newsletter 33 – December 2009

Posted on December 23, 2009 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 33 December 2009

Website www.nunmc.org

BUMPER SEASONAL ISSUE!

Contents:

Forthcoming meets

– our planned events
for January – August, 2010

Helvellyn Hostel Pack
– October, 2009

– Colin reports on the
trip with Keith, Michele, Anna, Szymon,

Izabela, Mirek and Olifka.

Climbing Instruction
– October 2009

– Michele, Steve,
Colin and Saul

Cadair Idris – September
2009

– Keith, Michele,
Szymon, Colin, Anna and Bernice

Fort Augustus,
Scotland – October 2009.

Colin with friends
Trevor and Sue.

Colin's seasonal tip

Novemberfest weekend

Lucky Horseshoe – September 2009

– Colin, Eileen and
Anna finally get good weather in Snowdonia

News from New Zealand

– a recent e-mail from
Ann and Mike

Homage to Catalonia

– Eileen reports on the trip to the Spanish Pyrenees

Late arrivals at the
Mountaineers' Ball

Merry Christmas

– one and all!

FORTHCOMING MEETS – JANUARY-AUGUST
2010

Feb 11^th
-14^th Scottish
Highlands. Onich.

Corran
Bunkhouse. Contact Matt. Now taking deposits.

March 6^th
Sowdownia
– Carneddau

All
the 3000 ft peaks in one day! Contact
David

April 10^th
11^th Lakes
– Wasdale.

Camp,
climb and walk in Wasdale with Steve.

May 8^th Snowdonia.

Scrambling
with Anna.

May
(Whitsun) Highlands
– Lochnagar.

Backpacking
trip. Dates TBA. See Matt.

June 12^th
13^th Corris.
North Wales.

BBQ
at the Coventry MC hut with Ann & Mike.

June 19^th
20th Canoeing
on the River Wye.

No
prev. exper. needed, but you need to be a competent swimmer. All kit provided. See Andrew for details.

June
20th Cadair
Idris.

Summer
Solstice. Come and greet the new dawn with David.

July 10^th
11^th Mid-Wales

Camping
with Colin.

August
14^th Peak
District

Climb,
walk, bike with Keith & Michelle.

Other Events – all
welcome!

TBA
( Autumn) Skye
– SYHA guided Cuillins
holiday. (details from David)

Pyrenees
– Odessa Valley
(details from Eileen)

Macgillycuddy's
Reeks – West Cork, Ireland. (see Matt)

And there's much more than
this going on! Visit us on a Thursday
at Attleborough Liberal Club, Bull St Nuneaton for impromptu activities, or
ring Colin on 024 76 372
587 or Matt on 024 76 758
322 if you can't get down. And don't forget our website at www.nunmc.org

___________________________________________________________

STOP PRESS

News of these social events just in. Please see Michele for further information.

Jan. 15th ‘Aladdin'
– Panto at the Abbey Theatre, Nuneaton

Mar. 20th Bedworth
Symphony Orchestra

Helvellyn Hostel Pack – October,
2009

Colin reports on the trip with Keith, Michele, Anna,
Szymon, Izabela, Mirek and Olifka.

We gathered at the agreed meeting place near to Thirlmere a
little later than planned, possibly because our Polish and Czech friends were
enjoying their first visit to the Lake District and letting photo opportunities
get in the way of forward progress.

No damage done, we set off for Stick's Pass on a mild and
sunny morning with pleasant walking.
After more photos we slowly climbed and eventually turned into the mist
for Raise, Whiteside, Lower Man and eventually Helvellyn. As time was getting on Colin and Anna
descended Striding Edge (Anna's number-one target) while the others descended
Swirrel Edge before going on to Catsyecam.
Lower down we all re-connected before walking on to Helvellyn Youth
Hostel.

The hostel was fine and it was a bit of an innovation for me
to have my hostel meal served to the table by the staff rather than have large
amounts of mashed potato scooped onto the plate at a serving hatch.

Later, whilst watching TV in the common room, we learned with
interest that in Poland ‘Fawlty Towers' is known as ‘Nice Hotel' and one of
their most popular TV programmes is ‘Poland Has Talent'.

