The National Three peaks challenge involves scaling the highest peak in each of England, Wales and Scotland often done within a time limit of 24 hours. There are different ways to take part in this challenge, through both self-organised groups and professional organised events open to everyone. This challenge is usually attempted in aim to raise money for charities, which is dependent on the choice of those participating.

The three peaks are Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in England and Snowdon in Wales. The challenge is normally completed in that order, with Ben Nevis normally done in the evening, before completing the other two the next day in the morning and afternoon respectively. Ben Nevis is normally tackled first in the evening as it is the easiest to descend in low light, also giving you sufficient time to travel to Scafell Pike.

Difficulty

While this is a challenging event for the average person, should you have made the correct preparations and have a good level of fitness, you should be fine. It is common for people to undertake a level of training before the challenge is attempted. This type of challenge can also be used as a goal to help you improve your fitness, as it will put to test your physical and mental capabilities. Some of the common problems that lead to failure of the event include achy muscles, back pain, weak thighs and poor preparation of equipment.

Preparation

Before you take on the three peak challenge, you should have the right amount of equipment that ticks both suitability and quantity boxes. You should place high priority on your walking boots. It is also important that you do plenty of reading in regards to the routes you will be taking, with tips from those that have both prevailed and failed at the challenge, enabling you to mimic good habits and avoid the bad. A list of essential items and further ideas can be found at the Three Peaks Challenge website.

Training

Even experienced walkers may not have experienced something as physically and mentally draining as the three peaks challenge. You cannot predict how your body will react to the challenge, and as such means you should get yourself out to a mountain range to practice walking. A great practice area is Snowdonia National Park, as it has a huge range of different walks, terrains and environments. Snowdon is located within the park and has a number of routes that provide different difficulty levels, so we would recommend selecting a route according to your difficulty preference. Information on this can be found at Snowdon.com