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At the young age of 66, Mark Turner, a member of Crowstone Lodge, decided it was time to rekindle his love of hill walking and decided to set himself a challenge of climbing all five of the highest peaks in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland.
Mark put out a call for likeminded Mark Men and was joined by Chris Smith (to drive, not walk!) also from Crowstone Lodge and Steve Hatton form Boleyn Castle Lodge.
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They choose the following to climb:
SNOWDON (3,450 ft)
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SCAFELL PIKE (3,209 ft)
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BEN NEVIS (4,413 ft)
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SLIEVE DONARD (2,790 ft)
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Carrauntoohil - (3,407 ft)
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After months of careful planning and training they set off on their epic challenge.
Below is their diary from the challenge.
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Snowdon. Raining hard when we started (about 10am) but it quickly cleared, and it was good walking weather. Steep tarmac section - lots of puffing and blowing before it settled down to a long but tolerable trudge to the top. Good views and it was nice to see the steam trains puffing up and down the mountain. Chris joined Mark and Steve at the top having taken a diesel train ride to the top (and down again!).
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Scafell Pike. A difficult drive around the Lakeland hills to get to the start. Great credit to Chris for getting us there safely and in good time. Wow, what nasty weather! Heavy rain for most of the walk and evermore windy as we ascended. The path was difficult for the most part with lots of loose stone. I was very glad to see Mark's walking jacket continually in front of me. Without his patient support I would have probably turned back before the summit. At the top we didn't hang about. A couple of quick photos and we started back down. A stream, which made for cautious crossing to keep our feet dry on the way up, had become more challenging and, giving up on dry feet, we were content to wade across and avoid falling in. Anyway, another one ticked off the list! Mark’s friend commented about going through the stream and his wife Maura responded “he love's all that. the more treacherous, the better, in his book.
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Ben Nevis. Mark seemed a little nervous about this one which, in turn, worried me as he is a better climber than me! I was concerned by the weather forecast: dry but very windy at the top. Happily, it was a long, long steady climb but pretty good under foot and, best of all, it wasn't too windy although windy enough to keep the midges away. Wonderful mountain: great views. Hundreds, probably thousands of people on the mountain, I enjoyed their company! Big learning point don’t always believe the weather forecast about as reliable as the Satnav and the walking app!
Then off to Ireland the next day by ferry – Cairnryan to Larne and a drive ready to climb Slieve Donard the next day. A comparable easy climb with a couple of streams to cross but fortunately bridges helped.
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After a long drive we settled at Killarney for the night and a short drive next morning to Cronin’s Yard for Carraunttoohil. The walk was from Cronin Yard. The route we took says 4.5 to 6 hours. But the start is from the bottom of Devels Ladder, not Cronin Yard, we would have started earlier if we had known that.
Now a 5 hour drive to Dublin and overnight stay before catching an afternoon ferry from Dublin to Holyhead and the long drive home to Essex.
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STATISTICS
MILES
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TOTAL
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ALTITUDE CLIMBED5,578 ftFERRY
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All monies raised will be going towards the Essex 2030 Festival.
There is a rumour that Mark may be taking part in next challenge of Skydiving. Good Luck Mark.
Posted on 13/07/25
