Entry form - General info - Rules - Route - Checkpoints
More change for 2012! The long route will go down the River Brit to West Bay, making it a mile longer, since once you clear Bridport this is a nicer route than via Eype picnic site. The other two routes remain the same as in 2011 except that all routes drop Chardown Hill checkpoint.
The start & finish will be at Charmouth Primary School, Lower Sea Lane, Charmouth. (Actually, the start will be on the green by the beach but you will be walked down there from the school.)
There will be a limited amount of parking at the school. There are two large public car parks and a smaller one past the school at the sea end of the lane (but the large ones may not open until 10am), plus a cheaper one behind the new houses near the village end of the lane.
Registration from 08:30, start 09:30 - please allow time to collect your number on the day.
There will be pasties, teas and beer for post-race recovery.
There will be a mobile skateboard park in the school playground for use by children during and after the race.
Emergency contact numbers 07855 917467 (Garry), 07879 645098 (Nick) or 01297 560591 (Charmouth school).
Note the closing times on the list of checkpoints below after which they will be removed. (You can always re-run the course at your leisure another time.)
You must remain on public rights of way except as noted in the route notes over Colmer's Hill.
All routes are slightly different from last year a couple of miles in, omitting Chardown Hill checkpoint. The 18-miler is slightly different at the far end from last year's long route, going down the River Brit to West Bay because it's much nicer once you've cleared Bridport. The 13- and 8-milers are the same as last year.
Appreciate the running, the views and above all enjoy yourself!
If you like this sort of low-key self-nav thing then take a look at our Any Which Way & Every Which Way events and if you want to run around here again there's our Manhunt and the Charmouth Challenge.
Held under ARC rules - permit number 11/131
You must visit the checkpoints in the stated order.
It is your responsibility to ensure that you are recorded at all manned checkpoints.
You must remain on rights of way or public access land except where explicitly noted.
You must follow the mandatory routes as noted and take particular care to close gates on these parts.
Once you have collected your number on the day you must report to the finish in person or by phone, or one of the manned checkpoints, even if you retire or do not start.
You should follow the Countryside Code - close gates behind you, respect the rights of other people you meet on the route, don't drop litter, and all the rest.
You must have appropriate navigational aids to find your way safely between all checkpoints, be that map, route description, local knowledge or a friend with these.
You should endeavour to enjoy the fantastic views and not curse the course planner or question his parenthood!
Sources of the nominal route are listed below. Note that the source of the GPX files was my mapping software so that the route may be slightly off in the real world (e.g. on the wrong side of hedges). They are intended as a guide, not to be definitive.
The route will not be marked in any way other than perhaps the critical turn at the start of Leg 30 and part of the coast path between Charmouth and Stonebarrow Hill.
Most checkpoints won't have any means of proving that you've visited them other than your number being recorded at manned ones (probably all water stations plus one or two others). This is a very informal affair and you're only cheating yourself if you miss one. The A35 crossing in Morecombelake should be manned so please follow the marshal's instructions there.
Route choice is limited on the whole but there are five viable returns from Golden Cap with the beach being the quickest but not the nicest. (Low tide about 1pm; avoid crossing mudflows since they can be sticky - I speak from a scary experience in one.)
There are up to eight peaks and three water stations, depending upon route. These are all of the checkpoints with mapped distance along each route.
| Checkpoint | 18 | 13 | 8 | Grid ref | Closes | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | Charmouth | 0 | 0 | 0 | 367931 | Grass area by the beach | |
| 1 | Stonebarrow Hill | 1 | 1 | 1 | 379930 | Bench at top | |
| 2 | Chardown Hill | 2 | 2 | 2 | 398936 | Gate | |
| 3 | Hardown Hill | 3 | 3 | 3 | 405943 | Bench in front of a clump of trees | |
| 2A | Filcombe Farm | 4 | 408929 | Water | |||
| 4 | Venn Farm | 4½ | 4½ | 419947 | TBA | Water | |
| 5 | Denhay Trig | 5½ | 5½ | 419947 | Trig point | ||
| 6 | Colmer's Hill | 7½ | 440936 | Trig point | |||
| 7 | Allington Hill | 9 | 455935 | Bench | |||
| 8 | West Bay Holiday Park | 10 | 451921 | TBA | Water; toilets | ||
| 9 | Thorncombe Beacon | 13 | 435914 | Beacon post | |||
| 10 | Seatown | 14 | 9 | 420918 | TBA | Entrance to campsite; water; pub; toilets | |
| 11 | Golden Cap | 15 | 10 | 5 | 407922 | Trig point | |
| Finish | Charmouth | 18 | 13 | 8 | 364932 | School playground | |