On Monday 8th July, a team of colleagues from Polypipe Building Products, joined by friends from Polypipe Building Services, Manthorpe Building Products, and Sustainable Building Solutions, set off on an epic adventure.
Their mission? To conquer the National Three Peaks Challenge to raise money for Yorkshire Air Ambulance!
The National Three Peaks Challenge involves climbing the three highest peaks of Scotland, England and Wales, often within 24 hours - Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Yr Wyddfa.
The intrepid explorers assembled at our Doncaster head office, full of excitement (and probably a little trepidation) for the journey ahead. The team was led by Matt Williams, Managing Director of Polypipe Building Products, and included a mix of senior management, department heads, and other key personnel.
With a packed minibus and unwavering determination, they set off on a journey that would test their physical and mental limits.
Brandon Harper, Marketing Executive at Polypipe Building Products shared his experience throughout the challenge:
Monday
We set off from BHL on Monday at 10am with a gruelling 9-hour drive (incl. breaks for the drivers) up to Fort William. we headed northbound on the A1 towards Scotch Corner where we had a break before joining the A66 to head over to Penrith train station to pick up Michael, our lead guide for the National Three Peaks.
From Penrith, we continued north on the M6/A74(M) towards Glasgow going through several season of weather on the way! Passing the busy traffic surrounding Glasgow, we set off up the A82 running alongside Loch Lomond (the views were spectacular!). We had a pit stop at a rest area at the northern end of the loch where we had a team picture with the lake as a backdrop.
Once we were all rested and had given our legs a stretch from the constant sitting down (which we all by the end were grateful for!), we continued on the 60-mile journey up to Fort William where we check in to our hotels before meeting up for a quick team briefing and meal ahead of our early start on Tuesday.
Tuesday
As always in Scotland where it rains 85% of the year, we woke up with the expectations of a grey, wet day… how we were wrong! We were greeted with one of the very few days of the year where the Scottish Highlands get sunshine! It was a steady 11˚C with clear blue skies, we could see the summit of Ben Nevis from outside our hotel reception where we all met at 6:00am. We dropped our overnight bags back onto the coaches and headed to the Alexandra for a quick breakfast before getting taxis to the Ben Nevis visitor centre car park where we had a secondary briefing and introduction to our 1st leg Guide John. We started our climb at 7:35am, heading over the Ben Nevis visitor centre bridge for what would be the start our climb.
Ben Nevis:
Start time: 7:35am
The weather was still on our side, temperatures had begun to climb hitting around 17˚C. Most of us were in our t-shirts with us beginning to warm up quickly.The terrain started off as any normal hike, gravel laid paths and a steady gradient incline. Around 30 minutes in, the terrain began to become steeper, turning into natural rock stairs. Which really got the quads burning.
We continued the path up towards Halfway Lochan (1hr 10mins in), a natural lake in the basin of Ben Nevis and the surrounding hills. The scenery was something else. From here we were about 45 minutes from the halfway point of Red Burn, a waterfall crossing. Speaking to both John and Michael, they mentioned the water from the waterfall was safe to drink. Some of us took this opportunity to refill our water bottles with the fresh highland water.
This is where the terrain got more shaley and steeper, having to watch the footing as we continued up the paths with 8 switchbacks which would lead us to the summit. By this time, the trail had become busier. The sun was still shining and with the groups now split into 2, we took the opportunities to check and make sure everyone was doing ok, with frequent 30 second breaks, allowing people to get a drink and rest their legs before continuing. These breaks allowed us to take in the natural beauty of the Scottish Highlands and the surrounding Munro’s.
We reached the summit of Ben Nevis where the weather was still on our side (although about 10˚C cooler) where we had a quick bite to eat, a team photo then started our decent.
Strava Route Key Pinpoints
- Half-way Lochan Ascent
- Sheep Gate to Peak
- Main Path to the First Fork
- Last Climb Before the Lake (Halfway Lochan)
- Glen Nevis Climb (to Red Burn waterfall)
- Zig Zag to the Top (8 in total)
- Summit
- Decent to the Poo Stone (No idea why its called this)
- Ben Nevis Decent
- Dropping below the Lake (Halfway Lochan)
- Final Decent to Visitor Centre
Once we all reconvened after finishing the climb in around 5hr 45mins (4hr 30mins Walking Time), Steve Nevins kindly cooked all participants spicy chicken pasta which went down a treat.
We got back on the coaches and settled in for the drive back down towards Gretna services where we would have a quick rest break with the opportunity for some food. Safe to say a grand total of 30 minutes sleep was had during this journey with no hopes of getting any further sleep before our evening climb of Scafell Pike where the weather wasn’t on our side any longer.
