It's been 7 months since my last blog post!
I'd love to sit here and tell you that this is me back to my weekly posts, but I'm not making any promises...although I do hope it won't be another 7 months before I sit down to write a new post!
Life has been crazy since I last sat down to write, however, that's not the only reason for my absence.
This post marks an important blogging milestone for me...it's number 200! And in my head, it became a bit of a bigger thing than it actually is. I felt I needed to write something deep and meaningful, and I got a bit stuck trying to think about what to write.
I've had enough of being stuck in that rut, so here we are, back at it!
One of the things that's been keeping me busy over the last few months has been training for the 3 Peaks Challenge, and back at the beginning of September, the challenge finally arrived.
Fort William, Scotland
After months and months of training, I finally found myself in Fort William on the evening of 8th September, with a fantastic group of humans, ready to take on the National 3 Peaks Challenge.
Earlier that day, our group met for the very first time outside Chester Train Station, as we waited for our transport to arrive to take us to Fort William, where we would spend the night before our challenge officially began the following day. I was so grateful to have found a few people from the group on Instagram prior to the trip, and it was great to finally see them in real life.
After what seemed an age, 3 mini-buses arrived to take us north to Scotland. Each mini bus was accompanied by a guide from Charity Challenge, who would be leading the trek and making sure we all made it up and down the 3 Peaks as safely as possible.
Although the aim of the National 3 Peaks Challenge is to conquer Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon in 24 hours or less, there had been so much emphasis leading up to the trip from Charity Challenge and Mind, the charity we were raising money for, on safety over time, that I had barely given the 24-hour factor a thought. Even en route, our guide told us that he had led 17 trips this year for the 3 Peaks, and only 3 groups had completed the challenge in 24 hours!
We would however, still have to manage our time carefully as our mini-bus drivers were required to get a certain level of rest, and there would also be a change of drivers between Scafell and Snowdon and it was important we met the new drivers on time.
A quick photo opportunity at Loch Lomond on the way to Fort William
Once in Fort William, it was straight to the hotel lounge for our welcome meeting. We were briefed on what we needed to carry in our day bags, how much water to take with us, and reminded about the times we needed to be back at the mini-bus in order to make our way to the next destination. We were also informed that if the guides thought anyone was struggling and wouldn't make it to the summit and back down in time, they would be told to turn back before reaching the summit!
In addition to that, the challenge was taking place on the hottest weekend of the year, and there was a weather warning out for thunderstorms, with lightning being predicted for Sunday morning, just as we would be arriving in Snowdonia. This meant that summiting Snowdon was at this stage, looking risky...
After the welcome meeting, it was time to head to our rooms. With the alarm set for 5am, there was just enough time to re-pack my bag before climbing into bed and getting some rest.
Ben Nevis, Scotland
After a rubbish night's sleep, thanks to the heat (air con and fans aren't really a thing in Scotland!), and the thin walls (I won't describe what I heard during the night, but think bodily functions rather than wild sex!), it was time to grab a quick breakfast before heading off in our mini-buses.
Just after 6am, we were on the road, making the short journey to the foot of Ben Nevis, the tallest mountain in the UK, standing at 1,344m.
On arrival, there was just enough time for a quick team photo, before we started our ascent.
Group photo at the start of Ben Nevis - you can just about see my arm at the back with a grey band around my wrist!
With the threat of being turned back if we weren't speedy enough hanging over our heads, in true Becky fashion, I set off far too quickly. After a while, I stopped to catch my breath, and in doing so, I found myself slipping down the pack. I just couldn't keep up with the fast pace that had been set.
From then on, I battled continuous waves of nausea as we made our way towards the summit.
Despite the nausea, there were some incredible views to enjoy before we disappeared into the clouds. But there was very little time to get snappy happy, as we had to get up and down the mountain and back to the minibus by lunchtime!
The pressure was well and truly on!
Once we reached the summit, there was just enough time for a quick selfie and a group photo, before we started to make our descent.
