Up three, down three

We were expecting a challenging day of walking, obviously 25 miles and 1600 meters of ascent is never going to be easy, but we could not even begin to prepare for the inclimate weather.

Had the Challenge taken place the day before, the three peaks would have looked like those above. Read on to see how they actually looked on the day.

Yesterday was the first day of summer, however in Yorkshire it felt closer to a late November day. It started decent enough with a little bit of cloud but warm enough temperatures. We got through the first peak in good form and even were shedding clothes down to t-shirts on the way up.

The whole Communicaid clan before we set off on our big challenge (with the first peak behind us)

Headed towards the first peak

However, by the time we got to the base of the second climb, 10.5 miles into the walk, the rain had begun and the wind was strengthening.

Headed up the second peak (note the wonderful waterfall on the left)

We reached the ridgeline and were hit with a steady 30-35 mile per hour crosswind, with gusts as high as 45 mph! The wind drove rain into us and made walking in a straight line all the more challenging.

Below are a few short clips below from our brief stint at the top of the second peak to give you a feel for the weather and wind.

On the ridge of the second peak

As miserable as it was there, we could look across the valley to the third peak and see it shrouded in a thickening layer of low hanging clouds.

Determined to make it through the day regardless, we carried on with two others from our group (some had already continued while others were still behind). We were given one last chance to abandon at the 18.5 mile mark, but intrepidly turned towards the last peak and soldiered on.

Headed towards the third and final peak, which you can't even see the top of!

The ascent of the last peak was the most treacherous of the day, with one section being an almost vertical climb of stone steps, some rather larger than others (which was especially difficult for Cora's legs, not so much for Guinness who scampered up and down them with appalling ease). The wind had not slackened and it threatened to blow you off the mountain if you were not careful. We made it to the top, assumed that the views were gorgeous through the cloud and quickly turned on our heels and headed for home.

10 hours, 25 miles and three peaks later we walked through the finish line, wetter than we had even been in our lives! In the end, about 2/3 of all of the people who started the challenge finished despite the awful conditions. It was a brilliant day out, a wonderful experience and though we are extremely sore in places today, we are certainly glad to have done it. Thanks to all Communicaid colleagues, trainers and friends and family who made it so special! Well done everyone!

Thank you again so much for all your support! We are quite happy to report that though we didn't make our target we will still be donating £450 to Heart Research UK. Now we just have to decide whether we will do this again next year!

Our donation website will be open until 1 September so if anyone is interested in still helping us reach our target (better late than never), please visit www.justgiving.com/coraandcw to make your donation. Only £50 more to go so every little bit counts, even £5!