In the morning we organised our own breakfast, there being
more than just a passing interest in the impressive stuff that Szymon and his
friends were consuming.

Leaving the hostel we again made for Stick's Pass on a much
breezier morning. Higher up, Keith,
Michele and Anna took in Sheffield Pike before catching us up at the pass where
it was quite cold and blustery. Lower
down the walking was quite pleasant as we stopped for a break in the
sunshine. Again interesting Polish food
came out of rucksacks with the sausage being passed around and going down very
well.

Back at the cars all was in order. Thanks to the drivers.

A splendid weekend.

Climbing Instruction
– October 2009

Michele, Steve, Colin and Saul

This was the second of the climbing days under the instruction
of Deborah Laugharne, who brought along trainee instructor Jim to help out.

There were due to be more of us but circumstances conspired to
keep others away. On the plus side,
those of us who could attend got more attention as a consequence. On our day it was windy and cold so we were
directed to Yarncliffe Quarry rather than the original destination of Stanage
Edge.

Deborah was very organised and reassuring and I would
certainly consider engaging her for any future activity.

We did Centipede (VD),
Corner Crack (D), Ant's Crack (S), Ant's Wall (HS 4a) and Ant's Arete (HS 4a).

Steve also did Wake Me If I Die (E1 5b). We spent some time practising setting up
belays before moving on to Grindleford Station café for a drink.

Excellent day!

Visit
Deborah Laugharne's website at http://www.deborahlaugharne.co.uk/

Cadair Idris –
September 2009

Keith, Michele, Szymon, Colin, Anna and Bernice meet
up with Ann Hobson, Mike, Steve and John from Coventry MC.

From Minffordd we
climbed up the main path, with Bernice and Michele soon deciding to do their
own thing. The mist gradually began to
break up, but not until we came out of the summit shelter.

Steve and John from
Coventry moved off

more quickly, while the remaining
six continued to Gau Craig at the eastern end of the ridge. From there it was a steep descent to the
road and the track back to Minffordd, with the afternoon and evening being the
best part of the day.

Fort Augustus,
Scotland – October 2009.

Colin with friends Trevor and Sue.

23^rd – Glas Bheinn
and Meall Mor.

Two small hills either side of
the Rannoch Moor road on the way up.
You have to start early for this.
Wet underfoot.

24^th – Meall Dubh
788m.

Wet underfoot and some rain from
above but another one for the list.

25^th

Rain, but cleared up enough for a
ramble to a nearby hill for a trig point.

26^th – Carn a'
Chuillin 816m.

No rain today but dull throughout. Some pretty empty country for as far as the
eye could see. Two ptarmigii (sic).

27^th – Carn Mhic an
Toisich 680m.

Rained steadily until about 2.30 pm. A long way across a very wet moor. Highpoint – successfully getting the car off
a wet grass verge.

28^th – Meall a'
Chrathaich 679m.

More rain than expected according
to the forecast. A couple of sunny
spells were quite nice but the moor was saturated.

29^th – Drying out.

30^th – Creag Dubh
658m.

Drove to Glen Roy to try and miss
the rain. Failed. Short walk but gear wet through again.

31^st – Carn a'
Chaochain 706m.

Given permission to park near to
farm. Covered in mud with coos (sic)
all over the place. Drizzle with mist
higher. 10 km of moor saturated. Rain. Eventually reached summit but driven
on by Sue to trig point beyond, which was one of the very few not yet visited
by our trig group. (Playing silly baggers again! – Ed.) On return streams much higher
with one in particular not far short of requiring wading! Would have made little difference.

1^st Nov.

Drove south to Trevor and Sue's. Rain in central and southern Scotland
awesome. Several river valleys in
Northumberland flooded. Had to wait for
2 hours while Trevor's car was sorted by the RAC.

Psssssst!

Colin's top tip for maps 'n
stuff. Check it out!

http://www.dash4it.co.uk/store/

(eg Landranger £4.89 not
£6.99, Explorer maps £5.55 not £7.99)

NOVEMBERFEST WEEKEND, 2009

Colin reports on his trip to the Brecon
Beacons with Debra, Keith, Michele, Richard, David, Matt, Eileen, Sheila, Andy,
Saul, John, Szymon and Izabela.

