For some amazing uphill running, watch this from about 1.54. The different running styles of the 2 leading women is interesting - upright, short frequent steps vs leaning forward, loping strides.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZC9TZydZDbE
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For some amazing uphill running, watch this from about 1.54. The different running styles of the 2 leading women is interesting - upright, short frequent steps vs leaning forward, loping strides.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZC9TZydZDbE
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike T
After a bit of a chat with a coupe of people at the inter-counties last month, I'm considering one or two European races next year... fancy the uphill races as it plainly suits my strengths! Have got myself validated by BMAF to allow me to run in the European/World Masters events.
The 2023 European Masters is next month in Switzerland and looks to be in a stunning location (Adelboden)..... but with prior commitments and the short notice, its not feasible... next year though sees the main races in Madeira and (most appealing) Spanish Pyrenees.
11.18 miles, 3,329 feet, 3 hours 42 minutes: Elterwater Common to Sergeant Man and back, taking in Silver How and Lang How on the way out, and Swinescar Pike and Blea Rigg both ways. Sunshine and high clouds, the latter a mixture of thin and fluffy. A nice breeze from the south east. No rain; terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Not many walkers about; 2 other runners seen. Car Parks busy.
Again I went down from Sergeant Man to the junction with Wainwright's small walled enclosure before going back up to Blea Rigg - it is a lovely descent, and almost all on grass.
One of my best holidays - I did it several times - flight to Switzerland - Sierre-Zinal race - train to Austria - Kitzbuelerhorn race - flight home. These days, if I were to repeat it, it would all be by train of course.Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
10.23 miles, 3,298 feet, 3 hours 5 minutes: Ambleside - Blue Hill Road - Wansfell Pike via the steps - Wansfell true top - north to the A592 - Kirkstone Inn - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Sunshine with high streaky clouds, a lovely breeze at times from no definite direction; terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Very few walkers about; the AAC Tuesday/Friday group - about 8 of them - were setting off up the other side of the valley as I was going up to Red Screes - there was another runner ahead of me going up the Wansfell steps.
For the first time ever I managed - easily - to go from Wansfell true top to the A592 with dry feet.
I have put some photos on FB of the descent route I take from Red Screes.
I love that climb up Red Screes from the Inn (as much as anyone can love a 20 minute slog anyway).
Forms a part of my favourite Lakes route of all.... the high-level route of the Hodgson Brothers Relay from Patterdale.... Patterdale-Boredale Hause-High Street-Thornthwaite Crag-Caudale Moor-Kirkstone-Red Screes-Dove Crag-Fairfield-Cofa Pike-St Sunday Crag-Patterdale
There is just one short section I do not like, especially if it is wet, or even worse, icy. About three quarters of the way up there is a rock step that slopes the wrong way and hand holds and foot placements are few and far between. It was on this route, though not necessarily on this section, that a mountain rescuer fell and sustained severe injuries in February 2021.Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
11.96 miles, 3,154 feet, 3 hours 33 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe clockwise from/to Ambleside, taking the 1st 2nd and 4th trods to the left/west on the way up, staying mostly on the non race side of the wall on the descent, and going down the rock step. Sunshine and a mixture of fluffy and streaky clouds, all of them above the high tops. No rain. A very welcome breeze from the east. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Not many walkers about; I saw about 8 other runners.
Nab Scar was again hard work - all in the sun, and no breeze at that level. From the descent ridge Buckstone's Jump looked inviting, and not too busy.
12.78 miles, 3,616 feet, 4 hours 5 minutes: Ambleside - Low Sweden Bridge - Buckstone's Jump - High Pike - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Sunshine and a mixture of high clouds; a few minutes of drizzle; a lovely breeze from the south east. Terrain mainly dry/hard/good grip, though there were some sizeable puddles from overnight rain. Not many walker about; 6 other runners seen.
There were 6 tents at Buckstone's Jump. As far as I could tell they had not made too much mess - there was "only " a few drinks cans and some cigarette butts.
