UKC

Im doing the fellsman for the first time this year and need a bit of advice on the best route between Fleet Moss and Middle Tongue.

My current plan is to follow the wall south east out of Fleet Moss and then when the wall heads north east at SD899817 follow a bearing of 150. I hear tell of a more southerly route that's better but that's all I know about it.

Also is water available at checkpoints to refill my Platypus? plus any other general advice and tips people can share would be awesome? My goal is to just finish under 24 hours and I won't be running the whole thing most likely just walking up and jogging down the fells.

From memory, the Middle Tongue cp pretty much dictates a more southerly route. If you have a Harvey's map the rough terrain is marked. I stayed out of that contouring along whatever contour height that is (probably 600m ish). 

The information you get sent will be very comprehensive so you can plan for refreshments. 

The kit checks are very strict. I've seen people turned away for not having enough tread on their running shoes. 

From last year Middle Tongue to Hell's Gap is the harder section to navigate .We went for the direct line which was blooming difficult. I think it's best to drop to the right until you hit the wall (line I'm hoping to do this year) .

At the road side checkpoints water is available .It comes in jugs so as long as you are happy to fill it up from a jug you will be all good.

Make sure you pack a couple of spare pairs socks, it helps massively to have dry feet as a moral boost. Don't pack too much water. Last year I started off with 3L by the end I was carrying 1L the roadside check points are often enough. Marzipan helps for making up emergency supply weight. Finally if you are planning on sleeping in the hall the night before make sure to bring earplugs, there is a very annoying fan in there. 

Best of luck on the race it is so much fun but painful at the same time.

When I did it, my first pair of shoes was rejected as they had a hole in the upper. Luckily I'd brought spares, so ran the whole thing in an out-of-the-box pair instead, which IMO was far riskier than a trusted comfortable pair!

During the night stage I got stopped by a marshal for having a couple of tucks on my waterproof trousers (I like the hem a little bit below my calves as if it's wet they just pick up water). I thought at first he was joking but he informed me that the rule was 'full leg cover'... Of course I obliged him, until out of sight.

Hi,

I did The Fellsman for the first time in 2016, and used the Harveys map. When we got to the checkpoint before Fleetmoss (15, Long Slack gate) the farmer was there and not happy about people going down the road and then up the wall/fence. We got sent straight across Fleetmoss. There were some very boggy bits - waist deep for me, but it was fast. We aimed for the wall corner just before Jeffrey pot, and followed the wall along  in a SE direction. Soon you can pick up a quadbike trod which curves round above Deepdale Gill and lead directly to the Middle Tongue checkpoint. If it is dark by then they have a bright light to guide you in. From there head off on a bearing a bit north of East and aim for the wall at Chapel Moss and follow it to Hell's Gap. These two legs are the roughest of the whole route, but we had a fabulous sunset as we went across and the moorland birds were great.

There is plenty of water and food available on route, I only carried 1l. It is important to get the grouping up sorted out. Try and get sorted with the people around you as it gets dark so you can set off quickly from the checkpoint. We had to wait for a fair bit before we could get in a group. A lot of people arriving had already formed groups and (selfishly) didn't want people to join with them.

Enjoy it - it's the most amazing trip out round the Dales.

How much of a challenge is the Fellsman?  I've been tempted to enter for a year or two, but the tales of bog etc made me question if I'd meet the cut off times.

I'm not worried about the distance (I've done the Lakeland 100, albeit in 39 hours, and 100km events in the Lakes in 20 hours) more about getting timed out.

The Fellsman is an amazing challenge, the route that just keeps on giving (hills!) I've done many many events but the Fellsman has a real special atmosphere unlike any other. Remember it started as a walk and is officially still a walkers event thoufgh over the years the number of runners has massively increased. I did my first Fellsman six years ago, I've completed it four times in all sorts of weather.

On a warmer (I'm saying warmer not warm remember) year the boags are unpredictable and deep. You can never tell whether the peat you are about to stand on will give way to ankle, knee or as has been said up to your waist! I've had to be pulled out of a waist deep bog once in the freezing cold of night. Boy was I really glad of the 'grouping' system they have in place then!

If you've done LL100 in 39 hours you'll likely be towards the back of the field but don't let that dishearten you, it's a fabulous event whever you place in the results. I'm gutted I can't make it this year because of other commitments but I highly urge you to give it a try!

Thanks. That’s really helpful. I may look at it next year as I’ve got a few things booked in for 2018 and need to get back in shape too. 

I'm guessing you'll be grouped by then, so there's a good chance you'll have someone in your group who has done it before.

When I did it back in '84 the event was run in May (cup final day) and it had been a dry spring - rather than being the boggy nightmare I was expecting Fleet Moss was pleasantly soft compared to the hard ground on the rest of the route. But I'm afraid I can't recall any of the route details as I just plodded on in the group.

Great event, pleased to see it is still going, but I know I'll never be fit enough to try it again.

Do it. It's an amazing event, really friendly and well organised. Don't worry about being slow, lots of people are. Have a look at past results.