Just completed my second Fellsman at the Weekend in 27' 30". Started on my own but soon met a couple of LDWA people during the 27 odd hours the group varied from two to six with Jim Ryan a constant with me. A great guy and kept me entertained with his long distance walking stories. The walk as normal is super tough. Weather was good bar the last six hours where we had near constant rain. The moors were really wet and impossible to keep ones feet dry. Fleet Moss to Hell Gap this year was slight different due to access issues. It was mentioned below by staying well south crossing the moor made navigation easier and with the new CP locations it made the southern option more logical (sheepfold & walls as hand rails). Many still went up towards the old Middle Tongue CP location and then the nightmarish crossing to the new Chapel Moor CP.

Grouping no longer exists but yet I preferred company. The advantage now one can 'select' who to team with. Jim and I were well matched so it worked a treat for the 7-8 odd hours from Redshaw to Cray.

The event a huge credit to the organizers and the CP were such welcoming and friendly places to come into

Highs: All of it!
Lows: It's a long wet slog from Great Whernside out to the road and the final CP.

/John

Fellsman needs a few more people to take on the challenge, event will otherwise have to be cancelled & may not run again which would be a pity since it's been going nearly 6 decades. Please spread the word.
Plea from the organisers here:
https://m.facebook.com/100064667590582/
(Or click the Facebook icon on the Fellsman website).

Fellsman needs a few more people to taken the challenge, event will otherwise have to be cancelled & may not run again which would be a pity since it's been going nearly 6 decades. Please spread the word.
Plea from the organisers here:
https://m.facebook.com/100064667590582/
(Or click the Facebook icon on the Fellsman website).

Wendy - drop me an email to kevinp@ntlworld.com and I'll send the file

Hi Kevin - I'm aware of that there's no definitive GPX route and I have a good idea where the route goes as I've done the Fellsman twice before. However, I would be grateful if you could let me have your GPX route and then I can have a look on the map and make any adjustments I feel I would want to. Hope that makes sense. How can you send me the link?

Hello Wendy,
The Fellsman does not follow a specified route, so there is no definitive .gpx file. Apart from a few sections which are specified by the organisers, entrants are expected to plot their own route.
Most follow a pretty similar route , particularly in the first few sections. A good starting point might be to look at the opentracking website, which has the all of the entrants tracks on from last year-
The Fellsman 2022. Most of the minor variations in choice of route will be over the section between Redshaw and Park Rash (which for most mere mortals will be the night section!)

I last did the event in 2019 and am looking to enter again this year. I can also let you have a copy of my gpx track from 2019 if that would be any use.

Does anyone actually have a GPX route they would like to share for this year's Fellsman

Garfield,

I realise I'm resurrecting an incredibly old thread. However, it looks like the fellsman this year will not have enforced grouping (they are introducing GPS trackers).

Best regards,
Guy

John, the post above you is May 8th 2006. When they drop the grouping rules, I'll return to the Fellsman. - Garfield

Why are all these posts dated 2005 and yet the index page shows the last post as 2006?
Never done the Fellsman before, might be coming round to having a go but some of the rules referred to here have put me off in the post and continue to do so now

Well, that time of year is nearly upon us again - with promises of improved food this year in the handbook to boot! Anyone checked out the conditions underfoot in the Dales recently?

It was relatively uneventful from my point of view. The weather was great, a bit too windy early on and a little too warm in the afternoon but near perfect apart from that. There were some great views at sunset and sunrise, wish I'd taken a camera. I managed to get round in 21 hrs, nearly 6 hrs faster than last year, which I was very pleased with. I know of at least one person that was disqualified for failing to stick to the grouping rules during the night. I dont think he was very enamoured by the behaviour of his group in terms of team bonding etc!

Anyone any tales to tell?

Re Photo. I think it's at the foot of the descent from Whernside. Just before you cross the (frequently dry) river before the Kingsdale checkpoint. .... but I could wrong !

