The Magnificent 7: Lee Poskett, Chris Walsh, Martin Haycock, John Osoba , Steve Broadbent, Andy Barker and Ted Fawthrop
Not forgetting the two fabulous support crew: David Poskett and Lisa Barker
After a full breakfast and Mel’s café in Bradford we set off at 10.am driving to Osmotherley. We reached the car park at around 12.20pm but we had already decided as a group we were setting off on the walk at 12.45pm.
So after a few last minute nervous toilet calls, rucksack checks and the traditional photos at the Lyke Wake Walk stone monument we set off… up the first hill and down into the woods all in good spirits and having lots of laughs taking gorgeous photos… on and on we went and then we came to the hills, up the first one no problem, down the other side no immediate problems just a few twinges on the knees for some of our group. Onwards and upwards to the next hill, some of the group were clearly struggling with injuries.
At this point the fell runner that ran past us was lucky he didn’t get thrown off the hill..
We knew we had another hill to get up and over but two of the party were struggling with injuries so we decided that we needed to get them to the first check point ASAP. At This point Lee was a bit in front with her head phones in singing Bon Jovi at the top of her voice. Looking up at one point there was a man stood in front of her smiling at her singing, little did she know that when he passed the rest of her party he was actually pointing to his temple with his finger turning, clearly expressing she was a bit loopy!
Battling on the magnificent 7 made it to the first check point where the support crew had set up a little picnic area with sandwiches, tea and coffee, boiled eggs and plenty of Volterol gel.
At this first support stop the magnificent 7 unfortunately became the fab four. Just too many injuries for them to carry on. So the second stage started with 5 of them waving the 4 of us off. Lee, Chris, John and Martin.
So the four of us set off still all in good spirits and looking forward to the next stage of the walk. Still laughing and joking with plenty of adrenalin flowing throw our bodies. On and on we went knowing that at some point we were going to hit the “boggy bit” up on the moors.
This is where we invented a new hobby which is called SNOG BORKELING..
Walking through the boggy bit when our legs were a bit tired was not the easiest of tasks as Martin came to find out at his expense and our side splitting laughing. Taking steady steps through boggy marsh Martin took a step and came nearly up to his waste in bog and decided the only way he could get out was to dive back, this is where he face planted the bog with arms splayed outwards. He looked up and was covered head to foot in slime. This is not a time when your mates are supposed to crack up laughing but ashamedly that’s what we all did, still having a giggle now writing this!! This is where snog borkeling got its name! Martin snogged the bog.. Although it’s pretty fair to say we were glad it was Martin and not John. John is only four foot nowt, we’d never have seen him again!!
Demoralizingly for Martin we still had 3 miles to go to the next support stop but he saw the funny side and soldiered on.
Eventually we hit a road again this was around 8.45pm. We were due to meet the support group at the Lion pub at around 10pm. But walking down this road we were getting a bit worried about our navigation skills and was looking in the distance at what we thought was the pub on the hill on the other side of us! Yep we had got our barring’s wrong and gone of kilter a bit. Stopping at a point along the road we were deciding what to do as we had no signals on our phones and it was getting late and dark. Just then we looked up and saw a mini bus driving towards us, never have we been so happy to see that in our lives, waving like lunatics at the oncoming minibus it slowed down and to our relief it was our support team. Had either the support team or us been 5 mins earlier we would have missed each other. Let’s not think of what might have happened..
When we arranged to do this walk we decided to do it in two stages (still within 24 hours) but with a break in between, so while the fab four were walking the second leg the others had set up camp at a local camp site called Low BELL END farm, ( you couldn’t make it up)
Getting back to the camp site, there were a few beers and the biggest pan of pasta and meat balls on the go… a very welcoming site. Then it was into the sleeping bags for a few hours kip, yeah right, that wasn’t happening. So after zilch hours sleep the alarms went off at 2.30am. Bacon butties were made, water sacks refilled. Rucksacks replenished with bananas, jelly babies and flap jacks, the fab four set off on the last 20 miles of the walk..
Getting dropped at the same point we got picked up it was 4.25am dark and the boggy moors loomed once more. We were still full of adrenalin but I can’t say we were still having the laughs anymore. Walking through the boggy moors in the dark is not a pleasant feeling and we were glad when the sun stared to come up. Onwards once more, last 16 miles ahead..
One site that did make us smile was seeing Whitby Abbey looming in the distance, thinking that we were nearly there really cheered us up.. follow that Abbey, we shouted skipping down the road like Dorothy, the lion, the scarecrow and the tin man… only as the Abbey came more into focus we realised we had been hallucinating and the Abbey was in fact Fylingdales!!! We had to see the funny side or we would have cried… once again onwards and upwards. Eventually getting to the last support stop to be greeted for the last time with cups of coffee, sandwiches, and Jaffa cakes. Plus the biggest tree that has now become known to our group as the poop tree, it seems the world and his wife must have used this tree as a squatting spot over the years…
Setting off now on the last leg, the last 10 miles. Hurray, next time we see our friends our challenge will be over!!
After hallucinating a few more times.., we had sheep playing cricket, we had walking marker stones, we had cows sounding like sheep but we knew we were getting there, or so we thought
Following the gaming ( Garmin) navigation system we were pleased to see that the end of the third leg was in sight and was getting closer, it was pinging each kilometre, we counted them up and we had only 10 pings to go and the end was there. We cheered each other on and downed our last energy gels.. … 10… 9…. 8…. 7…. 6…. 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… we made it!!!!!!
NOOOOO the bloody gaming (Garmin) was not set right and we still had 3 miles to go.. we looked over the edge of the ridge and saw the downhill and the uphill, I think we could have all cried at that point… ok let’s keeps going we’ve come this far…
so we get the mast and our final destination in sight which at that point looked very small and a long way off but at least we could see the end… keep going keep pushing we are nearly there.. That mast was never getting bigger and in our mind boggled state it was getting smaller…. We were talking gibberish and we now know more about each other than we ever thought possible.. Warts and all….
Finally the mast started getting bigger we could see our friends waving to us, the emotions were running high… and we finally kissed that stone at 11.45am… 23 hours after first setting off ( with a 7 hour stop off at the camp site)
Beers were waiting, cameras at the ready.. then the tears came… strong friendships and bonds have been made for life…it’s something we will never forget and through the blood sweat and tears we enjoyed every mile and a big £3000 raised for candle lighters children’s cancer charity..
And the Last note is… we have to do it all again now for the three injured ones who want to complete it… are we mad?? YES mad as hatters..haha…