In Search Of The North Star

Cold Brew Events has a solid reputation for well organised and challenging ultra running events.  The iconic SCOTT Cheviot Goat is one of the toughest 24 hour runs around.  The Pilgrims Ultra soaks runners in the history of the Northumberland coastline with outstanding scenery.  Now we bring you a new event that is set to challenge even the very toughest of hardy runners out there.  The North Star Ultra will push the mind and body of those strong enough to take it on with 200 miles of trail running to five different points of a star.  The 13th June 2026 will be the debut of this original brute of an ultra.

With destinations north, east, south east, south west and west the individual legs all have a different flavour.  The north leg to Carter Bar must be attempted first.  Then the other four legs can be done in any order a competitor sees fit.  Then to finish, if participants make it this far, they must finish by doing the north leg once again.  All within 36 hours.  This hefty challenge can be attempted solo or as a team of two or team of four.  A solo attempt is a real undertaking but final positions are based on overall distance covered.  Finishing the whole gig in 36 hours alone would be a truly special feat.

On the team side there are some real strategic issues to address.  With a pair or quad you can only have one runner out on course at the time and switchover can only be done at the central point at Kielder Castle.  Some legs are long whilst others are short.  Ground conditions can vary with quick forest tracks, open terrain or small paths.  Exposure levels vary immensely with sheltered trails like the Lakeside Way or exposed border crossings over to Scotland.  There is also elevation to take into account – do you have a team member who handles ascent well?  Given that overall distance determines ranking do you try and go for the biggest distance leg first or cycle through the shorter ones.  Who does double shifts and if you’re in a pair do you try and keep it even with 3 legs each?  All questions to ponder before, during and after the race.

Runners will be self supported whilst running the individual legs.  Safety teams will be on hand to help should any problems occur and and the end of each leg at the turnaround point is an indoor room where people can rest, recover and get fuelled up with food and drink.  That’s all except the north leg where there will be a marshal at Carter Bar to check on you but there is no shelter and no supplies so you’re on your own.  Each and every runner out on the course will have a tracker with an SOS button and live tracking will be available online for anyone wanting to keep an eye on proceedings.

As well as Kielder the run will be visiting Falstone, Stonehaugh, Byrness and Newcastleton which combine to be the other parts of the star to complete.  This fits with our ethos of bring eco tourism to the north east rural areas and builds on the hard work already under way via other events.  Alex MacLennan Forestry England’s Northumberland, Recreation, Public Affairs adds “It’s very exciting to have this event based and Kielder and for years we’ve been working hard to not only build up the tourism side at Kielder itself but also to reach out to surrounding areas to link up and tell the wider story of Northumberland and the borders- they are all intertwined.

“Initiatives such as the Reivers Trails, the accessible mountain bike trails and our new Mile Down and opening in May the longest downhill trail in England and also the reopening of the Kielder Castle Café later this summer – this is an exciting time for the area. It’s great to see companies like Cold Brew Events invest real time and effort into the area which can only be good for building Kielder’s profile.

“All this ties into celebrating 100 years of Kielder Forest, when you consider from the very 1st sapling planted in 1926, today in 2026, we have the largest forest in the UK (on the English side 250 sq miles) – then add in the adjoining Scottish Forests such as Newcastleton and Wauchope towards Jedburgh and Hawick it is an incredible landscape.

“At the same time these forests are key to the UK timber industry where most homes have Kitchen Worktops or Laminate flooring which original was a tree grown in these areas!

“We welcome all competitors to Darkest Skies in Europe and hope you all have a fantastic event”

The North Star Ultra is waiting for any individual or group who wants the challenge of knowing just how far they can push themselves in 36 hours.  It’s an intricate game of chess contained within an ultra running race and one that is sure to attract those hardy souls who can look deep within themselves to discover the resolve to continue.  Entries are open now.  Good luck.