Boy aged six walks Yorkshire Three Peaks in 10 hours

A BOY of six from Leeds is thought to be the youngest person ever walk the Yorkshire Three Peaks in a record time.
Noah Thomson, six, with proud Mum Helen, a radiographer at Leeds General Infirmary, after completing the Yorkshire Three PeaksNoah Thomson, six, with proud Mum Helen, a radiographer at Leeds General Infirmary, after completing the Yorkshire Three Peaks
Noah Thomson, six, with proud Mum Helen, a radiographer at Leeds General Infirmary, after completing the Yorkshire Three Peaks

Noah Thomson hiked to the top of Pen-y-Ghent, Ingleborough and Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales, in just 10 hours last Saturday.

He joined his parents Helen and and Rob Thomson, with a group of 40 staff from Leeds General Infirmary where his mum works, to raise cash for the Take Heart charity.

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It is thought he has become the youngest person to scale the heights in one day, beating previous young champ Noah Gray, from County Durham, who is aged seven.

Staff from the Cardiac and Catheter Unit at Leeds General InfirmaryStaff from the Cardiac and Catheter Unit at Leeds General Infirmary
Staff from the Cardiac and Catheter Unit at Leeds General Infirmary

Noah, who attends Westbrook Lane Primary School, in Horsforth, told the YEP: "The walk went quite well. I feel proud but afterwards I was very tired. My legs felt really sore. The best bit was climbing Pen-y-Ghent."

Proud mum Helen, who works at the Cardiac Catheter Unit at LGI as a senior radiographer, said: "Noah was amazing. We believe he has become the youngest person ever to finish the Three Peaks in such a fast time. We made it in 10 hours and four minutes, usually it is around 12 hours.

"We are an active family but found the ascents much easier than the descents. The Whernside descent was hard but the five mile descent from Ingleborough was extremely tricky.

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"His time was just incredible, not only beating the previous time I found online, but smashing 90 minutes off it. We are so proud."

Noah Thomson, six, reaches the summit of Whernside with parents Rob and HelenNoah Thomson, six, reaches the summit of Whernside with parents Rob and Helen
Noah Thomson, six, reaches the summit of Whernside with parents Rob and Helen

The large group from Leeds is raising money for the Take Heart charity and has raised more than £800 to date.

Helen, from Horsforth, added: "As staff we are keen to give back to a charity which has given generously to our department for many years providing various types of equipment and support to families at the Yorkshire Heart Centre.

Take Heart was founded in 1989 and has raised nearly £4 million to fund minor and major projects.

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The charity is committed to giving care and comfort to patients and their families at the Yorkshire Heart Centre at Leeds General Infirmary and St James Hospital and its Units within the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Noah Thomson, six, of Horsforth, after climbing the Yorkshire Three Peaks in record timeNoah Thomson, six, of Horsforth, after climbing the Yorkshire Three Peaks in record time
Noah Thomson, six, of Horsforth, after climbing the Yorkshire Three Peaks in record time

Noah says his next challenge is tackling the National Three Peaks, of Snowdon, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis.

The fundraising page for Take heart is https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/CathLabs3Peaks

FACTFILE

The Yorkshire Three Peaks route is 24 miles (38.6km), and includes 1585m (5200ft) of ascent of Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough in under 12 hours. These peaks form part of the Pennine range, and encircle the head of the valley of the River Ribble, in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

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The National Three Peaks Challenge involves climbing the three highest peaks of Scotland, England and Wales, scaling Snowdon, in Wales (1085m) Scafell Pike, in England (978m) and Ben Nevis, in Scotland (1345m) often in under 24 hours.

The total walking distance is 23 miles (37km) and the total ascent is 3064 metres (10,052ft) - twice the ascent of the Yorkshire Three Peaks, over a similar total walking distance. The total driving distance is 462 miles.