8.94 miles, 2,372 feet, 2 hours 58 minutes: Loughrigg trails, ascending via Clappersgate, Fishgarths Wood, and Todd Crag, going down the race route from the top to the road at High Close and up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn, and down the juniors' race route next to the wall to the little wooden bridge. Sunshine and thin high clouds, hazy in the distance, no rain, a gentle breeze from the south. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Not many walkers on the fell; 3 other runners seen.
This was the hottest run so far this year - even the slightest gradient was unrunnable. As for those steps up to the top opposite Loughrigg Tarn - no fun at all.
7.26 miles, 2,459 feet, 2 hours 29 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Sunshine with some thin high clouds. No rain. A moderate breeze from the east. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Very few walkers about, but I did start early. No other runners seen.
Again the heat made the uphills harder work than normal.
11.47 miles, 3,254 feet, 4 hours 21 minutes: Elterwater to Sergeant Man and back, taking in Silver How and Wainwright's "small enclosure" junction on the way out, Lang How and Swinescar Pike on the way back, and Blea Rigg both ways. Not a cloud in the sky. No rain; a lovely breeze from the east. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Very few walkers about; 5 other runners seen.
I started very early, so it was cooler, but those uphills were still hard.
8.32 miles, 2,271 feet, 2 hours 44 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Fishgarths Wood - Todd Crag - Lily Tarn - Loughrigg top - down the race route to the road at High Close and back up again - past the old golf club - Miller Bridge - Rothay Bridge. Sunshine with some very thin high clouds. A lovely breeze from the south. No rain. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Not many walkers about. No other runners seen.
Some filming was going on at Loughrigg top - something to do with a distant relative of Wordsworth reading out some of his poetry.
8.16 miles, 2,344 feet, 2 hours 37 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and along the ridge to the true top. Sunny, with a few high clouds, some streaky, some fluffy. A moderate breeze from the north east. No rain. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Very few walkers about; 3 other runners seen.
11.25 miles, 3,140 feet, 3 hours 44 minutes: Rothay Bridge to Silver How and back, going via Loughrigg top both ways, and Clappersgate/Todd Crag/Lily Tarn on the way out. Overcast, with 15 minutes of light rain. The high tops were cloud free. Terrain mainly dry/very hard/good grip. Not many walkers about; 8 runners seen, 1 in the valley, the rest on the fells.
This was the coolest day for a long time - that rain was so nice.
8.51 miles, 2,541 feet, 2 hours 39 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast, with the high tops cloud free. Hazy in the distance. A few spots of rain from time to time. A moderate breeze from the north west. Terrain dry/very hard/good grip. Quite a few walkers about, including one group of about 20 ascending the Wansfell steps. 8 other runners seen.
9.44 miles, 2,400 feet, 2 hours 49 minutes: Loughrigg trails, ascending/descending via Clappersgate/Fishgarths Wood, and going down the race route to the road at High Close, left along the road, and then up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn. Overcast, with some sunshine; intermittent drizzle/light rain. A moderate breeze from the south. Terrain soft/damp/wet; grip OK part from the rocks which were slippery. No other runners seen; I saw about 20 walkers on the fell, 2 of whom were sheltering from that lovely refreshing rain under a tree ....
I am pleasantly surprised how quickly the ground has softened after the overnight rain.
9.03 miles, 2,543 feet, 2 hours 44 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Roman Ruins - Borrans Park - Champion Tree Trail - Blue Hill Road - Wansfell Pike - Blue Hill Woods - Ambleside. Overcast, with continuous drizzle/light rain for the first 6 miles. The cloud base was initially at about 1,000 feet, later it was above the high tops. No wind. Terrain wet and slippery in places. I saw 1 walker and no runners whilst above the village.
I kept hearing an intermittent distant rumble - initially I thought it might be thunder, but eventually I decided it must be aircraft. Despite the rain I did not need my waterproof top.
10.6 miles, 2,371 feet, 3 hours 6 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including Borrans Park, the Roman Ruins, Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag, Lily Tarn, down the race route to the road at High Close, left along the road, and up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn. Sunshine and clouds, with the latter hiding some of the high tops. A moderate breeze from the south. Terrain dry/damp; grip mostly good. Not many walkers on the fell; 6 other runners seen.
The bracken is head high in some places; even when nowhere near this tall it is still obscuring some of the paths, and making others unpleasant.
