Entries still open for coast to coast 105-mile challenge
Entries are still open for the Coast to Coast 2018 adventure challenge which takes place through the Great Glen on Saturday September 8 and Sunday 9.
Two thousand athletes are set to run, bike and kayak 105 miles on a point to point, east to west journey along the Great Glen from Nairn Links to The Isles of Glencoe Hotel.
Coast to Coast is a fully supported and way-marked multisport adventure challenge, a wild endurance event in unforgiving terrain.
The route, which includes a total ascent of 10,840 feet, takes in stunning lochs, brooding glens, enchanting forests, rugged mountains and the most fantastic views imaginable.
It also features many evocative landmarks and locations that are steeped in generations of history. These include The Great Glen, Fort William, Glen Coe and Loch Leven.
Since it was first staged in 2007, more than 10,000 intrepid adventurers have taken on this magnificent challenge. As many as 8,000 of those participants have travelled from outwith Scotland, from as far a field as New Zealand, the USA and Europe, to experience the true beauty (and sometimes brutality) of the Highland terrain and its ever-changing weather.
The athletes, taking part as solos or in pairs, start with a seven mile run to Cawdor Castle, followed by a 48 mile road cycle along the edge of Loch Ness and a half mile run (that includes a 500-metre kayak on Loch Ness).
They then transition again into a 21-mile off road cycle and a 13.5-mile road cycle through the Great Glen to Fort William, where the bike is replaced by running shoes and they take on a 14-mile trail run to Loch Leven.
The adventure challenge finishes with a one-mile flat water kayak at Glencoe.
The Coast to Coast is definitely not for the faint hearted and participants will need to be prepared physically and mentally with an element of self sufficiency in remote locations.
This epic journey can be taken over two days as a Challenger (an average time of 14 hours) or in just one day as an Expert (an average of 12 hours), a mammoth undertaking.