Bwlch gets our vote

The Star Bunkhouse is situated in Bwlch between Crickhowell
and Brecon and convenient for the Brecon Beacons and the Black Mountains. It cannot be said that the weekend was
anything but wet, but if you missed it you missed out and I would certainly use
this location again. There was a
definite lack of house rules (unlike some recent places we've stayed in). We were just left to be sensible and to get
on with things. Also the pub across the
road was very welcoming, as was the one used by many of the group on Saturday
lunchtime.

Friday – the clans
gather

On Friday Debra and I got out on nearby Tor y Foel. At 551m. this wasn't really mountainous, but
very pleasant other than for the fact that the ground was saturated and it was
slow going across wet fields. Keith,
Michele and Richard also got out onto Sugar Loaf near to Abergavenny, where
they presumably had a similar experience.
Early arrivals settled in while messages were passed to the others
warning of a massive traffic build-up at Monmouth. Those who missed the message were there for a long time.

Saturday

David gets extreme

Saturday was wet.
While Izabela stayed in doing all of our washing-up chores David headed
off for the Brecons. It was
appalling. At one point David was on
all fours in the mist, wind and rain when he passed a soldier crawling along in
the opposite direction. Pen y Fan was
missed out as being too dangerous before he headed back.

Colin gets furtive

I also did my own thing, heading for Myarth from the
bunkhouse. ‘Where?' I hear you
say. Well, it's a hill bagging
thing. All you really need to know is
that folks aren't really welcome on Myarth so doing it in the rain on a
November morning is about the best way to go undetected. Even farmers and gamekeepers have a morning
in bed from time to time. Sorry to turn
down your offer to come with me, Eileen. Your company would have been welcome
but that bright red cagoule might have attracted the wrong kind of attention.

The rest get round

The others headed for Cefn Moel and the round of Llangorse
Lake from the bunkhouse. With the rain
and wind the group split up but most ended up in the pub at Llangors. Three cheers for the bloke in the pub who
offered Sheila a lift back to the bunkhouse, as she was really suffering with a
migraine.

Keith and Michele tried a second hill but got blown and
buffeted about, while Eileen's group rounded the lake (much bigger than usual)
and ended up walking along flooded roads.
If you haven't seen Saul's photos via e-mail or on our Facebook site
then have a look, particularly at the one of Szymon, who looks as wet as we all
felt. Back
at the bunkhouse we took it in turns putting our stuff in and out of the drying
room.

Everybody loves Saturday night

The evening went well.
There was plenty to eat (and more for breakfast and lunch) and we all
sat around a large table together. The
buffet system seems to be here to stay – and a very good system it is too. There was lots of variety and we have some
pretty good cooks nowadays. Alcohol
consumption was down on last year, but that would have been a difficult one to
beat.

Sunday

Sunday morning started bright with promising sunshine. However, by the time we were all ready to
leave it was pouring again and everyone had a very good reason why it was not
convenient to go out. Many thanks to
all the organisers, chefs and drivers.

So, where is it to be next year?

Lucky Horseshoe – September 2009

Colin, Eileen and Anna finally strike it lucky in
Snowdonia.

All previous attempts by Anna to do the Horseshoe and to see
something of it as well had failed. So
with the possibility of a decent day we parked up at Pen y Pass (now £6 per
day) for another try.

Higher up it was misty, but as we climbed it
began to break and although cool it remained mostly clear.

We crossed Crib Goch but it was 2.15 before we reached the summit,
where it was quite busy for a Thursday.
Testing out the new café was expensive (You have been warned!) but the
building and interior weren't too bad. (Praise
indeed, Colin! – Ed.)

We descended the Watkin Path,
where it is a bit steep and loose, before climbing

Y Lliwedd and descending back to
Pen y Pass for 6.05pm.

Good day!

Breaking news from New Zealand

Colin forwards a recent e-mail from Ann and Mike:

We are still having a
lovely time in NZ.

