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Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?


Postby iangpark » Wed Feb 28, 2018 6:29 pm

Recently created maps for all my remaining Donalds (which is most of them!) and have noticed that the longest potential single day excursion is 36.1km (a full Culter Fell 11hr round from Lamington - possible by bus in the summer), but almost all are less than 30km. Was curious what records people have for a single day hillwalk - my record is 38km from Dumfries to Criffel and back (85% road walking and only one hill) on my first solo hillwalk. I've done much more if you include a bike, but that's cheating :wink: I'm a pretty short bloke (more steps is a good excuse) so my general limit is about 25km before it gets uncomfortably long. That said, my average walk length (on WH anyway) is probably around 20km at present.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby xslawekx » Wed Feb 28, 2018 6:39 pm

48km and 1970m of ascent for Beinn Bhreac, Beinn a’Bhuird and Ben Avon in 12 hrs. Also solo.
Last edited by xslawekx on Wed Feb 28, 2018 6:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby Fife Flyer » Wed Feb 28, 2018 6:39 pm

42.5km for me with over 3000m of ascent, no surprise really as it was Fisherfield, 14hrs 30mins, would love to do it again if the weather improves.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby iangpark » Wed Feb 28, 2018 6:50 pm

iangpark wrote:Recently created maps for all my remaining Donalds (which is most of them!) and have noticed that the longest potential single day excursion is 36.1km (a full Culter Fell 11hr round from Lamington - possible by bus in the summer), but almost all are less than 30km. Was curious what records people have for a single day hillwalk - my record is 38km (casual pace; 10hrs) from Dumfries to Criffel and back (85% road walking and only one hill) on my first solo hillwalk. I've done much more if you include a bike, but that's cheating :wink: I'm a pretty short bloke (more steps is a good excuse) so my general limit is about 25km before it gets uncomfortably long. That said, my average walk length (on WH anyway) is probably around 20km at present.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby mrssanta » Wed Feb 28, 2018 7:43 pm

my longest was the Lyke Wake Walk in about 1977 or 78 - 40 miles across the north york moors from Osmotherley to Ravenscar. We did it supported and sponsored to raise money for our yoof club. The next morning I couldn't walk at all.
Longest single day munro-bagging was probably carn eige, mam sodhail and bein Fionnlaidh just under the 30km mark as we did a bit of walking in the night before. and I couldnt walk for six WEEKS after that one!
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby nigheandonn » Wed Feb 28, 2018 7:49 pm

I don't walk in km :)

Somewhere around 20-21 miles - two that spring to mind are from Shap up to Tarn Crag/Grey Crag from the 'back', and from Osmotherley to Kildale on the Cleveland Way (a good candidate for the most I've ever walked in a day, because I then added from Castleton station to the village back to the station to the village again and back to the station...)

(Google tells me this is 32-34km. Not very far by comparison with others, but I'm only small!)

I don't generally plan to walk more than about 16 miles, though - it just risks dragging out too long.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby Backpacker » Wed Feb 28, 2018 9:04 pm

Braeriach traverse from Linn Of Dee or the 4 from Culra bothy (in and out from Dalwhinnie in the same day) are probably the 2 I've covered the longest distance
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby Ben Nachie » Wed Feb 28, 2018 9:13 pm

I think my longest day was around 35K with 1550m of ascent. (Devil's Point & Cairn Toul from Linn o' Dee). A great day, but I was forcing myself to put one foot in front of the other for the last few kms.

My greatest ascent day was probably 21k with 2200m of ascent. (Aonach Beag, Aonach Mor, Carn Mor Dearg & Ben Nevis). Another superb day, but it aggravated an old knee injury and I had to borrow a walking pole for the last few kms.

