Joss Naylor Lakeland Challenge leg four: Sty Head to Greendale Bridge — Lake District National Park

The final stage of the Joss Naylor Challenge has an energetic start, climbing up the steep southeast face of Great Gable. The rocky summit stands high and separate from the surrounding fells, offering stunning views in good weather. After the initial summit, the route drops dramatically to Beck Head, before continuing over Kirk Fell, Pillar and Scoat Fell to Haycock. From there you’ll have two further summits to navigate, but it’s generally downhill to the finish.

This Tour starts at Sty Head, which is the pass at the head of the Wasdale and Borrowdale valleys. There’s no road access, so it’s about 2.2 miles (3.5 km) gently uphill from either Seathwaite Farm in Borrowdale or Wasdale Head. From Sty Head the Tour is around 11 miles (17.7 km) with 4,265 feet (1,300 m) of ascent and, because Sty Head is higher than the finish point, a quad-busting 5,500 feet (1,676 m) of descent.

The official finish of this Tour and the Joss Naylor Challenge is Greendale Bridge in Wasdale. Once you’re there, the best place to refuel is at the Wasdale Head Inn just up the valley. The pub also has rooms, or the National Trust’s Wasdale campsite is nearby.

Wasdale and Greendale aren’t serviced by public transport. You can get to Seascale on the west coast by train, but you’ll then need to get a taxi. If you access Sty Head from Borrowdale, you can use the 77 or 78 bus from Keswick to Seatoller and run from there, adding 3.7 miles (6 km) of gradual uphill running.

Underfoot, this Tour covers a mixture of rocky, gravelly and grassy trails, so wear fell or trail shoes with good grip. You’ll cross some exposed mountain terrain, so carry waterproofs and emergency kit, as well as food and drink. Navigating between the checkpoints is reasonably simple in good visibility, but there are cliffs and scree slopes to avoid so care should be taken, especially in poor weather.