On the 27th of April 2025, I arrived at the finish line in Millington Village Hall, 7 hours and 54 minutes after I started. I had just completed The Wolds 20 Challenge; a 20-mile trek through the Yorkshire Wolds—raising money for the local Ranger group.
After completing the Yorkshire Three Peaks last year, I found myself in a bit of a slump. Without a significant long-term goal, both my physical and mental health had started to decline. When I first heard about the Wolds 20, I was not sure about signing up. There wasn’t long until the event, I was out of shape and hadn’t been training. However, with some encouragement from friends, I decided to give it a try. I wanted to prove to myself that I was still capable of that distance, and I missed the joy of being outdoors with like-minded people.
The day offered ideal walking weather, dry and not too sunny. My kit was still prepared for the Yorkshire Three Peaks so I arrived with a pack that was definitely on the heavy side, noticing a real diversity of kit at the start line. As a last-minute solo entrant, I spent much of the morning among other walkers completing the overlapping 13-mile route. But as the 20-mile path broke away, the crowd thinned. For a while, the only sign I was heading the right way was the occasional runner overtaking me (having started an hour later!).
The middle stretch took me through long uphill sections and into the beautiful dry valleys. By the time I reached the Thixendale checkpoint for lunch, I was over halfway and found a group moving at a similar pace. By the final manned checkpoint, the fatigue was setting in. It was incredibly tempting to call it quits, but with only five miles to go—and a significant slab of Victoria sponge under my belt I dug in and carried on.
After the challenging wolds near Huggate seeing Millington finally hove into view in the valley below was the best sight of the day. My feet were suffering and the clock was ticking. I dumped the last of my water to shed some weight and pushed through the final mile.
Ending the day with a cup of tea and a bowl of Thai chicken stew at the village hall was the perfect conclusion. It wasn’t my fastest walk, but I would do it again, it was a real boost to know that I can do what I set out to and to meet so many people enjoying the outdoors.