27 miles and 2900ft ascent from Bolton Abbey, via Simon Seat, Trollers Gill, Linton Falls and Rylstone Fell, organised by Burley Middle School Association.
What do you do on these events other than walk? Stroll, saunter, hike, march, stride, jog, hobble, stumble, run, blunder, canter, lope, stagger, shuffle ... (the list is endless) ... and, of course, trot. No event would be complete without an alliterative title and so we have the Trollers Trot. Actually, in the five years I have done the Trollers Trot the route has only twice gone up Trollers Gill. The diversion on other three occasions being due to landslip or icy conditions.
Nearly five hundred people set off from Bolton Abbey at 8 a.m., after being warned not to sneakily take one of the three "short" cuts along the road. The participants ranged, as usual, from the fastest runner who completed the tough route in an impossible 3h46 to the slowest walker who managed an equally impossible 10h13.
The route starts by traversing the grounds of the ruined Bolton Abbey and then goes via the strangely named Valley of Desolation up to the top of Simon Seat which is capped with an interesting outcrop of rocks and boulders and always affords an excellent view, and the opportunity to twist your ankle. It is a long slog up to Simon Seat which gives plenty of time for the field to spread out. This year we had a slight change to the route down, in order to add a bit of distance to compensate for a further route change later on. But no chance of getting lost this early in the day – it’s usually two-thirds of the way round where I look up and suddenly realise that there is no one in sight, neither in front nor behind, and Im going to have to think for myself for a change.
After Simon Seat the route aims for Trollers Gill where you can slip, slide, scramble, and certainly not "trot" up the limestone gully. Fortunately it was ice and frost-free this year. The middle section of the route is a pleasant riverside walk (trot, jog, run?) along the Wharfe from Burnsall to Linton Falls. Halfway, you cross the river on a suspension foot-bridge which gives rather a swaying ride. At Linton Falls there was a second route change, and we aimed for the Memorial Hall at Linton for half-way refreshments. Now I always like to get value for money, so if there are, say, three different types of cakes on offer I will have one of each. However, at Linton, there must have been 15 varieties, including jam and lemon-curd butties as well. I had to restrict myself to an acceptable selection.
From Linton we bobbed over Linton Moor and down some green lanes to Rylstone where the route met up with last year’s. I didnt enquire about the route change but presumably someone objected to people running over his grouse moor last year. The final section of the route involves another long, slow, steep climb up onto Rylstone Fell. The path from here to Halton Height is interminable. It just goes on and on. Some years it has been livened up by being a foot deep in snow, or by mountain bikers making laughably slow progress, but this year it just went on and on. From the checkpoint at Halton Height it is, at least, all downhill. That is, unless you dont read your route description and map properly, in which case you follow the crocodile of people going up Middle Hare Head. Useful tip: the route goes round this hill, to the right!
I tend to judge my performance in these events by monitoring the progress of people who always finish just ahead or behind me. A chance glance behind me showed Red Tracksters coming up fast and there was nothing for it, but to do a sprint finish. Careering downhill though woodland, I narrowly avoided impaling myself on several felled trees.
The Trollers Trot is a tough event, but it is one of my favourites. There were many more runners this year than previously; and there were faces from other events which I had not seen on the Trot before. Perhaps with three other good walks cancelled this year (Hebden Valleys, Two Dales Challenge, Teesdale Marathon) people are re-arranging their schedules.