Right. Where to begin.
On 21st June I stood on a start line in North Yorkshire and walked 50 kilometres. I finished. I didn’t die. And I’ve spent the best part of a week since wondering how I’m supposed to do twice that distance in September.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
The Walk: Whitby to Scarborough
The North Yorkshire 50km Ultra Challenge took us from Whitby along the coast to Scarborough, and I want to be very clear with anyone considering this route: it is not a gentle coastal stroll. The terrain is relentless. Proper hills, proper climbs, and absolutely zero mercy from the sun.
There was no escaping the heat. Not at any point. The route offers precious little shade and on a warm June day that becomes a significant factor by around kilometre 20, when you’re already tired and your body is quietly lobbying you to sit in a hedge and give up.
I didn’t sit in a hedge. But I thought about it.
The brilliant Robbie Corrance walked the whole thing with me, and I genuinely could not have asked for better company. Misery shared is misery halved, and all that. 🤝
The Sections: Honest Notes From Someone Who Suffered Them
Stop 1 to Stop 2 was, without question, the hardest stretch of walking I have ever done. I say that as someone who has now walked over 500 miles this year. I was not fully prepared for it. The gradient, the heat, the terrain, all conspired together in a way that made the other sections feel almost forgiving by comparison.
If I could go back and give myself one piece of advice before the start, it would be this: get the hiking poles. I debated it. I talked myself out of it. That was a mistake. By the midpoint of that second section, I would have traded almost anything for a pair. Don’t make my mistake.
The final kilometre into the third stop deserves its own paragraph because it was, frankly, rude. A sheer climb through woodland, steep enough to make your lungs object loudly, hot enough to make shade feel like a distant rumour. It was energy-sapping in a way that very few things I’ve experienced have been. Legs that were already tired had to dig deep for something they weren’t sure they had left.
They had it. Just.
The Finish: 13 Hours, 55 Minutes
13 hours and 55 minutes. That’s how long it took us to cover 50 kilometres across some of the most demanding terrain I’ve walked. We crossed the finish line, collected our medals, and I immediately sat down on something that may or may not have been a kerb.
I am enormously proud of that time. Not because it’s fast, it isn’t, but because there were moments out on that route, particularly between stops one and two, where finishing felt genuinely uncertain. We kept going. We got there.
The Honest Debrief: Would I Do It Again?
Before anything else, one thing that absolutely deserves to be said: Ultra Challenge put on a brilliantly organised event. Every rest stop stocked and staffed, every marshal positioned exactly where you needed them, every kilometre of route marked clearly across genuinely demanding terrain. Getting hundreds of people across 50km without a visible hitch is no small feat, and the team pulled it off with real professionalism. If you’re thinking about entering one of their events, the organisation alone is reason enough to back yourself.
Yes. But with poles.
More importantly: having now walked that terrain, I can say with complete confidence that the Thames Path 100km in September will be a very different kind of challenge. The North Yorkshire coast is stunning but unforgiving. The Thames Path is longer, but flatter, and I think, I hope, that distinction matters when you’re asking your body to go twice the distance.
One week off, during which my quads and calves were apparently uninstalled, inspected, and reluctantly reinstalled. Training has now resumed. September is coming, and the Thames Path 100km, the final challenge of 2026, is very much in the diary.
Still Raising for Macmillan đź’š
None of this is just about the miles. Every step of the 50km, and every step of the 500+ miles on the End to End, has been in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support, a charity that’s there for people with cancer and their families when it matters most.
If you haven’t sponsored yet, or you’d like to top up ahead of the 100km, the JustGiving page is still very much open:
👉 justgiving.com/page/fatladattheback
Every donation means more people get the support they need. And it means a great deal to me personally, every time I look at the total on a tough training day.
Thank you to everyone who has donated, shared, or simply sent a message of encouragement. You’re the reason the legs keep moving.
Next up: Thames Path 100km, starting 12th September. Updates to follow. Probably from a foam roller.
🎗️ #MacmillanCancerSupport #UltraChallenge #NorthYorkshire #TheFortedBunker #Forted #FatLadAtTheBack