Peak District races

The Peak has two halves and they run very differently. The Dark Peak north of Castleton is peat, groughs and gritstone — Kinder and Bleaklow are genuinely rough going, and after rain the moor holds water in a way that turns a fast-looking line into wading. The White Peak to the south is limestone: drier, faster, more walled pasture and dale path.

Edale is the busiest start line on this page, which is what happens when the Pennine Way begins in your village. Races run from six kilometres to well past four hundred, and the winter Spine events cross the same ground in the worst of the year.

Two things to plan for. Most races here expect you to navigate, and moor in cloud is where that gets tested — the paths are not always obvious and the peat all looks the same. And more races here run into the night than almost anywhere else on the calendar, so a head torch and the sense to carry a spare are worth having before you need them.

Peak District trail running routes (19) with free GPX, if you want to run the ground before you race it.