Hundreds of youngsters plunged into mud, dirt and grime at the weekend while completing an exhausting adventure course.
Determined children, as young as three years old, clambered through pipes and crawled under nets as part of the Mortlach Mini Mudder.
Parents helped the youngest of the entrants complete the course before taking the plunge themselves on Saturday afternoon.
The eyes of the children lit up as they slid down a large water slide before plunging into a large pool of water that resembled a lake by the end of the day.
All the 415 entrants were spotlessly clean when they gathered at the start line in Dufftown’s Tininver Park.
But none of them made it to the finish line without ending up caked in mud. The mucky children, many dressed in onesies, then revelled in being cleaned by a power washer.
Despite the inevitability of ending up brown from head to toe, many of the fanatics competed in fancy dress as superheroes or with custom-made sparkly costumes.
Dozens of local firms helped create the challenging course, which included logs and hay bails. The route for older racers also took in a run through nearby woods.
When Candice Geddes created the event, after taking part in a Tough Mudder event herself, she set an optimistic target of 100 competitors.
Yesterday, the Speyside mum-of-two revealed the event had possibly reached its peak with children coming from further afield to make a splash.
She said: “There was 105 the first year, 218 last year and now we are at more than 400 – so it’s almost doubling each time.
“I don’t think we can manage any more than that though. There were people coming from all over, right down to Perth and Stonehaven. When we started, we didn’t think people would travel more than 15 miles for it.
“But it was fantastic. Everyone really put their all into it and the children were so pleased to finish it.”
Organisers estimate this year’s event will raise about £5,000 to fund improvements to the playground at Mortlach Primary School.
