Who is the weekend aimed at?

This is aimed at runners who are aiming to complete a mountain race or ultra marathon in 2025. You may not be racing but want to improve your confidence in the mountains. The camp will cover equipment, using poles, nutrition and use parts of race routes such as UTS 50 and Always Aim High.

Aim

This weekend is aimed at those who want to familiarise themselves with the mountain environment in the Snowdon area. We will spend some time on technical trails and routes, looking at places to take on water and experiences the climbs and downhills. Although the pace will be social, you should be happy with running 30km+ and being on your feet for 5-6 hours.. You will leave the weekend with the confidence to tackle your planned mountain race and go alone into the mountains as well as connecting with like-minded people.

Route planning and navigation tips will be included as well as what equipment to take.

Itinerary

All distances and details are approximate and subject to change due to group experience and weather conditions.

• Wednesday 5th March - optional webinar. This will cover any questions that you may have, talk about what to expect and make introductions.

• Friday 6-10km shake out night run amongst the forest and Dinorwig Quarry. This is so we can get to know one another and take on smoe fun sections of the area.

• Saturday 30-34km, 2400m run across various mountain terrain, taking in key sections of various mountain races. We will summit Snowdon, twice. We will not run at race pace, but take our time talking through some of the terrain and how best to tackle it. This will include where to take on water. The route follows the first 25km of UTS50, with minor changes due to access.

• Sunday 15km, 1200m on graded trails and grassy slopes. This takes in the final ascents of UTS50 plus the final run in to the finish line

What is included?

• 3 fully guided runs by a qualified and insured Mountain Leader

• Small group

• Optional chat over a pub meal on the Saturday

• Instruction and running tips to meet your needs.

What is not included?

• Travel, accommodation and food. 

• Equipment

Board and Accommodation

Participants need to arrange their own accommodation. We recommend using the Llanberis area as a base as it has a range of food / drinking / cafe / kit shop options, although any base within the northern reaches of the park will work well. David is able to provide some recommendations if you need. A WhatsApp group is set up and past participants have arranged group accomodation together.

Kit

For those who are entered into an Ultra race, we recommend carrying the mandatory kit for your race on the Saturday. Otherwise, this is the minimum for the Saturday and Sunday Runs. The Friday run we recommend a hydration vest and some spare layers. We will run regardless of the weather, although high level routes may be swapped for something more sheltered. The exact routes will be decided based upon the experience of those attending, so examples are given for illustration purposes only. 

Essential:

• Trail shoes with good grip, minimum 3mm lugs

• Waterproof jacket and trousers with taped seams

• Spare base layer 

• Mobile phone 

• Enough food and drink to last the day. Aim for 200-300 calories an hour plus at least 1 litre of water. It may be possible to top up using mountain streams enroute.

• Foil Blanket or Bivy Bag

• Basic First Aid Kit

• Head torch and spare batteries

• Hat / Buff and gloves

Recommended / optional / weather dependent

• An insulated layer / jacket

• Leggings / full leg cover

• Poles

• A water filter for drinking from mountain streams

Once purchased, a questionnaire will be sent to you.