A return visit to Pen-Y-Ghent today this time with Paul and Debbie too. A cool, still morning fooled us into wrapping up in multiple layers but as soon as we got working up the inclines we quickly warmed up. Off came the coats and thick fleeces to be left with just base layers or micro fleeces with zips down and sleeves rolled up. Whilst the peaks are still wearing plenty of snow it did feel like some spring weather might be making an appearance at last.

The assault to Pen-Y-Ghent’s summit from the south is almost one continuous climb with just the odd dip here and there that cheats you of your hard won gains. You can see profile on the climb stats. The final section is steep and rocky, initially with rough stone steps and then almost scrambling up rocks. By this point the guys had worked up a sweat and Debbie however was of course like all ladies merely “glowing”. The assent still felt as tough as last time I did it but whilst I was hot and certainly breathing harder my legs weren’t too bad at all –It felt like the gym work must be paying off.

An early lunch at the top was a welcome break and I feasted on my tuna salad pitta followed by a Cliff energy bar and a quick cup of coffee. I took the chance to have another play with my camera. I’ve just picked up a Lowepro Apex 60AW belt mounted case which now means it’s quick and easy to grab my Fuji X10 rather than taking off my back pack to get it. I also tried the monopod camera adapter on my walking poles – it was a fiddly job so I don’t think I’ll be using it much whilst trekking but perhaps for night shots in camp when I’ll need a slower shutter speed and must minimise camera shake. I’ve posted some of the day’s photos on my Kilimattjaro facebook page.

The descent was over snowy and slippery ground and so our poles were very useful as we slowly picked out way down the side of the mountain. There were plenty of people out on the hills today including fell runners who I have to have a begrudging admiration for their fitness, even if I do think it’s a crazy pursuit. One fell runner was bounding up the hill in the snow wearing nothing more than trainers and running shorts. Mad bugger!

As we got to lower ground we detoured a few hundred feet from the path to show Paul and Debs a small waterfall and sinkhole. We then elected to take a more circular route to add few more miles to our walk before making our way back to Horton in Ribblesdale and a well-earned cup of tea in the café.

I’m not free next weekend so my next hike will be in two weeks for another Pen-Y-Ghent return but this time at night!

Jeff and I just got back from hiking up Pen-y-ghent in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. It’s one of the peaks from the “Yorkshire 3 peaks challenge”.  Just a two man team today as Paul and Debbie couldn’t make it as they’re on honeymoon in the Caribbean (good enough excuse I suppose) – congratulations to them both! All four of us will be doing Pen-y-ghent on the 20^th of April as a night hike. This is to help up get used to our night gear, in my case my Petzll Tikka Plus 2 head torch. We’ll be doing the final ascent of Kili at night so it makes sense to have a practice at handing ourselves whilst walking in the dark.

It was a relatively short hike at < 7 miles but we worked hard on the first half as we ascended up the fell’s “steep” side as you can see from the climb stats. Conditions were overcast, still and pretty cold to start but the work rate of getting up the southern slope soon had us loosing layers as we warmed up. I took a totally loaded up pack with all the daytime gear I’d expect to have on Kili +3 Litres of fluids. Overkill for what this day walk demanded but good training – no point lightening the load only to try to carry more on Kili. In fact I might try to overload my bag for UK training walks so my Kili pack is lighter – train hard, fight easy and all that….

I took my Fuji X10 camera out on the walk. Martine bought me this for Christmas after researching suitable cameras for my Kilimanjaro climb. It’s compact but with a great lens (wide angle –> tele-photo zoom) and in the right hands can take some nice shots. I’m by no means camera savvy so I’ve been playing with some of its extensive features, settings and modes. I’ve posted a photo album from the day on my Kilimanjaro facebook page.

Post walk celebrations were a mug of tea and toasted tea cake in the Pen-y-ghent café before the 70 mile drive home.

Last Sunday we were on our 1^st training walk where all four of our team have all been together. We hooked up with my local Ramblers group to go on an organised walk over the fells around Staveley in the Lake District. Jeff and I met Paul and Debs at Wills Café for a pre-hike drink (and sausage sandwich in Paul’s case) and headed off around 10.15am for our hike.  The weather was glorious and you can see our route and stats here.

Things I learned on this hike:

• It’s bloody difficult to get 3L of fluid into my 3L hydration bladder once it’s installed in my pack. Next time I’m going to fill it first then install it. I also used some electrolyte tablets in the water – don’t know if they had much effect but as we’re told their good practice for Kili I figured I might as well get used to them.
• My new Burghaus Choktoi Fleece is very warm and was soon ditched for a thin micro-fleece as the weather was mild. It should be just the ticket on a chilly Kilimanjaro though so I’m still happy with the purchase (got a killer price too from Go Outdoors’ price beat guarantee )
• Carry some anti-inflammatory painkillers – one of our team twisted their knee and whilst we did have a bandage to strap it up none of us had any painkillers – a rookie mistake and already fixed by spending 79p in the local convenience store on the way back to the car.
• I’m fitter but not there yet – on some of the extended uphill sections I broke into a heavy sweat but had no problem keeping up the pace. Nor did I have post hike aches the day after.
• There’s a lovely  craft brewery with bar and restaurant in Staveley – pity I was driving and so passed on having a beer.

There are some photos from the walk on my Kilimattjaro facebook page. All in all a great walk and I’m looking forward to getting out with the team again soon. In the meantime I’m still getting in the gym about 3 times a week to work on my fitness.

Last Saturday the 5th Jan saw 3 of the 4 “Team Killimattjaro” members get out on the hills together for the first time. Jeff, our fourth team member is just playing himself in as he breaks in his new boots and custom insoles; he’ll be ready to rumble with us soon. I’m really looking forward to getting the whole group out on a walk as soon as we can.

The weather on the day was  unexpectedly mild, dry with sunny spells and light winds as Paul, Debbie and I enjoyed our 9.5 hike around the West Lancashire Pennine moors near Rivington,  close to my childhood home of  Chorley with the local Ramblers walking group (who made us very welcome – thanks folks). I recorded the hike data on my phone’s Cycle app – you can see the results here.

This was the first time that I tried my new walking poles – they’re ace, super light and easy to stow on my day-pack but a bit of nuisance to adjust whilst walking. I really felt the difference during steeper sections as they allowed me to share some of the load with my upper body and use my arms to help pull me along. During descents they act like a second set of feet so you can always keep multiple points of contact with the ground and take some of jarring off your knees. That said I had a few traction control failures  much to Paul and Debbie’s amusement but I did just about stay upright – without the poles I suspect I’d of been flat on my ****!

I drank my 2 Litre hydration bladder dry during the walk – I’m seriously now considering going for a 3 Litre one. As Paul subsequently said” you don’t have to fill it completely if you don’t want to”. I think I’d like the flexibility to carry more drink.

My post-climb recovery seemed very good with no pain or stiffness, just a little “tightness” in the legs to remind me I’d been out the day before. I was able to exercise the day after no problem. Feels like progress in the fitness stakes but as ever there’s plenty more to do ahead. I’m off to the states next week so it’s some hotel gym action to try and fight off the jet lag.

I’ve quite a bit of travel on over the next few weeks but hopefully I’ll get another hike in before the end of month.