It’s not for the faint of heart, so I don’t know why I attempted the infamous 458 steps beside the M62 beloved by fitness fanatics.
Scammonden Dam is part of the M62 motorway between junctions 22 and 23, the only such structure in Britain. The motorway dam spans the Deanhead Valley in the Pennines between Huddersfield and Rochdale.
Close to the reservoir, at the other side of the motorway and dam wall, you will find Scammonden steps, which comprises of five flights of steps up the hillside from the valley below.
Totalling 458 steps, the cumulative step count when ascending each of the five flights is 95, 200, 287, 363 then 458. The infamous steps have become something of a landmark for fitness fanatics and you can often spot locals at all times of the day taking on the challenge.
Having never done it before I decided (for some stupid reason) to test my fitness levels and try it out for myself.
My plan was to park up at Scammonden Water car park under the M62 tunnel, head up the 458 steps, followed by a full walk around the reservoir back to the car park. It’s safe to say I didn’t make it round the reservoir.
The trail offers a great view at sunrise over the water and is described online as “an easy walk that could be a good test for new walkers, although the 458 narrow steps may pose a challenge depending on fitness levels”…. Light work, or so I thought.
Now, I’m certainly no Wilma Rudolf, but I like to think I’m moderately fit, I go to the gym four times a week, I do Pilates weekly and I walk more days than I don’t. But none of this could have prepared me for the hell that is Scammonden steps.
My first (huge) mistake was taking my friend, who is a firefighter and does 1,000 burpees for breakfast, along for the ride. I thought it would be a good idea for motivation, but if anything, it only served as further proof that either she is super human or I am mega unfit. I think it’s a combo of the two.
My second mistake was doing the steps first, in hindsight we should have walked round the reservoir first and then attempted the steps last, that would be my recommendation should you wish to still have the use of your legs.
We (and I say we very lightly) attempted to run up the steps from bottom to top, I managed maybe two flights out of the five, with several breaks. Of course, my friend smashed it all, but she does the bleep test on the regular for her job and I used to pretend to have asthma so I didn’t have to do PE in school (there’s two types of people in this world).
When we finally reached the top she exclaimed “that was so fun!”, whilst I simultaneously said “god that was horrific”… clearly our ideas of fun are not quite the same. She is the world’s most competitive person ever and I have only ever won one race in my life, it was the three-legged race and I was paired with someone much more enthusiastic than myself.
It was a fair day but it was quite windy, however, the views from the top were still really nice (if you don’t mind the sound of the traffic of course!) and you certainly get a sense of achievement when you get there, after you get your breath back of course.
There’s no denying the steps are a killer, but great if you want to improve on your fitness levels.
Our legs were ruined and we opted to go for a cuppa rather than do the reservoir walk, but it was a great little morning workout and even I have to admit I enjoyed it (well, after I got back in the car), but I think I’ll stick to Pilates tomorrow!
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