Re the Fellsman Handbook for this years event. Does anyone know where the front cover photo was taken. I've done the Fellsman 11 times and can't for the life of me put a location to this spot. There is nowhere (that I know of) where you walk up a shallow valley on a grassy path with a small stream on your left. Can anyone help as it's 'doing my head in'. (To use a good Scouse expression).
Cheers, Paul

Cheers for the replies - the basic message I'm getting is 'save the chocolate for middle tongue, don't scoff it all on the first hill and don't go haring off at the start'. It goes a bit counter to my usual tactics, but I'll give it a go :-).

I totally agree with your sentiments although I was under the impression that all organisations, regardless of type, had a duty of care to their "customers". Potentially this leaves the door open to organisations being sued because they hadnt taken "reasonable steps" to ensure the safety of participants. An inexperienced walker "might" have a case that he should never have been let loose on Fleet Moss because he didnt have the skills to deal with it and the organisers hadnt taken steps to assess his competence. I agree that all of this is very sad and counter to the culture of self reliance that I'm sure the vast majority of us have.

Ah, there you mention litigation. This is another one of my bug-bears concerning events. After the Lyme Bay tragedy, LDWA/Scout events appear to be running scared of any possible litigation and are covering themsleves every which way. However tragic this was, there is one huge difference between Lyme Bay and LDWA type events. People who go to activity centres etc are paying for leadership and tuition, and the organisers have a duty of care to their 'customers'. We on the other hand are paying to cover the cost of hiring halls, provision of food, certificates and badges. At no time are we under direct tutorage (sp) of the organisers. We even sign disclaimers to that effect. So,if you are entering an event that involves difficult terrain and requires accurate night time navigation, then why should that person expect to have their hand held through the night ? You can often get people forced upon you who have taken too much out of themselves early on, and are struggling when the going gets tough. As I said previously, it is hard enough getting yourself round without having to cajole others across Middle Tongue.

Theres no doubt that the Fellsman is a classic event that deserves to be succesful but I do agree that many of the attitudes and organisational quirks do seem like a bit of a throwback in time. At the risk of being controversial though is'nt that often the case for scout organised events? I think that at least one of them still insists on "stout leather boots" and bans trainers.

As for the grouping thing I'm less sure about that. I'm sure that there are lots of people that can safely navigate themselves across miles of featureless bog in the middle of the night when they're cold and tired. On the other hand I'm fairly sure that there would be a fair few that would get into difficulties. Its all very well if you've done it a few times before and know all the navigational tips and shortcuts. I think its almost inevitable though that a proportion of first timers or less experienced walkers would get into trouble on some of the trickier sections if left to their own devices. The problem the organisers have is how to deal with entrants of widely differing skill and experience levels. Currently they are retaining a safety first attitude which given the increasingly litigious nature of our society is perhaps understandable?

Another thought on the Fellsman. Having completed 12 of them between 1988 and 1999, I always had the feeling of going through a time-warp back to the 1960's when on the event. The whole organisation / attitude / catering just seemed very dated. If one event needs an injection of the 21st Century, it's this one. I'm back again this year after 6 years absence, so I'm hoping to see a big improvement. My breath is certainly well bated !!

I'm inclined to agree there Garfield. For an event that you enter as an individual, you end up doing half of it in a group, often not of your own choosing. Even if you have a group of 4, you often get additional people forced upon you. It's hard enough getting yourself around the course without having to drag and cajole othes up Buckden Pike at 2 in the morning ! De-grouping is also a problem, as depending on timings, I have asked to de-group on Gt Whernside or Capplestone Gate, only to be refused. So, you often end up having to walk slow / getting cold / waiting when all you want to do is finish it.

I'd be interested to hear opinions on grouping. I feel the times on the Fellsman are too early - if they are needed at all. I must admit that in last years pea-soup fog in the Dodd Fell region walking in a group was sensible but in other years we have still had to group at 7pm in perfect conditions on a bright summers evening.

