The Yorkshire 3 Peaks
With quite a few years of hosting guests who come to hike the Yorkshire 3 Peaks, this is some of the feedback from guests and things you may want to consider to help you plan and enjoy the area.
As you’ll be starting the day very early (possibly leaving before 6.30am), breakfast provided is bread for toast (toaster), jam, butter, cereal/muesli selection, fruit juices, milk, yogurts, and prepared fresh fruit.
Do you hike as a challenge, with a group? (Charity events attract hundreds of people) or on your own.
Maybe do the challenge yourselves, with a local guide, and take donations online to support your chosen charity. (Local guides include Jo Wulf of Wolftracks and Craig of Saaigoutdoors.)
There’s no bus to take you between each peak. Any minibuses are to take people back to the start who are unable to continue when part of an organised group who provide this service.
It may be wise to do 1 or 2, knowing when you should stop safely.
There are no taxi-ranks. The summit of Ingleborough can be very misleading, with routes to Ingleton, Clapham and Horton areas, you will need to ensure you take the correct path (guide, knowledge of map/compass) otherwise, it’s a long way back to your car, which could be in a different village.
Maybe do 1 Peak a day. Then there’s more time to stop and enjoy the views, take photos and chat about the experience.
Consider refreshments – any eating and drinking may be on-the-go. Some guests have said that their guide has not allowed them to stop, in order to ensure they complete all 3 Peaks.
It can be difficult to set a time to book an evening meal. The chip shop in the village is a good idea, and open until 8pm most days. If you’d like a packed lunch, please order when you book your stay so that we can have this ready for you in the fridge. This will supplement your specialist preferred snacks.
Click https://www.yorkshirepeakschallenge.co.uk/kit-list/ for useful items to bring.
As you’ll want a good night’s sleep, please consider setting off early the previous day (an afternoon or day off work), so you can unwind after check-in from 4pm.
Guests normally complete all 3 Peaks within 9 to 13 hours. If you prefer to avoid the event crowds on the Peaks, consider any day other than Saturday. Also bear in mind hours of daylight. May to mid-September is the safest time of year.
As it’s a circular hike, starting points include Ribblehead and Chapel-le-Dale as well as Horton-in-Ribblesdale.
There’s no ‘clocking in’ facility unless your group leader does this manually. You can also download your own certificate with completion time from the Yorkshire Dales National Park website for 1, 2 or 3 Peaks at https://www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/things-to-do/get-outdoors/yorkshire-three-peaks/certificates/
Quotes from guests too.
“As I live in a block of flats, I should have used the stairs as training. Please tell others”.
“We loved it and want to do it again in a quicker time”
“I hated every minute of it”
"when my blisters have gone down, I'll look back on it and be so proud that we did it, it was a great experience"
“I shouldn’t have worn brand new boots”
“There’s more to the area than I thought. I’ll have to come back to explore properly”
“Tell people to have lots of energy drinks, you lose so many calories”
“There’s no escape from the weather - sun, wind, no shade or shelter”
“My advice is to train, train and train. It’s not like working out in a gym”
“It’s called ‘challenge’ for a reason”