Flew to Bangkok, saw Buddhist temples. Flew to Auckland in the
North Island, cycled East Cape Ride – 300 miles. Day trek on the Tongariro,
crossing emerald-green volcanic lakes. Rotarua thermal springs. Wellington City – lovely rose gardens, ferry
over Cook Strait to Picton. Went to Marlborough
Sound – a day walk on the Queen Charlotte Trail. Kaikora, whale watching (no whales, but saw albatross, great!)
Have seen lots of varieties of native birds, great with my binoculars!

Next trip is 6-day trek: The Grand Traverse, Greenstone and
Routeburn. We stay in huts. Weather has been very good. All the flowers
are in bloom: honeysuckle, roses,
lupins – all growing wild.

Now in the South Island, staying with a friend of
Mike's. Yesterday we got back from a super trip on Doubtful
Sound. This was an overnight trip on a ship in a fjord. We saw
penguins, dolphins and seals. The weather wasn't brilliant but the
food made up for it.

Today we did a delightful walk on Ben Lomond, with wonderful views
across the lake. Queenstown is near too.

Love from Ann and Mike

Homage to Catalonia

Eileen reports on this year's trip to
the Spanish Pyrenees in August / September with Keith, Les and Ann.

Acclimatisation and culture

Easy Jet flight from
East Midlands Airport to Barcelona, arriving in the city at about

6 pm on the Wednesday evening.
We booked into our hotel, which was conveniently situated near the city
centre and spent some time exploring, booking bus tickets and finding somewhere
to eat.

We spent the following
day exploring the city initially on the city tour bus then on foot. I found
Barcelona to be an amazing place and very easy to get around, having a very
efficient metro system. Ann and I went to a concert in the evening – two
excellent classical guitarists playing amongst other things pieces from
Carmen. The concert was performed in a
church, so excellent acoustics. The men went off to find a bar.

Wind Horses

Friday we caught the bus
to Baga and to the mountains. The route we had chosen was called Cavalls Del
Vent (Wind Horses). As well as a hiking route this is also a competition route
for hill runners. I think the record holder completed the route in just over 9
hours. Our plan was to do it in 5 days.

Day
one

Bus to Baga (altitude 788m) 8.5 km walk (3hrs 15 mins excl. breaks)
to the Refuge de Rebost (1,640m). Although the paths were well marked, the
trail was marked with orange spots or circles; they were not always that easy
to follow.

Day
two

Rebost to Cortals de l'Ingla Shelter (1,610m). We started the day walking through a black
pine forest. Then into alpine meadows,
followed by quite a strenuous climb to the summit of LaTosa (2,537m). A short
break at the Niu d'Aliga shelter then along the ridge and a big descend into
the Moixero Meadow, calling in for a cup of tea at the Serrat de les Esposes
shelter before making our way on to the Refuge at Cortals de l'Ingla. We were
treated to the most spectacular mountain scenery throughout the day, and on the
wild life side managed to see lots of alpine flowers, a few eagles and wild
horses.

Day's total: 22.6 km with 1,600m ascent
and 1,590 m descent. Total walking time:
8 hrs 25 mins (excluding breaks).

Day
three

Cortals de l'Ingla Shelter to Gresolet Shelter (1,280m), again
walking through spectacular mountain scenery, alpine meadows, pine forests and
mountain scree. The route is very rocky in places as we pass through the
Grosolans mountain pass (2,430m), crossing from the Moixero Massif into the
Cadi Massif. Great views of eagles, and Les managed to spot a couple of
chamois. The last 3.3 km of the route involve 570m of descent which was very
severe in places. I found this rather
challenging to say the least, but we all made it without incident.

Stats for the day: Distance 24.6 km with
1,560 m ascent and 1,842m descent. Total
walking time: 10 hrs 45 mins (excluding breaks).

When we got there…

… the shelter was bare.

To this point all had
gone to plan, but when we arrived at the Gresolet shelter we found it deserted.

