Finally we arrived at our first Ascent (Ben Nevis) and that was it. Time to start The Three Peaks!! At 4.30pm we set off, eager to get to the top!
The view disappeared at about 2500 feet (1908 feet from the top) and we walked in the cloud for the remainder of the climb. The top was bitterly cold with the snow down and although we took a quick break we really didn’t want to hang around.
We managed to get down about a third of the way before we lost daylight and from then on it was challenging to make the rest of the decent in darkness. We were delighted to arrive back at the Camper, ready for some hot food and to make are way to the next ascent.
We set off on the long drive through the night. The intention was that we would sleep for a few hours – but I think the most that happened was that we dozed. We had set our alarm to get up just before we arrived so we could start to prepare. We arrived at the car park after Ian negotiated some very narrow tracks. The temperature was very cool crisp. The night’s sky was crystal clear with nearly no light pollution. All we could see was the silhouettes of the surrounding mountains.
After some confusion in finding the start point in the dark, off we set. We crossed the bridge and started our trek up the river. After about 20 minutes something didn’t look quite right. After consulting the map we realised that we had taken the wrong path as we had started from a different place then we had originally planned. I think it’s fair to say that at this point we all felt pretty low. With fatigue set in it was a pretty gruelling accent from then on in.
The dark sky made navigating the tracks of Scafell Pike very difficult and finding the correct route was arduous. There would just be nothing pleasant about it at all. It was truly a challenge, and possibly without the commitment of doing it for our angels, we may well have given up.
We made it to the top of an escarpment just as the sun was rising. It was truly inspirational and gave us a boost to carry on to the top. 25 minutes later we made it to the summit. The sky was crystal clear and you could see for miles. We didn’t stop for long as we needed to get down and try to make up some time.
The loose rocks and boulders made the initial decent difficult but once we found the path it became a little easier.
We made it back down to the Camper and after a short break set off for the final climb in Wales. Mt. Snowdon, here we come!!!
The drive down was tiring but we did manage to get some broken sleep. We had planned to walk the Pyg Track as we had walked this route before during training. It is the most difficult route up Snowdon but can be the fastest for a strong climber. We arrived at the car park and set straight off. There was no time to spare. We knew we had missed out on the 24-hour target but still wanted to get a respectable time. It was hard work but we were in the zone and were focused on getting to the top.
Thank you to Ian, For the fantastic job of driving. We couldn’t have done it without you.
Thank you to Rich, Paul and Ash for agreeing to do this challenge with me. Its not for the faint hearted!!
Thank you to everyone who sponsored us. Your support kept us going, and made it worthwhile. We haven’t yet collected all monies but raised in the region of £3500-4000 for Sands which was a sterling effort.
Lots of you sent us messages of good wishes, before, during and after the challenge – thank you. It really kept us going.
