Mind Hike 2021: Hadrian's Wall

Responsible Tourism

At Charity Challenge we are committed to sustainable and responsible tourism. On this challenge in particular, we always liaise with the trail officers of the footpaths we use to make sure that we minimise our impact on the local environment. 
In particular, it is extremely important that everyone appreciates that we are lucky to be allowed to walk right alongside such an incredible historic monument as Hadrian’s Wall. We as all of our groups to ensure that they do not climb on the wall at any time.
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 ‘Northumberland National Park 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. 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 Northumberland website has lots of local options.
Please also make sure to take the time to visit some of the incredible Roman remains in the local area. We would particularly recommend Chesters roman fort or the remarkable remains of Corbridge Roman village.

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.

How do we follow the route

We do not use route marking arrows on this challenge. Your leaders are all extremely experienced navigators and it will be there job to show you the way. It is therefore very important that you stay with your leaders at all times.
Because this challenge is designed to last for 24 hours it does not follow a fixed route, nor does it have a fixed distance that needs to be completed. The routes for this challenge are specially created for this challenge, and are planned with maximum flexibility. We anticipate that during the course of the trek each team will follow slightly different route.

How is the group managed

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 by the team at Mind.
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.
Your leaders will be there to support and encourage you, and to keep you safe. We always ask everyone taking part in one of our events to respect any decisions that our leaders make during the course of the weekend.

How far will be walking?

The Mind Hike routes are specifically designed to be flexible and achievable by people of all abilities. We put specific emphasis that this challenge is all about walking for 24 hours, and not about a fixed distance. On the challenge each team is very likely to achieve slightly different distances, taking slightly different routes, that enable them to complete the challenge of walking for 24 hours (and most importantly finishing on time!)
We estimate that each team will complete somewhere between 40-50km during the course of the 24 hours.
Our advice to all participants is that you focus your training and fundraising around the goal of trekking for 24 hours and not about walking a fixed distance.

Please note: We do not guarantee that any team will walk a fixed distance. But we do aim to give every team the opportunity to walk for 24 hours.

What will happen if Covid-19 prevents this challenge from taking place

We will hard to create a safe and secure challenge environment that is in line with the latest government guidelines.
If these government guidelines mean that we have to cancel the challenge then you will be offered an alternative date for the challenge, or the opportunity to receive a full refund of your registration fee.
If we are required to postpone the challenge then you will be contacted and made aware of the new date.

What we have put in place on our challenges in response to Covid-19

We are proud to have acquired the UK Industry Standard mark, “We’re good to go” in partnership with the Tourist Organisations of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. This means that our business has followed government and industry Covid-19 guidelines, has a risk assessment in place and a process to maintain cleanliness and aid social distancing.

This challenge is planned to start running in 2021 when we hope that we will live in a ‘post-Covid’ world. Please rest assured that Charity Challenge will continue to monitor all of the latest advice from both the government and local authorities and will ensure that all of our safety systems are up to date. Our safety advice for our UK challenge’s running in the autumn of 2020 can be viewed here. This document will be amended as and when the advice changes.

In 2020 we were very proud to be able to operate some of our UK based challenges in a Covid-secure environment. Some of the things that we put in place to enable this to happen included:
•    Provided everyone taking part in our challenges with a ‘Challenge Safe kit’ that included a bottle of hand sanitiser, buff and face mask.
•    Employed more leaders on our challenges so that we could split groups into smaller teams of 5-6 people.
•    Provide pre-challenge online safety briefing videos to all of our participants that outlined specific advice for each challenge.
•    Conducted online training with all of our leaders about creating a Covid-secure challenge experience.
•    Provided single rooms for every household/social bubble attending one of our challenges.

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, with occasional public toilets in the villages that we pass through.

Food & Drink

Meals while on the challenge include dinner on Friday evening, breakfast on the morning of the challenge, and then a packed lunch and snacks during the trek as well as dinner on Saturday evening, before you commence the night section of the challenge.

We strongly encourage you to bring additional sweets and snacks if desired.

Upon completition of the challenge a celebration breakfast will be provided back at the YHA.

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

Accommodation

You will be staying in same-sex dormitory accommodation at the YHA Whitby and you will be sharing a dorm room with members of your team.

Dorm rooms range in size, from 8 to 4 bed dorms and with a mixture of ensuite and shared bathroom facilities.

We encourage everyone to see the hostel accommodation as part of the challenge!

Getting There

The location for the challenge is the YHA The Sill. Directions to the hostel can be found here, including a link to google maps.

The address for the YHA is:
YHA The Sill, Military Road, Bardon Mill, Northumberland, NE47 7AN

There is free parking available at the hostel.

The hostel is not conveniently located for accessing by public transport. The nearest major town is Hexham, which is served by trains and buses from Newcastle. From Hexham we would recommend booking a taxi to/from the hostel.

Please note: Whilst we shall do all we can to stick to this finish time, please make sure you book flexible return tickets as delays can happen and we cannot guarantee a precise finishing time or be held responsible for any missed transport.

Challenge Timings

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.

Registration will be open from 5pm on Fridy evening at the YHA Whitby and dinner will be served from 6pm. The challenge welcome and safety briefing will then take place at approximately 7.30pm.

On Saturday morning the challenge will begin with breakfast from 6.30am and the trek starting at 8am. The day route takes approximately 12 hours, so dinner is served at roughly 8pm on Saturday evening.

The challenge will end at 8am on Sunday morning, followed by breakfast.

Checkout from the hostel is at 10am.

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, 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. 

Whilst this challenge does not include any real hill walking, there are section of the routes that include a significant amount of short, sharp ascents and descents that add up to a surprising amount of ascent at the end of the challenge.

Weather

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.

Leadership

We employ experienced and fully qualified trek leaders who all hold walking leader qualifications. 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 by the team at Mind.

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 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

• Unique 'team' event designed specifically for Mind. We encourage everyone to support each other to complete this challenge and find strength from each other that you never thought you had.
• 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.
• Brilliant route design. These routes are designed specifically for this 24 hour challenge. They are designed to be just the right degree of difficulty and interest with plenty of support available throughout the route.
• Ethical consideration. For every participant we donate money to local conservation charities in order to protect the beautiful route that we use. We also try wherever possible to use local suppliers, which helps us to put money back into the local area.
• The highest quality night-time charity challenge experience on the market!