Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
My peak practice pays off
Hiker’s record 214 summits in 14 days
A BRITISH adventurer has set a new record for hiking up 214 peaks in the Lake District.
James Forrest walked 328 miles and climbed 118,000ft on his 14-day, 11-hour hike up all 214 summits listed in Alfred Wainwright’s famous Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells.
Hiking an average of 13 hours a day, he said it had been the “challenge of a lifetime” as he beat the record of 25 days set by Jack Roberts in 2017.
James, 37, said: “I am ecstatic with the time I’ve set and so relieved to have finished.
“I hope the enduring memories of this expedition will be the times when the sun did shine and I relished the peace, beauty and escapism of Lakeland. I hope my journey has inspired some people to seek out the mountains and adventures.
“They can have a massively beneficial impact on your mental health.”
Th e author and j o u r na li st of
Cockermouth, Cumbria, says he faced torrential rain and high winds on his expedition and added: “Just make sure you pick a good weather window.”
Hiking alone with no support crew or pre-arranged help, James carried all his kit and camping equipment in a large rucksack.
James says he was a “bored of fice worker” when he decided to quit and climb every peak in the UK and Ireland.
In 2017 he climbed all 446 mount ains ov er 2,000ft in England and Wales – the so-called Nuttalls – in six months, the fastest ever.
In 2018 he climbed all 273 of the 600 metre (1,969 ft) mountains in Ireland and Northern Ireland, known as the VandeleurLynams, in eight weeks, another record.
And he completed a “1,001-mountain challenge” by climbing all 282 Munros – mountains over 3000ft in Scotland – in 2019.