Coledale Challenge Route Guide

Good luck with your Challenge! Enjoy the 18-mile journey over five fabulous fells!

On route you will find a few first aid trained marshals from Lakeland Mountain Guides who will be more than happy to help you should you need it. Please listen to any advice or orders they may have. Please note there is an official cut off time of 2:30pm at the bottom of the track descent after Coledale Hause. Should you not reach this point by this time you will be asked to officially retire from the event. If you retire from the event you MUST let us know.

Please be as environmentally sensitive as you can around this circuit. This includes not dropping litter, picking up litter you see, sticking to the paths and not causing additional erosion, keeping excessive noise to a minimum and shutting gates behind you.

There are a few elements of road walking on this route. Please take care when crossing roads.

In the event of an emergency then do not hesitate to call 999. If it is mountain related ask for the Police.

If you have an issue on route and need a hand please feel free to call the LMG team on: 07557022362

Please note that you will follow ‘Keswick 3 Peaks’ signage until Catbells. After this there will be ‘Coledale Challenge’ branded signage. 1. From the start line you will head out the back of Crow Park onto Crow Park Road. Follow the road straight ahead past the Rugby club and Booths until you hit a mini roundabout. Turn LEFT, pass the cycle shop, cross the bridge and take an immediate left to join the ‘ Way’ to Portinscale. Follow this path to Portinscale. 2. Once in Portinscale take the first LEFT at the road junction opposite ‘The Chalet’ and follow the road southwards until you reach the entrance to Nichol End Marine. Head down the lane and then up the track next to the café. Continue to follow the Cumbria Way through the woodland. Dead ahead you will see a mountain rising steeply, that is your first mountain – Catbells. Cross straight over the first road you come to and follow the sign for ‘Catbells’. 3. Ascend Catbells via its spine to the summit. Enjoy the short scrambles and epic views. 4. Continue over the summit for your descent and after 400m you’ll see a track through the bracken trending down and rightwards. Take this path. 5. After a further 300m there is a crossroads in the path. Continue straight across and down through the rockier terrain. You will see a flatter track emerge from a waterfall below and you’re aiming for this. As you hit the wall continue along the path keeping the wall on your right-hand side. 6. After a further 300m the path starts to bend to the left. Keep straight here and work your way down to the road at Little Town. 7. When you hit the road, turn LEFT and follow the road downhill to the small bridge. Cross the bridge and follow the road back round to the right. Ignore the turn towards Newlands Church. Follow the road all the way up to where it meets the road. 8. Turn Right and after just 100m you’ll come to a hairpin bridge. On the far side of this a footpath leaves the road and heads westwards (LEFT). Take this path. 9. Follow this sometimes-rugged track for two miles. Shortly after the path flattens (and just before it starts to descend) it is time to cut back right and head up towards ‘ Col’. There will be a marshal at this junction to help you make the correct turn. 10. When you reach the crossroads at ‘Sail Col’ hang a Left and take the obvious winding path all the way to the top of Sail. 11. Continue over the summit of Sail and then pick your way through the rockier ridge that leads to the summit of / Eel Crag. 12. From the summit of Crag Hill follow the obvious downhill path that heads south-west (left from the direction you were travelling from to reach the trig point). Continue down the path until you reach yet another crossroads. Turn RIGHT at the crossroads. 13. Enjoy easy walking as you steadily descend around to Coledale Hause, the large and obvious grassy col. 14. Head directly across the col and take the path that descends into the Coledale Valley (Eastward – heading towards Keswick). There will be a marshal at the col to point you in the right direction. 15. Descend carefully, first down a zig zag path and then on a rocky track for just over a mile. 16. Towards the bottom of the track it starts to bend leftward and at this point you will take a faint grassy track off it to the right – heading back uphill! Dig deep for this mammoth 260m ascent. You must reach this point by 2:30pm or you will be forced to descend and drop out of the challenge by the marshal. At this point you can easily drop out of the challenge. Continue down to the flat track that leads out of the valley instead of heading uphill. Follow this all the way to the tarmacked road above . Turn Right into Braithwaite and head for the A66 and follow it back in towards Keswick. If you do drop out don’t forget to let us know! 17. Up to your left you will see the grassy peak of . Head for the summit of this peak. 18. Continue over the summit of Outerside. You will see another small peak dead ahead. This peak is Stile End and you need to weave your way through the tracks to the summit of this. 19. From the summit of Stile End you need to descend to the south-east (RIGHT as you approached the summit). There is a third and final peak ahead. This is the peak of and you are aiming to get to the summit of it via the obvious track leading up it from the col between Stile End and Barrow. 20. Continue over the summit of Barrow and descend the grassy ridge all the way down to the farm (Braithwaite Lodge) at the bottom. 21. Go through the first gate towards the farm and then the second wider gate. Turn RIGHT immediately. Soon there is another gate, head through this and then follow the grassy track around into the next field until it descends through another gate to the tarmacked road. 22. Turn RIGHT when you get to the road. After a very short distance there is a fork in the road at which you take the left option. Follow the road through the village of ‘Little Braithwaite’, cross the bridge and continue to follow the road, ignoring all footpath options to the sides. 23. You will reach a junction where a road joins from the left and a white signpost marked for ‘Ullock’. Turn LEFT here. 24. Continue on this road for about half a mile. After passing through another small collection of houses and farm buildings a public footpath breaks off the road to the left, heading to Portinscale. Take this. 25. Follow the obvious trail through the fields and up the narrow lane into Portinscale. At the top of the first lane there is a crossroads. Head straight over (left a tad and then continue essentially) and follow this until you hi the main road running through Portinscale. 26. Turn RIGHT at the road and follow it with care to where it bends to the right. This is now familiar ground and you are looking to turn LEFT (Green Public Footpath Sign for Keswick) on the bend and take the same roads/ paths back to the festival site.