My longest day door to door was driving from Aberdeen to Dalwhinnie, cycling to Culra, walking up Ben Alder and Beinn Bheoil, cycling back to Dalwhinnie, then driving home to Aberdeen. I can't remember exactly when we set off, probably 7am, but we got back to Dalwhinnie just before closing time at the bar and managed to convince them to supply us with some food. Got home at around 3am after having to stop for a sleep just a few miles from home as I simply couldn't safely carry on.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby prog99 » Wed Feb 28, 2018 9:50 pm

Off the top of my head -
Beinn Bhreac from the Blair Atholl railway station which I think around a 40k round trip although 20 of that is by bike.
The three feshie corbetts at around 46k and 1900m of up. Again a bike makes short work of this.
And one with no bikes. From victoria bridge to Coire Beith and then back over 4 munros and two tops. Thats 30k and 2200m of ascent.

Cuillin ridge is still the most ascent in a day I've done (4000m)
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby Driftwood » Wed Feb 28, 2018 10:31 pm

In terms of distance, that probably depends on whether you count the Beeston Bump and Roman Camp (on the North Norfolk Coast) as hills. If so, then something over 70km; I've visted them both on a couple of separate walks of similar distance (a long while apart), though was almost hobbling and exhausted by the end of the second route.

Presuming that those don't count, then 44km is my longest day-walk involving significant (Scottish) hills. As well as being the most ascent and, unsurprisingly, the most hours of walking in a single day (about 17.5, though that included hundreds of photos). I only managed 1 or 2 Munros for each of the next 2 days :lol:

Having fair-length legs and being used to occasional long (flat) walks, I enjoy doing a fair distance in the hills. It's steep ground that slows me down, especially descending it.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby NickyRannoch » Wed Feb 28, 2018 11:13 pm

33k and 2100m of ascent for South Shiel ridge and back to Cluanie or 37 k and 1600m for Ben Avon and Beinn a' Bhuird.

Never been so done in as I was after the latter. About 30 degrees in the glen and 3 degrees on the tops
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby BobMcBob » Wed Feb 28, 2018 11:22 pm

I too do not speak metric :) but my longest must be the 20 miles and 7500 feet of ascent, doing a full round of the entire Beinn Eighe ridge from Kinlochewe, in about 12 hours. According to the internet that's 32k and 2300 meters in 5,184,000 jiffys ;)
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby jupe1407 » Thu Mar 01, 2018 12:56 am

About 25 miles with 2600m of ascent doing both sides of the Lairig Ghru back in 2014. I was doing a charity thing climbing the 10 highest munros over a weekend. Having done Ben Lawers after work on Friday, I drove up to the Sugar Bowl car park, and started heading for Braeriach at about 5am. I eventually limped off Cairn Gorm and finally back to the Sugar Bowl 16 hours later. My feet were an absolute mess and I was physically wrecked. I then had to drive to Fort William for 1am to meet my pal and park up for the night in preparation for the final 4. I had to stop about 7 times to try and stay awake. Never again :lol:
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby EllyM » Thu Mar 01, 2018 10:05 am

I did the White Mounth round last summer - 29 km and 1200m of ascent, and I was pretty knackered by the end of it. The worst of it was that trudge back along the loch at the end. I definitely ought not to have driven back afterwards - I was doing that cling to the steering wheel and talk to keep yourself awake thing.

I also did Aviemore to Linn of Dee (via Lairig Ghru) over two days - walked about 27km the first day - felt less tired on that one, possibly because I just had to pitch my tent, rather than drive for 2 hours!

I certainly could walk further, but I feel 30km is about the outside edge of what I'm capable of enjoying, rather than enduring, in a single day.
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Re: Longest distance covered in a single day hillwalk?

Postby jmarkb » Thu Mar 01, 2018 11:33 am

I'm not really one for monster days out - I think my longest was Beinn Dearg, Beinn Bhreac and Beinn Mheadhonach from Bridge of Tilt which is about 35km. It was more enjoyable than I was expecting: apart from some rough stuff at the head of the Tarf, it's all quite good going underfoot.
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