Northern Traverse™ Participants Share their Sleeping Strategies

The Northern Traverse™ is a continuous 300km race across the North of England from St Bees to Robin Hood’s Bay.

There are Support Points throughout the race with options for food and sleeping, but not everyone stops for sleep…

We’ve asked previous participants to share their tips and advice on their sleeping strategies to keep them energised throughout the race… keep scrolling to have a read!

Keeping energised is key to reaching the finish line ©No Limits Photography

Shane Furlong - "10 minutes on the seat outside the pub on the bench at Danby Whisk, 10 minutes on a stone stockpile before surrender bridge and 10 mins at the trough house. All un-scheduled sleep breaks I took this year."

 Anthony Stevens - "I did the Northern Traverse in 2022 without sleep, but I just did the Eiger 250 this week and found 5-10 min trail naps (just closing my eyes and sitting down) whenever my eyes and head were starting to wobble were fantastic."

Jenny Yeo - "10 mins sleep in Lordstones wash up area.”

Alex Morley - "On the Summer Spine last month, we decided that nighttime was a horrible time to run, so we took full advantage of the long days by running from pre-dawn until post-sunset to get between CPs, then eating, sleeping for up to 3 hours, eating again, and then setting off. In this way, we turned a ‘continuous’ run into a ‘multi-day event’, which worked incredibly well and meant we never had to nap anywhere else along the course. It’s worth noting that we did go through the first night with no sleep at all to get into the right rhythm for this."

 Sean Higgins - "Cannot beat a 10-minute nanna nap side of the trail."

Kevin Gay - "Unless going to win it, sleep when you want to. No point in zombie walking. You’ll be slow and miserable. Kirkby Stephen after a hot shower and Lordstones are ideal places to kip."

Robert Campbell - "Knowing your sleep cycle timing is a must. NASA did some research and an optimum power nap is 23mins and a full REM-cycle is about 90 mins. This will vary for you as an individual. Adventure/expedition racing is about fueling and sleeping as well as all the other stuff. You can actually practise it and train yourself to go to sleep."

Helen Andrew - "I recommend a lovely little bus stop in Reeth. Smells a bit (or that may have been me/fellow NT’ers) but room for 4 on the benches…….Heaven in the small hours."

Exploring the beautiful Keld ©No Limits Photography

Lee Caves - "I did all day, all night, all day, then had 1/2 hour at Richmond. I then struggled on the third night and dropped out with 12 miles left to go at midnight. Very sleep-deprived, I did not know what I was doing, and didn’t know whether I was asleep or awake. I felt fine until then. I booked for next year and I’m going to do the same again but have 90 mins in Richmond. I know what to expect now."

Pascale Mathonet - "I had a few power naps wherever possible when things got too tough. Also, I didn't sleep at the last checkpoint because it was early afternoon. But as the last leg is very long, I packed my bivvy kit and had a snooze in a wood somewhere."

Sometimes a nap by the side of the trail is the way to go ©No Limits Photography

 Pat Quill - "You may plan sleep, but achieving it even when you are very tired is more difficult. I don’t think anybody will get good quality sleep in Patterdale as it’s very noisy. You do benefit to some extent from rest however both physically and psychologically even if you can’t sleep. I think I only got one solid block of 3 hours in the race despite multiple attempts. If it’s warm and dry, napping on the trail may be a better option."

Alex Riley - "3 x 1 hour in tents + 2 x 5 minutes on benches worked a charm."

 Beverley Tucker - "I aim to use all the tents, sleep 4/5 hours at Patterdale and Kirkby Stephen, 2/3 hours for the rest of the race, but it depends on how slow I am, any navigation errors and the weather. I plan to be flexible, but if it’s bad weather overnight and there is a tent option, it’s better for me to rest, but usually nothing goes to plan, so as long as I make the cut-offs."

 Tim McBain - "Sleep more than the other people who look like zombies at the end when you overtake them. I’d try to get to Kirkby Stephen without sleeping too much. Obviously weather dependent. Then sleep there for 2 to 4 hours and then get to Richmond for another 2 or 3 hours and again at Lordstones for maybe a couple of hours. It’s a long tough trek over the North York Moors. If you sleep you’ll be faster and catch people who don’t, but it’s a fine balance. I wouldn’t try to stop en route as it’s really cold and you probably won’t sleep and just waste time."

Kevin Munt - “Just get more than 50 minutes!"

Joe Faulkner - "Get some sleep, regularly."

The Northern Traverse™ is an incredible way to explore the North of England and push yourself to see what you are capable of. Entries are sold out for 2025 but if you Join the Waiting List, we will let you know as soon as a place becomes available. It’s worth joining the Waiting List as people’s plans change and the likelihood of getting a place is very high!

Perhaps you want to start with a shorter race? The Dales Traverse™, Moors Traverse™ and Lakes Traverse™ are all incredible ways of exploring new trails and enjoying the world of Ultra Running!

An incredible journey shared with new friends ©No Limits Photography