The dormitory was open
but no signs of the warden. We sat and waited for a while and then discussed
our options. No one fancied the difficult 3.3 km climb back up to the last
shelter we had passed. We did have a
few bits of food between us, crisps and the like, and we did have access to the
dormitory so, at a push, we could stay but would have no food for the following
day. Unlike all the other shelters there was another building a little way up
the hill and Keith and Les went to investigate. Our luck was in as it turned
out to be another refuge. This one was built in the 1800s and was an
extraordinary building,

(continued)

attached to a church and little changed since the time of
construction. Although it was not officially open, the owner – a lovely lady
called "Esperanto" – very kindly took us in, cooked us a meal and provided us
with a bed and breakfast. Unfortunately, she only spoke Catalonian, which made
conversation a bit difficult. However
with Keith's Spanish and a bit of sign language we got by. Keith was all for torching the other shelter
(Way to go, Keith! – Ed.) and we
barely restrained him from heaping all kinds of ills on the warden, who had
returned by the time we left in the morning. After saying our farewells we set
out on our next leg of the circuit.

Day
four

Gresolet Shelter – Sant Jordi Shelter

The Gresolet shelter is at the lowest altitude (1,280m) of all the
shelters and the morning started with a climb up to the Coll de la Bauma
(1,577m), mainly walking through forest with lots of thyme and lavender bushes.
Here again we encountered a problem: the route was being re-marked, and we
dutifully followed the markings but ended up in a village quite a distance from
where we should have been. We located where we were on the map but still had a
lot of difficulty finding our way through the forest to where we should have
been. This cost us about three hours. We eventually found the right route and
continued to descend into Cal Cerdanyola (910m), the lowest point on the
circuit. The route from here starts to climb, with lots of stream crossings,
scrambling over large boulders and fairly steep and rough terrain. This was
probably the most strenuous but exciting part of the circuit and when we
eventually arrived at the Sant Jordi shelter we were all exhausted. We had
planned to carry on to the Rebost shelter a further 11 km away but at
17.30 it was too late to start out and
still make it in time for dinner at 20.00 hrs.

Day's stats: Difficult to work out
exactly but in the region of 20-24 km. 1,040m ascent, 780m descent. Walking
time: 9 hrs 15 mins.

Day
five

Sant Jordi shelter – Baga (788m)

From the shelter we headed in a southerly direction towards the Ca
L'Escriu (1,310m) and over the Col (1509m), then downhill through beech and
pine forests to the road. We followed this road for 4 km back to the small town
of Baga, where we had time for a leisurely lunch before catching the bus back
to Barcelona.

Day's stats: Distance 11 km. 199m ascent,
788 m descent. Total walking time: 3 hrs 30 mins.

Warming down…

…and more
culture for some

On our return to Barcelona we had another rest day sightseeing. Ann
and I went to the Gaudi Museum, the guys to the Sea Life Centre. Then we headed for the beach to catch some
rays and top up the tan. We had a further morning in the city before catching
the bus back to the airport and our flight home.

About the route

The Cavalls Del Vent is a circular tour of

97 km from Baga back to Baga, although we did more, having deviated
from the route on a couple of occasions) There are 8 refuges or shelters on
route and we were given a card so that we could collect the stamps from each
shelter to prove that we had completed the route. The refuges provide a very
good evening meal, bed in a large dormitory, breakfast and basic washing and showering
facilities. Like all places, some are better than others. Most sell drinks and
snacks. It was late in the season so we had most of the refuges to ourselves.
The weather was hot and sunny throughout with temperatures in the high twenties
and early thirties.

Marks out of 10…

I think that this has been one of the best club trips so far. The
walking was challenging at times, with long days, but very rewarding with
spectacular views and varied terrain. I loved Barcelona, where we found lots of
interesting things to do and see on our rest days. A great combination and a
great contrast – from the noisy, bustling city to the quiet solitude of the
mountains.

And finally…

For any fans of I'M SORRY – I HAVEN'T A CLUE, here are this
issue's late arrivals at the Mountaineers' Ball.

Just in time for the Ladies'
Excuse-Me, would you welcome please:

Mr and Mrs Beenah and their snappy, screwy daughter Cara,

From South Wales… Mr and
Mrs Vann and their daughter Penny,

And all the way from South Asia…

Mr and Mrs Oo and their
achingly cool daughter Kate.

A massive

THANK YOU!

to all our
contributors. Great stuff! Keep it coming!

P.S.

If you've
got a great story but no time to write it up, give me a ring and I'll interview
you for the mag.

– Andrew

The views
expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the editor or committee.