I tend to spend very liitle time at a checkpoint and it can be quite frustrating - and cold - hanging around for people to go through various rituals at each watering hole.

Carole Engel 19932 Calderdale Group Joined LDWA 1998

The BEST walk in the calendar. If you like a bit of wilderness and a few hills, this is the walk for you. Don't be put off by all the "it's hard" comments. This, for most entrants, is a walk - enjoy it - we do! Yes it takes stamina and endurance, Fleet Moss and Middle Tongue are a challenge, the kit is heavy but necessary, the food is (hopefully) improving but most of all it is in some of the greatest countryside possible. A MUST on every walkers CV. Give it a try and let it become YOUR favourite walk too!

The important thing to remember; it's not what you do in the first 10 miles, but in the last 10. Don't go rushing off with the crowd up Ingleborough. You've got 3 big climbs early on, so take it easy and don't take too much out of yourself.

Route finding across Fleet Moss - Middle Tongue - Cray is most important. There is nothing worse than spending hours floundering in the mist/dark/peat trying to find the checkpoint on Middle Tongue, as this can be very demoralising.

I'm sure that there must be more retirements at Cray than anywhere else on route because people can arrive there totally demoralised.

Experienced Fellsman know the secret routes across this area. Points to look out for; ie wall corners, fence posts etc. One tip; don't go straight across Fleet Moss as it is awful. But take a more southerly route following old walls and fences.

If you want any further advice then don't hesitate to contact me either via the forum or by email; pbmiller@nildram.co.uk

Paul,

Fellsman is definitely tough but its do-able as long as you pace yourself properly and keep plugging on. I think that for many people the section between Fleet Moss and Cray must count as a definite low point. By then you've done about 40 miles, its dark and the terrain is pretty awful, miles of endless peat bog and mud. Enjoy!

About to send my application in. I went to 'Ell and back on Sunday and walked a bit with a couple of people who were getting some mileage in for the hundred. Mentioning that I fancied trying the Fellsman this year I was met with sharp intakes of breath and comments like 'that's a bit tough that is'.....

Starting to wonder what I've let myself in for if veterans of hundred's have that reaction.

I haven't got a detailed route of the walk yet, but I'd be interested in where peoples low points are so I can schedule a big hit of chocolate just before.

I only sent my Fellsman application off today, so have yet to receive my handbook. I take it that they have moved the Hell Gap CP higher up the track, to the point where the broken wall (heading NE) meets the track?

Yes the Fellsman is a wonderful/masochistic walk. Oh the joy of floundering throught peat bogs in pitch dark and pouring rain. But we keep going back. It's my 12th this year. And my friend will be completing his 30th. MADNESS I TELL YOU !

Interesting. This topic is read by the most people, yet very few contribute. The entrants handbook for this year arrived today and along with it a completely new location for Hell's Gap - adding one mile to the route !

Methinks this does make navigation a touch easier, since finding the 'nick' in the crag above the row of orange lights was always a problem for me. (Non-Fellsmen will think I'm taking hallucinatory substances after reading that last sentence!)

A really tough event, especially the moonscape over Fleet Moss, crikey I tremble when I type it! Down to less than one mile per hour between Fleet Moss and Cray, needless to say we were completly lost.
Already training for this year, would like to get over that section in the daylight.

Don't know, never done it. Thank Garfield for getting the new site up and running (sorry, walking). Spell checker not working? Two m's in accommodation and in my group we put our heart and sole in, sounds like the Fellsman captured your glasses too. Was in Fellsman country last week with that excellent group, Staffordshire, a weekend in Dentdale - magnificent scenery, wonderful walking and good company. You can't help but fall in love - with all three. Yes, it does capture your soul, and heart. Happy Valentines Day. ps send me a FH form Garfield. please.

After breaking my spectacles on Great Knoutberry and retiring at Redshaw, before groping in the mist to Fleet Moss where my daughter could pick me up, I said "Never Again !"

Why is it I didn't hesitate to send my form in again this year ?

What is it about this event that captures a walkers soul?