8.39 miles, 2,415 feet, 2 hours 28 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Sunny, with some small high clouds. No significant wind, no rain, terrain dry with good grip. Very few walkers about; no other runners seen.
Thankfully, the race descent is not yet blocked by the bracken.
11.17 miles, 3,307 feet, 3 hours 33 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Todd Crag - Lily Tarn - Loughrigg top - down the race descent to the road at High Close - Elterwater Common - Silver How - High Close Arboretum - Loughrigg top - Miller Bridge - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. Some small transient patches of blue sky. A few minutes of drizzle. No significant wind. Terrain dry with good grip. Not many walkers about, apart from two large school groups. No other runners seen.
I avoided a lot of the race route between High Close and Silver How because of the bracken. The alternatives I took are longer and rockier, but I prefer them to the bracken.
A most wonderous day walking the Nantlle Ridge East to West. 8.6 miles in a moving time of 4hrs 11 mins and total time of 6hrs 19 mins. Some of the difference would be stopping to take photos, eat and rest and some of it is probably times when we appeared to be not moving as we toiled our way up the 2 rocky scrambles that required a bit of stopping and thinking! We climbed 3,163 feet.
If you are an aficionado of Snowdonia but have not yet done this walk I would most heartily recommend it. Its special. We met just 2 people all day...a pair of runners coming the other way.
Nantle is a cracking route, done it a few times years back walking or jogging with friends mainly. Well worth taking a day out for it.
Sounds like i need to take a look at this...
I've only done it once, and that was along time ago, but I remember it being towards the 'epic' end of the scale - and very few people too.Quote:
Originally Posted by molehill
I've no idea how to pronounce it correctly, however
Think we would start in Beddgelert, take in Hebog, Ogof and Lefn and then the ridge and back down to Rhyd-ddu. A sort of horseshoe shape, probably had a car at both ends or make your way back on the slate trail. Something like that anyway, can't remember exactly, worth doing and you get away from most of the crowds 👍
9.41 miles, 2,927 feet, 2 hours 58 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 3 sides (west, east, south-east) including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet. Intermittent drizzle. No significant wind. Terrain damp/wet with good grip apart from wet rocks. I saw about a dozen walkers on the fell, and thirty or so runners with numbers on going over the Pike - apparently in "The 5 Passes" event - 32 miles.
Yet another new pair of X-Talon 260 V2s worn today - and another pair in the post - £91 from PB.
We did Rhyd Ddu to Llanlyfni. Stayed in an amazing bunkhouse at Llanlyfni and got a cab to Rhyd Ddu for an 8 am start.
11.79 miles, 3,571 feet, 3 hours 39 minutes: Ambleside - Low Sweden Bridge - around the rock step - Low Pike - High Pike - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base above the high tops; occasional patches of blue sky. No rain. Terrain dry with good grip. A moderately strong wind from the south. Very few walkers on the fells; only 2 other runners seen.
I went around the rock step because of the bracken on 2 of the 3 paths leading to it. I need to explore the third option.
8.61 miles, 2,498 feet, 2 hours 38 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast with lots of high fluffy clouds; some patches of blue sky. Intermittent drizzle/light rain. A moderate breeze from the south west. Terrain damp/wet; grip good apart from on rock. Very few walkers about; no other runners seen.
The race descent is still very viable despite the height of the bracken.
There is another new cafe on Stockghyll Lane - Grove Barn - it is on the road past the turn off for the Pike.
8.73 miles, 913 feet, 1 hour 37 minutes: Drunken Duck loop - so all on tarmac. Overcast and misty, the cloud base was at about 1,500 feet. Virtually continuous drizzle/light rain - not cold, waterproof not needed. Very few walkers about; no other runners seen.
This was my longest continuous run - and shortest outing - for a long time.
10.09 miles, 2,558 feet, 3 hours 9 minutes: Loughrigg trails, ascending/descending via Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag and Lily Tarn, going down the race route to the road at High Close, through the Arboretum a couple of times, and up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 800 feet, so I was in cloud/mist a lot of the time. Intermittent drizzle. Terrain damp/wet with slippery rocks. A moderate breeze from the south west. I saw about 30 walkers whilst out; no other runners seen.