Posted in 2009 | Tagged 2009, newsletters | Comments Off

Newsletter 32 – July 2009

Posted on August 16, 2009 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 32 July 2009

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

PROGRAMME APRIL – SEPTEMBER 2009 Matt

August 7^th-9^th Peak District with Debra. Weekend camping or just come for the day.

Aug 24^th – 3rd Sept Pyrenees with Eileen.

September 5^th North Wales Cadair Idris with Colin

September 17^th – 21^st Highlands Crianlarich SYHA. See Matt or David.

October 9^th-10^th Lake district YHA 2 dayer. Details TBA see Eileen

November 20^th-22^nd Novemberfest, Bulch, Brecon Beacons. See Matt.

December 12^th Peak District with Matt.

January 8^th – 9^th North Wales YHA weekend. See David

Feb half term week Highlands Glen Shee area. Details TBA. See Matt.

June 2010 Ann & Mike’s Corris BBQ. Details TBA. See Ann

And there’s much more than this going on. Visit us on a Thursday evening from 8.30pm at Attleborough Liberal Club, Bull Street for impromptu activities, or ring Andrew on 01827 717 648 or Matt on 024 76 758 322 if you can’t get down. And don’t forget our website at http://www.nunmc.org/

NOVEMBERFEST Brecon Beacons 2009 Matt

I have booked the Star bunkhouse for 20th – 22nd Nov. This was the only weekend available for exclusive use in November. Please have a look at the web site. http://www.starbunkhouse.com/ Details to follow.

Crianlarich 17^th – 21^st Sept 2009 Matt

Due to problems with access due to stag hunting we have decided against going backpacking as usual this September. We have decided instead to travel by car and stay at Crianlarich SYHA. This should give us maximum chance of bagging a few Munro’s. Cost will be £15.00 per night. If you are interested please let me know.

NMC SOCIAL PROGRAMME Michele
Please suggest places to go, things to do – I am looking out for comedy nights, outdoor theatre performances, ceilidhs….. If you have an idea, do let me know…..
Further ahead – Saturday 31st October, Hallowe’en Hoedown in Hinckley.

COMING UP North Wales YHA 8^th – 9^th January 2009 David

The YHA have a bad habit of closing for the winter. Especially YHA’s where we would like to go. For January 2010, the only ones open in North Wales will be Capel Curig and Bestwy Coed.

I would suggest that we book for Capel Curig. Everyone will know where it is, being close to everything we would want to tackle in winter, with a reasonable possibility of snow. It is not as far to travel as originally planned, and is close to places where re-hydration is possible in pint glasses.

Can you please let me know as soon as possible whether you are interested so that this can be booked well in advance.

SNOWDON HORSESHOE 4^th April 2009 Colin

Parking at Pen y Pass can be difficult unless you get there early so with the best intentions we set out at unearthly hours such as 5.20am. With a group that turned out to be 15 things did not quite go to plan as not everyone got onto the car park and contact was difficult as mobiles get no signal.

To cut a long story short Ann, David, Felicity, Stuart, Len, Mo, Matt, Debra and Colin set off not quite knowing what had happened to the others. Below Crib Goch summit whilst taking a break familiar voices were heard in the mist, out of which emerged Anna, Sheila, Saul, John, Simon and Paul. Together we climbed to Crib Goch where the crossing was made in breezy, misty and greasy conditions. On the final climb to Snowdon summit a climber was sadly receiving resuscitation and things did not look good. (Story from BBC News below).

At the top it was busy but also cool and misty. With the extra time it takes for a larger group to climb; only David and Stuart decided to go for the complete round. The rest of us descended with the noise of the rescue helicopter clearly nearby returning to Pen y Pass at the same time as David and Stuart.

Good turnout but pity about the hour we all lost at the beginning of the day.

Man dies despite difficult rescue Story from BBC NEWS:

A man has died after suffering a suspected heart attack after being taken ill whilst walking on Snowdon.

His death came despite the efforts of a search and rescue helicopter which had hovered 10ft (3m) above a railway line in low cloud to reach him.

The man, 51, was flown by a crew from RAF Valley on Anglesey to hospital in Bangor after Saturday’s incident.

Capt Mathew Gower said the skilled manoeuvre was something the crew had trained for but it was “not nice”.

