Mind Hike 2019 - Scottish Islands

Climate

As you know, the weather in the UK can be highly unpredictable and at times erratic, so being prepared is the key! We will run UK challenges between April and October, and although the summer months of June-August should be, in general, warmer, sunnier and more stable in terms of the weather conditions, we all know that this isn’t always the case. As this challenge takes place at night the temperature can often reach close to zero, even in the height of summer. Please check the weather forecasts up to ensure that you bring clothing suitable for warm sunny walking weather and also sudden wind and downpours should they occur.

Emergencies

Your leading team are trained to deal with emergency situations in remote areas and will be carrying a mobile phone and radios in case the emergency services need to be contacted. The event is not run as a race and you will never be encouraged to walk at a pace ‘beyond your ability’. There will always be a wide variety in people’s walking abilities which will be carefully managed by the leader team. This team will always keep the group together for maximum safety and set a sensible pace for all to achieve this challenge within 24hrs. If we find that you are unable to trek at all, then we will arrange for you to be collected and taken back to the hostel.

Safety Advice for the Mind Hike

Charity Challenge considers the safety of all of our participants and staff to be a top priority, and as such we have set up Challenge Safe, one of the most advanced and thorough safety management systems in the industry. Challenge Safe formalises our ethos when it comes to safety, and brings together the procedures and risk management strategies that we use to audit all aspects of our challenges, from vehicles to accommodation to the challenge activity itself. Your welfare is absolutely paramount!

Here are a couple of important points that you should be aware of:

• The terrain on the challenge is often rocky and in wet conditions can be extremely slippery. Please make sure that your walking boots have good grip. Trainers are not appropriate as they lack grip.
• Trekking at night is by its nature a hazardous activity. A powerful, good quality headtorch is absolutely vital.
• Due to extra risks posed by trekking at night we always use a higher ratio of leaders to maximise safety. It is very important that you always listen to your leaders at all points and obey any decisions they make.
• The weather at night can be very different to during the day. Please make sure you carry an additional warm layer, waterproof jacket and trousers and a hat and gloves.
• 24 hours is a long time to be out on a trek, especially overnight. Ensure that you eat lots throughout the night and keep yourself hydrated by drinking lots of fluids.

Toilets

There will be bathroom facilities at the hostel; however during the challenge such facilities will be limited to the great outdoors!

Food & Drink

Meals while on the challenge include dinner on arrival on Friday night, breakfast on the morning of the challenge, and then a packed lunch and snacks during the trek as well as dinner in the evening. We strongly encourage you to bring additional sweets and snacks if desired. Upon completition of the challenge a celebration breakfast will be provided at the finish.

The drinking of alcohol the night before is strongly discouraged for your own health and safety during this tough challenge.
 

Accommodation

All accommodation will be in same-sex dormitory style accommodation. You will be sharing with members of your team.

We will be using two local hostels in the village of Lochranza. The SYHA hostel in Lochranza, and the Lochranza Centre. Both options are located across the road from each other. You will be informed of your accommodation 1 month before the challenge.

Getting There

The island of Arran is incredibly easy to reach from Glasgow.

The easiest option is to take the train from Glasgow to Ardrossan harbour. the trains are designed to match the ferry departures so this will limit the amount of time you have to wait. You will be met at Ardrossan train station by a Charity Challenge member of staff who will help you get to the ferry terminal (it is a short walk of 5-10 minutes).

A return ferry ticket is included, so there is no need to worry about anything.

The ferry takes 50 minutes as it sails across to Brodick in Arran.

At the ferry terminal in Brodick you will again be met by a Charity Challenge member of staff and a bus will be ready to transfer you to Lochranza. Again, this bus transfer cost is included.

On the way home, the bus transfer and ferry cost will again be included.

Responsible Tourism

At Charity Challenge we are committed to sustainable and responsible tourism. On this challenge in particular, we always liaise with local authorities to make sure that we minimise our impact on the local environment. Our leaders care passionately for the environment and will be keen to talk to you about how you can do your bit to conserve the local area and enhance your experience. We believe that acting responsibly should add to your enjoyment of the challenge so we won’t lecture you about not dropping litter. Instead we’d like to encourage you to support the ‘Arran Trust’ who maintain the excellent footpaths we will be walking on. For more information about the work done to manage the footpaths, and to donate to them yourself, click here.

We would also like to encourage all our participants to spend a little extra time in the local area. There is a huge amount to see and do on Arran, from visiting Brodick castle, touring the distillery or simply admiring the abundance of wildlife at close proximity. Why not consider booking an extra night in a local B&B, and go out for a meal in one of the excellent local pubs after the challenge? The Visit Arran website has lots of local options.

Not only will you be able to celebrate your achievements but you will also be putting more money back into the local area. For extra information, please visit our Responsible Tourism pages, where you will be able to view a list of the other projects that we currently support.

Terrain

Despite its location in the UK, the difficulty of this trek should not be underestimated as it includes 24 hours of hiking, with tough ascents and descents along the coast and in the mountains, with the added challenge of walking in the dark. The route is predominantly on good paths, but it's the variation of footpaths that makes this challenge a unique and fun experience.

Challenge Timings

The challenge begins on Friday evening at approximately 5pm where we will meet the whole team and have dinner together in Lochranza. After dinner we will have our welcome and safety briefing.

