Our hostel: Bransdale Mill, absolutely nowhere near the start or finish

Assembled at the start: pre-dawn

Lucy's not quite awake yet

First light: sun rising over the moors

Vince on Carlton Moor: grudgingly waking up by now

Nigel seems in good spirits as yet

Viewing plate at Cringle Moor

10am: Checkpoint number two, ten miles in (there was no checkpoint one)

The path turns in from the edge: Urra Moor

Accidental shortcut through the heather

Checkpoint number three: Rosedale Head, twenty miles down. Blisters starting on.

Into the heart of the moorlands now: Rosedale Moor

Carrying on the slog

Checkpoint number four: twenty-five miles, not looking so happy anymore

Blue man'i'the'moss

Jugger Howe ravine: that uphill is not a welcome sight

Crossing the North York Moors steam railway

Checkpoint number five

Only seven miles to go, they tell us

Accidental shortcut through the heather, again

Lilla Howe, early saxon monument

We can see the finish now, on the distant horizon

Cottongrass

8:30pm: Checkpoint seven: all forty miles done and we can still summon up a smile from somewhere (except Ben of course)