“We were flying in cloud, quite close to the railway, and it is something we are trained for, but it’s not nice,” he said.

“We were about 10ft (3m) from the ground, from Clogwyn to about 100m short of the summit, which took us about 10 minutes.

“We did it in stages and then stopped every so often focusing on the ground beneath our feet,” he added.

Winch man Lee Clark was then deployed to run the 200m to the casualty, before they were both winched back into the aircraft.

The helicopter then climbed vertically and broke through the cloud to fly to hospital in Bangor, Capt Gower added.

TOMINTOUL (Northern Cairngorm) 11^th-17^th April 2009 Colin

Self catering with long time walking friends Trevor and Sue. Decent week but cold overnight.

Saturday – drove up starting from Nuneaton at 4.45am and took in the Graham Creag Dubh 756m near to Nrwtonmore. Then moved on to RSPB Loch Garten where a capercaillie was bagged. Excellent.

Sunday – Cnap Chaochan Aitinn 715m another Graham. (Hill between 2,000ft and 2,500ft with at least 500ft of re-ascent all around).

Monday – Carn Mor 804m and Carn Ealasaid 776m. Two Corbetts. (Hill between 2,500ft and 3,000ft with at least 500ft of re-ascent all around).

Tuesday – Cook’s Cairn 756m a Graham, and Corriehabbie Hil 781m a Corbett.

Wednesday – Ben Rhinnes 840m another Corbett.

Thursday – Carn nan Tri-Tighearnan 615m a Graham.

Friday – Hills of Cromdale – Carn a’ Ghille Chearr 710m and Creagan a’ Chaise 722m. Two Grahams. Wore spare boots for the first time this week and regretted it as I got blisters on both heels.

Nice quiet hills and good company. Now you know what Munroists do with their time after completion.

LLECH DU SPUR 18^th April 2009 David

In attendance, David, Anna, Saul, Mo, Keith H, and Debra.

This was not such an early start as two weeks beforehand. The weather was good – sunny with a bit of cool wind on top. The name of the game this time was to tackle the Llech Du Spur. We met at Bethesda. One party travelled by the northern road and the second via the A5. Both arrived at the same time notwithstanding that the A5 group started earlier and the northern route was much further. As to which is the best way to get there is a matter of taste.

The walk starts up the valley of Afon Llafar on a good and largely level path to the head of the cwm which took over an hour. The fun then started on the ascent. We saw another party of two make a number of mistakes by misreading the ground and had to retreat. The pathway to the spur was located and the scrambling started. This was great fun and fairly sustained. Only three went over the slab which is exposed. To reach the top of Carnedd Dafydd included a first, second and third lunch, which took about four hours. We carried on to the top of Carnedd Llewelyn and then to Yr Elen to complete the horseshoe. This included Saul finding a bunch of balloons which he tied to his pack which seemed to propel him down the hill at a fast rate, running off into the distance. This was a really good day out. 7hrs and about 4000ft.

GIRLS’ BACKPACKING WEEKEND 23^rd-24^th May 2009 Eileen

(or The Number 1 Ladies’ Backpacking Expedition)

Anna, Sheila and myself (Eileen) left Anna’s house at 7 pm on Saturday morning to drive to the Lake District. The weather forecast was good so all boded well. Despite it being a Bank Holiday weekend traffic was fairly light and we reached the village of Seathwaite in the Duddon valley by 11 am. We parked in a small lay-by opposite the church just outside the village. We shouldered our rucksacks and headed out through the Dunnerdale valley, skirting the forest, Harter and Birker Fells to cross Hardknott Pass at the Jubilee bridge and up into the Esk valley. We made camp besides the river near Scar Lathing, a site I have used before. As it was still light Sheila suggested that we go for a walk which somehow developed into an assent of Scafell Pike. Unfortunately half way up the Broadstand path the mist descended and I did question what I was doing and, “was this such a good idea after all”, but having got that far I was not going to turn back. We made it to the summit without a problem.