9.42 miles, 2,656 feet, 2 hours 49 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and from the kissing gate across the stream and then the field to Grove Barn Cafe. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds, mainly the latter. A few minutes of drizzle. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. A moderate breeze from the south west. Very few walkers about; no other runners seen.
The race descent from the Pike is still very viable.
8.7 miles, 2,726 feet, 2 hours 42 minutes: Wansfell Pike - a similar route to yesterday, the main difference being that I did the true top/ridge loop the other way around. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,000 feet, so I was often in cloud/mist. Intermittent drizzle/light rain. The rocks in particular were wet and slippery. A moderately strong wind from the south. Very few walkers about; no other runners seen.
When I took my top off at home I noticed my nipples had been bleeding. It has been years if not decades since this last happened. There was no discomfort at any stage. The top in question does have a slightly rough weave, and I did feel a bit colder than normal. Body glide tomorrow!
Run/rest has certainly helped - I ran a whole section today where I used to run/walk two or three times.
12.01 miles, 1,291 feet, 2 hours 34 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Wray Castle - Coffin Trail - High Wray - Wray Castle - Clappersgate - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, with the clouds obscuring some of the high tops. Misty in the distance. Intermittent drizzle; no significant wind at this level. Terrain wet - the rocks on the Coffin Trail in particular were very slippery. Quite a few walkers and cyclists near the lake. One other runner seen.
Apart from the Coffin Trail ascent this is a very runnable route - I was pleased to run 11.5 miles of it.
12.33 miles, 3,717 feet, 3 hours 53 minutes: Ambleside - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Overcast, with most of the clouds above the high tops, misty in the distance. Intermittent drizzle/light rain; a surprisingly cold wind from the north west. Terrain anything from damp to saturated; slippery in places. I saw about a dozen walkers on the fells, and four other runners.
The second path on the left heading towards the rock step is not yet blocked by bracken - it starts not far beyond the first path, where the main track transiently levels out and goes slightly downhill.
Above the rock step I stayed mainly on the west side of the wall until beyond High Pike - then I swapped to the east side to keep out of the wind.
11.04 miles, 2,424 feet, 3 hours 11 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the race route to the road at High Close, left along the road, and back up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn. Sunshine and high clouds; a moderate breeze from the north west. A few minutes of drizzle. Terrain dry/damp/wet with good grip. Lots of walkers on the fell, some in large groups. One other runner seen - in the valley.
More and more of the paths are being blocked by bracken - lots of u-turns as a result.
12.01 miles, 3,526 feet, 3 hours 59 minutes: Ambleside - Blue Hill Road/Lane - kissing gate at the bottom of the Wansfell Pike steps - across the field to Grove Barn - Roundhill Farm - Red Screes - Scandale - Dove Crag - High Pike - Low Pike - around the rock step - High Sweden Bridge - Sweden Bridge Lane - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. Drizzle on and off - more on than off. A moderate wind from the south. Terrain damp/wet/saturated - the rocks in particular were very slippery. Not many walkers on the fells. No other runners seen.
I wore a winter mid-layer top - it was just right for the conditions.
18.25 miles, 6,583 feet, 7 hours 28 minutes: The Hodgson '4'. Sunshine and clouds; Fairfield was in cloud/mist, the other tops I went to were cloud free. A few minutes of drizzle; the wind from the south west was strong at times, and cold. Terrain dry/damp/wet; the rocks of course were slippery if wet. Not many walkers about. I saw half a dozen runners in the valleys, and one on the fells.
I really enjoyed this - it is a great route. As usual when out I took no food nor water, but did not need them - it would have been very different if it was hot.
The descents from Cofa Pike and from the Beacon needed care, but they need care even when conditions are excellent.
Is this the Hodgson route but without the drops to valley changeovers?Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike T
I did this, but without going to all the race checkpoints such as the cairn on St Raven's edge.... it is my favourite route in the Lakes, in fact along with Snowdon Horseshoe, my favourite route anywhere.
I think i went round in about 4hrs45 although i was pushing fairly hard at that pace.