Scafell Pike:
Start time: 21:20
The weather was turning, with the storm that had battered the east coast of England all day while we had glorious sunshine in Scotland arriving in the Lake District around 11pm. This is when we were due to hit the summit of Scafell. At the Scafell Visitor Centre, we met up with Carol who was our 2nd leg guide.
We set off on a gravel track as normal, which quickly became natural rock steps which again, got the quads burning even more! Luckily the rain hadn’t started yet so the ascent was pleasant enough. We continued the quick but steep climb up Scafell where we then put our head torches on around 10:45pm as visibility had dropped below a safe light level. Around this time, this is where the rain began.
Starting off light, we powered on towards the summit. Around 15 minutes later, visibility dropped further as the low-level cloud rolled in, making it so we could see no more than 4 meters in front of us. Around the 2-hour mark we reached the summit, the darkness and the fog combined wasn’t great for any sightseeing! A quick team photo and we were back on our way down.
About 20 minutes into our decent while we were still at the top of Scafell, the rain hit heavy, and the thunderstorm started which became a worry to both Michael and Carol. Monitoring the weather maps, the storm was roughly 15 miles south of our location with lightning strikes all around. This is where the urgency to get off the mountain top and into the valley was key for both guides and equally the whole team. This is where we picked up the pace, quickening our decent while also keeping as safe as possible.
We had just reached the ‘Ankle breaker’ section of the decent when the storm was right overhead. We all watched as lighting bolts struck further down the valley where we were headed and fearfully joked about the headlines that would be appearing in the local newspapers tomorrow morning…
During this decent, with the heightened rate of pace, a couple of us begun to feel the tiredness on our legs, I pulled a calf muscle due to having to be cautious on the slippery rocks underfoot (this wasn’t great as I began to worry about not being able to climb Yr Wyddfa if my calf hadn’t recovered by our arrival in Wales)
Luckily, we all managed to get back down safely to the coaches with only a couple of fatigue related injuries. A quick change on the bus into dry clothes and we settled in for the 5-hour drive down to Wales.
Strava Route Key Pinpoints
- Lingmell Gill Path
- Fork to Fork
- Fork to Summit
- New Close Climb
- Mickledore Split to Lingmell Col Claim
- Lingmell Col Claim to Scafell Pike Claim
- Summit
- Summit to Fork
- Ankle Breaker Down
- Fork to Fence
Wednesday
Yr Wyddfa:
Start time: 8:35am
Much like Scafell, the weather wasn’t on our side. The rain had continued all throughout our journey down to Wales from the Lakes with no let off in sight. We picked Gareth, our 3rd leg guide, up from Llanberis and headed towards the Pen y Pass Warden Centre where we would begin our climb up Yr Wyddfa.
We had a quick briefing before we began along the Miners Track, which was one of two routes we could have taken. Although out of the two routes (Miners and Pyg), the Miners began steady, with the first 2 miles being leisurely and easy, but then the serious ascent started. During the walk towards the base of the Yr Wyddfa summit where we passed several lakes (Llyn Teym, Llum Llydaw and Glaslyn) which were once part of the old copper mines. If the weather was on our side and we had a normal hot summer, the lakes would have been the perfect location for a quick cool down dip! As we started the steeper part of the Miners track where it heads up towards the Pyg track, the rain and wind picked up just as we begun the climb. From here the path, although engineered and clear, was rugged and more difficult, with hands needed in a couple of places. The rain and wind made stability on the slippery rocks more difficult with extra precautions needing to be taken with every step.
Here's a picture of the paths we took to ascend Yr Wyddfa:
At the top of the Yr Wyddfa, visibility was poor, the wind was gusting, and the rain felt like pellets hitting your cold skin. Safe to say we didn’t spend long up on the summit.
We quickly began our journey back down the Llanberis path which out of the trails is the longest but most followed route. Following the Sherpa bus rail line that runs up Yr Wyddfa, this route still took its toll on your legs.
Once we got back down to the last 3 miles, the weather picked up with the rain subsiding, allowing us to dry off.
We got back down to Llanberis where we headed towards the coaches, many of us picked up a quick bite to eat and a warm drink from the café at the Yr Wyddfa Sherpa cart station. We changed into dry clothes and settled in for the drive back to Doncaster just in time for the England vs Netherlands game on the evening.
Overall the experience at the time was gruelling, and at times everyone would hit a point where they thought they couldn’t carry on. It was Mind over matter. It’s one that’s ticked off of the bucket list and myself and my partner are heading back in September to climb Yr Wyddfa, however I think we’ll do the Llanberis path this time around.
(Brandon is pictured second from right in the image above.)
A huge congratulations to all of the team who took part - it is no mean feat and certainly 3 more mountains than a lot will walk up in their lifetime. If you can help support their fundraising efforts, please head to our Just Giving page and to watch the vlog, just hit play below!