My nausea had now subsided and I got off to a flying start again as we began our descent. But the weather had begun to close in, and the paths had become slippy. My knees were starting to hurt, and every time I slipped, my knees were buckling beneath me. I found myself not just slipping in the wet, but slipping back down the pack.
By the time I reached the mini-bus, my ego was as bruised as my knees!
I was hungry, tired and frustrated, despite having just summited the highest mountain in the UK.
Depending on how quickly it had taken each of us to summit and descend Ben Nevis, we were split up into mini-buses based on our speed. I found myself on what had been deemed 'the slow bus', which bruised my ego just a little bit more...
It had taken so long for our group to get up and down Ben Nevis, reaching the summit of our second peak, Scafell Pike was now in serious doubt.
Scafell Pike, England
After a 6-hour drive from the highlands of Scotland to the Lake District, it was time to get ready for Scafell Pike (978m).
In all honesty, Scafell was the one I wanted badly. Having camped just down the road a good few years before, it had captivated me even then.
It's also famous for having one of the best views in Britain from its summit. However, there would be no views to enjoy on this hike, as we would be walking the entire route in the dark.
Wastwater sitting peacefully at the foot of Scafell Pike
Time was against us from the start. Even on arrival, we knew it was unlikely we would make it to the summit because we were already behind schedule.
Ben Nevis had taken its toll on a few people in our group, so we already had a reduced number getting ready to make their way towards the summit.
Within minutes of the start, a couple of people from the group decided to turn back.
And right from the off, I was attacked by nausea again. But this time it was chronic. And it was getting worse the further I went.
I tried taking electrolytes, but it was too late. I tried to focus on putting one foot in front of the other, but with the steepest part of the route to come, I knew in my heart of hearts that I couldn't continue.
I was devastated. There were tears. Lots of them. But there was also a sense of relief because I knew I was making the right decision.
So often in the past, I would've carried on to prove a point. But I knew if I continued, I was just going to make myself feel even more ill, or even worse, sustain an injury, which would keep me from completing the rest of the challenge.
No sooner had I and a couple of others returned to the mini-bus than we heard over the radio that the rest of our group had also turned around and were making their way back. One of the other girls in our group had passed out twice, and with the summit unlikely, it was deemed best to get off the mountain.
Failing to reach the summit of Scafell has been a difficult pill to swallow over the last few weeks, and if I'm honest it's something that I'm still processing.
But...I'm already planning to head back to Scafell in the Spring. And this time, I very much hope to reach the top in broad daylight to enjoy those beautiful views from the summit.
Snowdon, Wales
A huge bonus of not having made it to the summit of Scafell Pike meant that we were able to get a head start as we made the journey to the final peak of the challenge.
Although our guide was keeping a close eye on the thunderstorms circling Snowdon, it looked increasingly promising that we would have a decent window to make it to the summit before the weather closed in.
Thankfully, my nausea had subsided by the time we reached the drop-off point, and I felt ready to go.
I've hiked Snowdon (1,085m) a few times, but I'd never hiked the Pyg track, which was the route we would be taking this time.
We were ready to start walking by 4am, so set off with our head torches on.
It was such a warm weekend, even at 4am it was t-shirt weather!
It wouldn't be long until sunrise, however, and with clear skies, it looked like we would be in for quite a treat!
I made sure to take it easy, and with time now on our side, even our guide took it at a slower pace.
Although Snowdon is technically the easier peak of the 3, we still had to clamber our way over some pretty big boulders! But I loved every single minute of it.
Knowing that this was our final peak, and being able to watch the sunrise as we made our ascent, there was a lovely buzz within our group.
We finally made it to the summit just before 8am.
Unlike the other peaks, thankfully there was plenty of time to take some photos on the summit of Snowdown.
However, as we were standing on the summit, the lightning alerts reappeared on our guide's phone, and it was time to make our way down the Llanberis path to locate our mini-bus before making the final journey back to Chester.
Although I was still feeling pretty gutted not to have made it to the summit of Scafell Pike, I wouldn't have missed that sunrise for the world.
I'll be back soon with some more reflections on the challenge, but for now, I'd love to hear from you...how have the last 7 months been for you?
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