Stanza Stones Ultra

Stanza Stones 50 mile Ultra

The Stanza Stones Ultra is a 50 mile linear route introduced in 2023. The course has over 6800 ft of ascent and links the towns of Marsden and Ilkley in the South Pennines. The route visits all six carved Stanza Stones and passes through the historic village of Haworth. The terrain includes high moorland and valley sections and follows parts of the Pennine Way, Stoodley Pike, Haworth and Ilkley Moor where additional local stones and circles are encountered.

Event logistics include a minimum age of 20 and two scheduled events, a winter edition on 29 November 2025 and a summer edition on 6 June 2026. The start location is Marsden Cricket Club and the finish is at Ben Rhydding Primary School, Ilkley. The event offers live OpenTracking coverage, food at three indoor checkpoints in Mytholmroyd, Haworth and Bingley, finishers memento and an optional quality cotton finishers T-shirt. Additional facilities include a finishers meal, changing rooms and free camping at the finish location on Friday and Saturday nights. Route resources provided include four leg maps and GPX files. The Stanza Stones themselves consist of six poems about water, carved into stone by a stone artist and placed at chosen landscape sites. Visit the organization's website for the most recent information.