Darlington is on the main East Coast railway line, and the Event Centre is about 10 minutes walk from Darlington railway station.  (After exiting from the platforms, use the underpass to cross to the west side of the lines.  From the western station exit, go straight ahead down Victoria Road.  At the bottom, follow the pavement round to the right and use the pedestrian crossing to cross the inner ring road.  Across the road, turn left and walk round past the Vue cinema.  Curve right to follow Feethams to Darlington Market square.
Note: If you need somewhere to leave a bag while you're out on your run, come to Download and show evidence (e.g. a train ticket) that you've come to the event by public transport.

Darlington is also very cycle friendly, with a good network of cycle paths.

If you are driving to the event, the best place to park is the Feethams multi storey car park.  Parking costs £1.20 per hour.  There are electric car charging points.  The postcode is DL1 5SZ and the What3words reference of the car park entrance is ///chained.intend.transmitted.

Click on the link to see a map.  You can zoom in (and, optionally, switch to Satellite mode) to see the details of the final approach to the event.  You can also get directions by putting in your starting location.

If you're bringing a vehicle (e.g. a motor home) that is too high for the multi storey car park entrance then you'll need to use one of the open air car parks in the town.  Further information is available on the Darlington Borough Council web site.

Enquiries / Download will be in the south-west corner of Darlington Market Hall, which is at the edge of Darlington Market Square.  The What3words reference is ///remark.vets.bolts.

There is an entrance via steps at the south end of the Market Hall.  If you prefer a level-access entrance, walk up the slope and turn right to find the double doors at the south end of the western side of the Market Hall.

Darlington is a Victorian market town steeped in history, which reflects both the the lovely original Quakers architecture and the town's railway heritage.

The competition area is mainly in the town centre, although the longer courses will cross the inner ring road to access the southern part of the town and South Park.

The terrain includes a pedestrian town centre with narrow alleyways and yards.

There are no significant hills.

Please be courteous towards members of the public and be careful not to cause a hazard to yourself or other people.  In particular:-

• Run wide round blind corners.  Another competitor – or an elderly pedestrian – may be approaching the corner from the other direction.
• Take care crossing roads.

Parents of young Juniors:  The route from the Finish back to Download goes back across the same road that Course G and H competitors will have crossed during their runs.  Please tell your child(ren) to follow the taped route, which will take them via the marshalled crossing point.

Adults may enter any course they wish.

There is not much climb on any of the courses.

The course lengths have been measured along optimum routes.

Courses G and H remain in the town centre, mainly in pedestrianised areas, although they do have a marshalled road crossing.  Anyone under the age of 16 on the day of the event who wishes to run one of the other courses (i.e. courses A - F) must be accompanied by an adult during their run.

1:3,000 scale.

Map notes:-

• The boulder field symbol has been used to represent ancient gravestones.
• A black X represents a sculpture
• A black circle with a dot in the middle (cairn symbol) represents a memorial or monument.
• The marked out-of-bounds areas include the entrances to some low level car parks.  Don't go in there!

Control descriptions will be printed on the maps, and loose copies will be available at the Start.

SPORTident electronic punching will be used.

The control boxes will be activated to enable SIAC cards to operate in touch-free mode ..... but please note that you will need to punch the conventional way at the Start and Finish.

SI-cards will not be available for hire on the day, but you can arrange to hire an SI-card (not SIAC) for £1 by adding this to your entry in Racesignup.  Please collect your hire SI-card from Download before your run and return it as you download after your run.  Take care of your hire SI-card, as there will be a £20 charge if you lose it.

Important note:  Courses A and B have more than 30 controls.  If you are entered for either of these courses and have an SI-card 5 (1 - 499,999) or an SI-card 8 (2,000,000 - 2,999,999), then you will need to arrange to use a different SI-card for this event.  If you can't make other arrangements, come to Download before your run and we will lend you an SI-card that can record more than 30 punches.

If you wish to participate in this event, please pre-enter via the Racesignup online entry system.

The entry deadline is midnight on Sunday 28‑Jun‑2026.  After that, you will still be able to enter until midnight on Thursday 2‑Jul‑2026, but there will be a £2 late entry surcharge for Seniors and your choice of course may be limited by map availability.

There will be very limited entry on the day subject to the availability of maps (and, of course, the late entry surcharge) ..... but please make every effort to pre-enter if you possibly can.

11 a.m. - 1 p.m.       Courses close at 3 p.m.

The Start is just outside the south end of the Market Hall.

Toilets in the Market Hall (just inside the double doors in the south-west corner of the building).

First aid at Download.

No drinks will be provided at the Finish, but there are various cafes and food stalls in the Market Hall, and plenty of restaurants and pubs in Darlington town centre.

A comprehensive risk assessment has been carried out by the Organiser, but please remember that competitors take part at their own risk.  Orienteering is an adventure sport – your safety while orienteering is your own responsibility.

Please make sure that you download even if you do not complete your course.

If you have a relevant medical condition, please add this to your competitor details in Racesignup.  Any information provided will be treated in strict confidence and will only be used if you need medical treatment and are unable to communicate at the time.