On Saturday morning the challenge will begin at 8am. On Saturday you can expect to walk for up to 12 hours before a dinner will be served to give you the energy to complete the walk through the night.

You can expect to have completed the challenge at 8am on Sunday morning after which you will have the opportunity to shower before departing.

Please note that precise timings and instructions will be provided 1 month prior to the challenge date. the following timings should be used as guidance when planning.

Leadership

We employ experienced and fully qualified trek leaders who all hold the Moutain leader qualification. The leaders are first aid qualified and have extensive experience in leading challenges throughout Britain and overseas. They will be ultimately responsible for the running of the itinerary and the safety of your group. They will be carrying full safety equipment and first aid kits with them at all times.

Group Size

The Mind Hike is run as a team event with each team having a maximum of 40 people. You will be allocated a team for the event.

The aim of this challenge is to work together as a team to help each other through the 24 hours. This is a great opportunity to meet other inspirational people like yourselves and to draw strength from each other.

There will be one leader per approximately 10-15 participants and there will be one team of leaders for the day section and another set of leaders for the night.

Insurance

We don’t offer insurance for our UK trips, as any medical emergencies would naturally be covered through the NHS. If you wish, you could look into your own policy that covers cancellation for travel within the UK.

Money

During the trek there will be limited opportunities to purchase some extra snacks as we pass through villages (please do not reply on shops being open as it is not always possible to guarantee this). Therefore you may wish to take some money with you on the trek. We would advise you should need no more than £20.00, excluding your joining and returning home travel costs.

Training

The Mind Hike Challenge is an endurance trekking event over 24 hours, therefore requiring a good to high level of fitness. The ideal training for this challenge is, naturally, walking in the outdoors. However, if you do not have the luxury of living near the great outdoors, then the stairs at home (or an office block) are a great place to start. Try building in a walk to work if possible, or perhaps at lunch. Most training should be part of an ongoing lifestyle, but if this is not the case then you should begin training 2-4 months prior to the challenge and gradually build up as suggested. Remember to use the walking boots that you will be wearing on the challenge in order to get them worn in, and take the daysack that you will be using during the challenge.

There is no substitute for walking in the outdoors, over similar terrain that you will face on the challenge, so try if possible to get out on a weekend and train in an appropriate area. It can be a great way to discover nearby places that you never knew existed! If it is possible for you to practice walking at night with your headtorch then this is also useful. You should progress to training with your boots on from week 4 at the latest, but preferably from week 1. The more you exercise before the challenge, the more you will get out of it. The hardest part of this challenge to train for is the fact that you will need to walk for 24 hours. Whilst it is not expected that you will have practiced this we would recommend that you be comfortable with long days of walking for at least 10 hours, plus you should be comfortable walking for consecutive days. It is a good idea to have a training weekend where you perhaps walk for 8 hours on one day and then another walk the following day.  Also see your Charity Challenge Fitness Training notes which will be in your Charity Challenge Participant Account Area.

Clothing & Equipment

Equipment of good quality and durability could make the difference between a fantastic challenge experience and an uncomfortable one.

For this challenge, a good quality headtorch with spare batteries is vital. A headtorch is much better than a handheld torch as it allows you to keep your hands free. If you do not wish to buy and expensive headorch just for this challenge then very good quality ones can be hired for the weekend from our partners at Outdoor Hire.

Waterproof and well-worn in boots will be indispensable. The terrain is uneven and can be very rough, so it is vital that you use a strong pair of canvas or leather boots with good ankle support for this challenge, coupled with a pair of good quality walking socks. Sports trainers are not suitable. As this a nighttime challenge the temperatures will be significantly colder. Enough warm layers are vital as are hats and gloves. If possible, try to bring two pairs of gloves and two hats as these can very often get wet.

The benefits of a comfortable day sack cannot be underestimated - so make sure that you train with this. Other essentials are high quality gore-tex waterproof and windproof jackets and trousers, as well as technical/wicking t-shirts rather than cotton shirts. We would like to emphasize that jeans should not be worn on this challenge.

A full kit list for this challenge can be found here. Once you book you will have access to kit discounts with our partners The Outdoor Shop, Outdoor Hire and Cotswold Outdoor.

Level of Difficulty

The Mind Hike challenge is graded as extreme. This is the perfect challenge for participants who are of an adventurous spirit and having taking on a previous trekking challenge and are now looking to push themselves to their limits. You can tell your supporters that on your Mind Hike you will be:

• Trekking for 24 hours continuously.
• Covering approximately 50km of undulating terrain, with the added challenge of walking through the night!
• Trekking as part of a team, supporting each and every team member to get through the challenge.

Why book with Charity Challenge

• Everything included from the moment you arrive. We include everything from hostel accommodation, your evening meal when you arrive, plenty of food and snacks whilst on the trek and then the opportunity to rest at the hostel upon completing the challenge before a celebration brunch.
• The very best trek leaders, who are fully qualified, highly experienced, knowledgeable and fun. They will do everything to help you complete the challenge and have a great time doing it.
• Ethical consideration. For every participant we donate money to the ‘Arran Trust’ a local conservation group. We we also be using local accommodation providers, which helps us to put money back into the local area.
• The highest quality night-time charity challenge experience on the market!
• Ferry ticket included in your cost, including bus transfer to the accommodation on Arran.