our local hospice, which is called St Rocco’s.

St Rocco’s Hospice

St Rocco’s Hospice is a small charity based in Warrington, Cheshire and provides in and out patient palliative care for people with various life threatening illnesses, as well as support for their families. St Rocco’s catchment area is around 200,000 people and as a charity all of the money they need to function is raised through the goodwill of the community.

As staff, and as a company, we have a strong connection with Warrington, in my case it is where I work and for other members of the team it is where they were born or live. On a business level the company has had a shop in the town for close to 30 years. It is therefore only right that, whilst we are able to, we try to raise some money to put back into a worthwhile community organisation.

We are doing this walk for a great cause and as such we are collecting sponsorship from friends and family. A collection bucket is in our shop and we have set up a page to donate onlne. If you could help us it would be greatly appreciated. All you have to do is follow the link to our Everyday Hero Page. Perhaps you may want to give a something to a charity closer to your own home, if this is the case then please let us know as this is just as good.

Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge

Having decided to try and raise some money, those of us who are doing the hike looked at how we could do this. There are numerous challenges out there, but in the end we choose to attempt the Yorkshire 3 Peaks. This is a physically challenging 26 mile slog with roughly a mile of climbing and a target time of 12 hours. Let’s not forget it is also set in a lovely part of the world, although at my current level of fitness I’m not to sure how much I will be able to appreciate it!

Starting and finishing at Horton in Ribblesdale the route takes in the 3 highest peaks in Yorkshire and as such can be completed in a clockwise or anti-clockwise directions. For reasons which none of us at CheapTents can remember we are doing the challenge in the clockwise direction taking Ingleborough first, Whernside second, finishing with Pen-y-ghent, this sees the two highest peaks scaled by the half way mark. By all accounts due to a difficult decsent of Pen-y-ghent, it is thought of by some as the more difficult route! I hope that whoever suggested the route, struggles more than me!

Ingleborough

Our pleasant Sunday afternoon stroll begins with the 723m assent of the “Fort on the Hill”, which is better known as Ingleborough. A gradual climb will hopefully ease us into the day although the steep descent of Ingleborough towards Whernside will be an early test.

Whernside

Whernside is also known as the “Millstone” and at 736m is the highest of the climbs. Coming straight after the descent of Ingleborough, Whernside’s steep ascent will be sure to test fitness and resolve. Reaching the top will be a boost to everyone’s moral as it will see the majority of the day’s climbing out of the way! Albeit there is the small matter of a 12 mile trek and Pen-y-ghent to conquer to come before we can congratulate ourselves.

Pen-y-ghent

Also known as the “Hill on the Border”, Pen-y-ghent peaks at 694m and is the lowest peak in the challenge, however there is a sting in the tail which is that the descent of Pen-y-ghent back towards Horton in Ribblesdale is extremely steep and with 20+ miles in the legs will no doubt be tricky and will cause a little anxiety as no-one wants to be missing work the next day with a broken ankle. Actually, having a day off work with an injury may be ok, its the explaining why you’re not in to the M.D. which would be painful!

http://www.shareyouradventure.com/map/perma/6485/iframe

We will be posting our progress around the 3 Yorkshire Peaks route LIVE on Social Hiking – shareyouradventure.com!

The Home Straight

We will be taking on the 3 Yorkshire Peaks challenge on 21st July. If you would like to donate online, please do so at http://www.everydayhero.co.uk/adventure_centre. Thank you for your support!

Keeping watching the blog for the next post concerning our Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge which will detail some of the different training regimes members of the team are undertaking.