By DAVID COULTER david.coulter@hexham-courant.co.uk

Last updated at 13:56, Friday, 15 May 2009

JUST as my predecessor had done time and time again, I was going to have to overcome insurmountable odds to achieve the impossible.

Title
Author
Copyright

Description

The man in question (James Bond I think his name was) was given a licence to kill. But I was only trusted with a licence to walk!

Whether by pure coincidence or a ploy by the organisers of Haltwhistle Challenge to inspire me, my registration card read 007 Coulter.

So for one day only, I was Double Agent David Coulter working on behalf of the Hexham Courant aiming to complete the tough mission ahead of me.

The clue was in the title and the organisers did not try to shy away from the fact that the 24-mile circular route was indeed going to be an intense physical and mental challenge.

To make matters worse, I had never walked anywhere near this distance before and I felt that the odds were stacked against me.

I knew the walk would be one of the most difficult tasks I have ever undertaken and I was hoping that I would have enough in reserve to drag me over the line.

Putting it in perspective, the route was the equivalent of walking from Haltwhistle to Stocksfield.

And I definitely did not think it was possible for an inexperienced walker, such as myself, to complete.

Starting at Haltwhistle Market Place, the route directed walkers through Wealside, Greenhead and Lambley before heading back to the finishing line in the town.

In its first ever year, the challenge was an outstanding success as all 100 people who had registered to walk turned up on the morning.

Haltwhistle has long been well-known for its attractive routes and its twice yearly walking festival appeals to hundreds of walkers in the area, and often further afield.

The 13th walking festival, held between April 25 and May 4, attracted over 550 walkers making it the most successful festival ever.

The challenge was a feather in the cap for the town and organisers will undoubtedly build on the huge popularity shown in its debut year.

Officially declaring the start of the walk, local polar adventurer Conrad Dickinson said: “You can all look back on this day and be proud to be one of the 100 competitors of the first ever Haltwhistle Challenge.

“Like the Great North Run, there are going to be a great many of these to come.”

Conrad and his wife Hilary, also well-known in the district for her walking achievements, were chosen to open the event in a bid to inspire the walkers.

And it worked, as the atmosphere in the town was electric while the participants waited for the klaxon to get them under way.

The 10-minute delay in the start for late arrivers added to the anticipation and it was all systems go as an excitable crowd set off with the aim of walking the 24 miles in less than 10 hours.

After an anxious wait, I was trying to concentrate on taking it easy early on, but I found myself at the very back of the pack within the first 15 minutes.

It could have easily been a sign of things to come but, not wanting to get left behind, I decided to get a move on and made my way to the middle of the masses.

Taking in some of the most beautiful countryside in the North-East, if not the country, I was enjoying absorbing the picturesque views of Haltwhistle and surrounding areas.

We walked over every terrain imaginable, including grass, bog, rock, and pavement, and encountered a variety of wildlife on our way.

Arriving at the first checkpoint at Wealside at 9.50am, my momentum prevented me from stopping to take a quick break and I continued my pursuit for the finishing line.

Although my legs started to hint that they were getting tired, my heart told me to push on to the half-way point at Greenhead Village Hall before any sort of rest.

But I may not have ended up at Greenhead at all when my lack of preparation threatened to spoil the day for me.

Believing I would be fine without buying a map, I walked straight past Thirlwall Castle taking me away from Greenhead.

Fortunately I was unsure about whether I was heading on the right path and I turned around to find some of the other participants crossing a field in the opposite direction to where I was heading!

At the head of that group was experienced rambler Dave Hammond, of Carlisle, who I then decided would be my guide for the rest of the walk.

He knew the route inside out whereas I was completely clueless.

I almost became his shadow, and if he moved left to avoid a puddle, I would follow his exact footsteps.

He did not even need to turn around when offering advice to me as he could obviously sense that I was always less than six inches away from him.

And although this must have been annoying for him, he never complained and was courteous and helpful for the rest of the route.

Refreshed after a quick stop at Greenhead, I was feeling good going into the second half of the event. But that all changed rapidly.

The path to Lambley over the Kellah Moor has been described as a tricky route even when the weather is nice. But the rain clouds decided that they were going to be devious and made the walking conditions close to treacherous!

Soaked to the bone, crossing marshy ground before climbing slippery hills, the challenge soon became even tougher.

I will admit that, when I arrived at the third checkpoint at Lambley after walking 18 miles, thoughts of quitting and getting away from the cold crossed my mind.

As the rain seeped through my clothes and the wind whipped hard against my face, I felt that putting my legs through six more miles of pain was out of the question.

Yet there was something stirring in me, telling me that I had come too far to pack it all in now.

So, despite protests from my legs, I headed off for Haltwhistle with the thought that the worst of the walk was over.

The sun eventually came out on the final push for the finishing line, and I achieved the improbable task of reaching the goal that I thought was well out of reach.

The feeling when I finished the walk in a time of seven hours 52 minutes was something I have never experienced before.

Completing the course was by far my greatest ever achievement to date, and I got such a buzz out of finishing the trek.

But after a short sit down following the walk, the pain started to kick in and I hobbled away to my car, emotionally drained, while the other competitors enjoyed pie and peas suppers in the town’s Comrades Club.

The organisers and the volunteers of Haltwhistle Challenge deserve a lot of credit for giving up so much of their time to provide a successful and enjoyable walk.

First published at 09:41, Friday, 15 May 2009
Published by http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk