Are you living life through screens instead of your senses?
Do you ever feel like your body is slowly fossilising into your office chair?
Has your comfort zone quietly become… a cage?
Time to step out.
Far out.
All the way out of birmingham — on foot — until you arrive in a magical land of forest, rivers and ancient myth.
The BIRMINGHAM TO WYE VALLEY Survival Race is a two-day, team-based endurance challenge through ancient woodland and deep river valleys, finishing at the historic border town of chepstow.
You’ll meet early in central Birmingham and board a coach.
When you arrive, your phone is sealed away.
As the coach leaves the city behind, you’ll have no screens, no location pins, no sense of where you’re heading.
For the final stretch, you’ll be blindfolded.
When the blindfolds come off, you’re standing deep inside an ancient forest.
Your first challenge is simple — and not at all easy:
Work out where the hell you are.
Using only your map, compass and collective judgement, you’ll need to orient yourselves, understand the terrain, and decide how to reach the first checkpoint.
You won’t know where any of the checkpoints are in advance.
They’re revealed one by one as the race unfolds — sometimes logically, sometimes mischievously.
At each checkpoint, you’ll face challenges — some physical, some strategic, some lightly absurd.
Handle them well and you gain an edge.
Lose your heads and you’ll pay for it later.
This race rewards calm thinking, communication, and creativity under uncertainty.
You don’t need to be an athlete.
You do need composure, trust in your team, and a tolerance for not knowing.
The Route
You’ll travel entirely on foot, navigating by map and compass.
Expect roughly 28–32 miles over two days — usually slightly more on Day 1 and slightly less on Day 2 (for example, around 17 miles on Saturday and 13 miles on Sunday), taking you through:
• Deep ancient woodland with twisting paths and shifting light
• Mossy forest floors, steep banks and sudden clearings
• River valleys and quiet crossings where kingfishers flash blue
• Borderland hills with long, unexpected views across the Wye
• Landscape that feels alive — threaded with deer paths and old human traces
The views arrive suddenly: a break in the trees, a high bend in the river, a moment of height after enclosure.
Wildlife is part of the experience.
Deer are common.
Boar move through the undergrowth.
Birdsong, movement, and signs of life are everywhere if you’re paying attention.
By Day 2, the forest loosens its grip and the Wye Valley opens out — wide, calm, and luminous.
Your finish line sits within the Wye Valley, surrounded by water, trees and light.
The CAMP
By late afternoon on Day 1, you’ll reach a secluded woodland campsite — your base for the night.
There’ll be:
• A communal fire beneath the trees
• Hot drinks in tin mugs
• A low-key acoustic set that feels more campfire than concert
• Stories, laughter, and darkness settling in properly
Bring your own tent.
Carry what you need.
Sleep surrounded by trees that have watched centuries pass.
The Vibe
Think pilgrimage meets adventure race.
like duke of edinburgh but for adults in a perpetual existential crisis. Bear Grylls meets Alan from The Hangover MeEts wes andersoN.
a proper challenge, minus the macho, with a touch of analogue beauty.
You’ll laugh.
You’ll ache.
You might swear.
You might cry.
And when you reach the journey’s end, you’ll feel something you haven’t felt in a long time.
This is Wolf Pack.
A medicine for modern life.
A story you’ll tell for years.
TEAMS
This is a team event — no lone wolves.
• Minimum team size: 2
• Maximum team size: 8
• Ideal team size: 3–6
Solo sign-ups welcome — we’ll place you in a team.
Minimum age: 18+
TICKETS
Early Bird: £110
Standard: £125
Last Call: £140
Your ticket includes:
Race entry
Race materials
Wolf Pack Challenges
Overnight campsite (Saturday night)
Hot drinks at camp
Live acoustic music set around the fire
Emergency support
The coveted Wolf Pack League patch
Optional extra:
Return coach from Chepstow to Birmingham — £30
(Or take the train — it’s fast and easy)
What you bring
Your own kit (full list sent after sign-up)
All food (this is a self-reliance event)
Your tent, hammock or bivvy
Your sleeping bag and sleeping mat
At least one OS map per team
Grit, humour, and a mild existential wobble
DATES AND LOGISTICS
august 30-31, 2026
Early meet in central Birmingham
Secret coach drop somewhere in the Forest of Dean (~90 minutes travel from Birmingham)
Finish at Chepstow
Optional coach or train return to Birmingham