What are the Ethels in the Peak District?

The Ethels are a list of 95 hills in the Peak District created by Doug Colton in 2021. They're named after Ethel Haythornthwaite, who campaigned to establish the Peak District as Britain's first national park in 1951.

How many Ethels are there and how long does it take to complete them?

There are 95 Ethels in total. It depends on your pace—some ultra-runners have completed all of them in under eight days, while others prefer to bag one or two a year at a leisurely pace.

Why were the Ethels created?

Doug Colton created them to give walkers a Peak District challenge that would encourage people to explore quieter, less-visited hills instead of crowding onto the popular spots like Dovedale and the Hope Valley. It also helps spread visitor pressure more evenly across the national park.

Who Are They?

Doug Colton: The Walker Who Created the Peak District Ethels

Doug Colton created the Ethels—95 Peak District summits named after park founder Ethel Haythornthwaite—as a lockdown project. It's since been downloaded thousands of times.

10 November 20266 min read