There were lots of people on the summit plateau most taking part in the Three Peaks race. It was now dark and visibility was still very limited making it difficult to find our way back on to our path. Fortunately, because there were several other groups on the mountain we were able to get assistance and a GPS grid reference and eventually located the correct route back down and back to the camp site. We arrived back into camp at 1 am, cooked some food then went to bed. After our late night adventure we slept late on Sunday morning, breakfasted, packed up and started back down the valley returning down Mosedale to Cockley Beck then followed the River Duddon and various other footpaths to return to the car at Seathwaite.

The whole objective of the weekend was to give Anna a taste of backpacking and wild camping. I chose the area as it is a bit off the beaten track and I thought would give more of a wilderness feel. The trip did not go quite as I had intended, as I had planned to get up early on the Sunday morning to climb Scafell Pike, but the way it turned out was quite an experience and much more adventurous. We were blessed with good weather, lots of great scenery and wild life (we saw a grass snake) and a very enjoyable weekend. Total of 26 km walked with full packs (16 miles).

SPECIALIST BOOK SITE Andrew

I received a letter from Bob Hampson about triplebbbooks.co.uk. Bob is a mountaineer and the site specialises in mountaineering, climbing and guide books.

The site is very accessible, with a wide range of sections from ACCESS to YETI.

If any one buys from Bob and can comment favourably on the service, let me know and I’ll suggest a link on our web site. The book firm is on http://www.triplebbbooks.co.uk/

TRYFAN & GLYDER FACH 30^th May 2009 Colin

Colin, David, Anna and Andrew ascended Heather Terrace on Tryfan on a cracking day. Once the North Ridge was behind us we left most of the people behind as well. The ascent was made by Little Gully, Grade 1 and North Gully Grade 1. David knew the route and Andrew had been on it before so they took the lead. The scrambling was interesting and continuous and we came out right at the top of Tryfan to meet the hordes. After descending to the bwlch we made for Bristly Ridge, Grade 1. I always think that this has more to it than most Grade 1 scrambles especially on the first steep gully. Here Anna had a bit of a fright as stones began to fall from above as she was on the steepest part of the gully. Once up all was well and the rest of the scramble went without incident. At the top we had to endure one of the noisiest groups I have ever encountered on the hill with some twenty something woman holding court to her friends and all within hailing distance. Sadly we encountered them again but it didn’t detract from the day.

From the top of Glyder Fach we sidestepped Castle of the Wind (now regarded as 3,000ft) and descended down the Gribin Ridge, Grade 1. This is easier than the other scrambles and though loose and steep in places is fine in good visibility. At the bottom we re-hydrated at Ogwen before returning to the car at the end of a fine day.

RECESSION-BEATING INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY Andrew

Is anyone interested in coming in with me to set up a second-hand mountaineering kit shop? Someone told me it’ll be money for old rope.

ALVIE, CAIRNGORMS 12^th – 18^th May 2009 Colin

Leaving home at 4.45am meant that after exactly 400 miles I was ready to climb a hill even though it was a rather leisurely 12.35pm start. The target was the Corbett Beinn a’ Chuallaich 891m conveniently climbed from a high road to the east. It may have been a bright sunny day at the bottom but at the top there was a cold biting wind. Views to the west showed that winter was not yet a thing of the past as the Ben Nevis range was covered in snow. I even contemplated phoning Matt and David to suggest they take an ice axe on their upcoming backpacking trip.

After camping at Alvie to the south of Aviemore I set off the next day for a bit of a walk. The target was Monadh Mor 1113m but it was a long way across the other side of the Cairngorm plateau from my starting point in Glen Feshie. On the ascent I caught up with a group of 18, almost the only other group out on the hill, only to discover that they were going in the same direction as myself. Eventually I got ahead on the far side of the remote top of Tom Dubh 918m when we all had to ponder the crossing of a rather forceful river/stream even though we were at 850m. On Monadh Mor there was a lone backpacker who had walked even further from distant Braemar. Returning by a similar route I had intended to take in another Munro but though the mind was willing sore feet and cramp told me that my body was not so sure. Back at the campsite Derek, Eileen and Poppy the dog had arrived from Mull so we got to catching up with the news.

The next day we all headed for Cairngorm, not to climb and particular hill, but to search for Dotterel and Ptarmigan and whatever else on the plateau. The wind was unpleasantly strong but once high up we headed for the relative shelter of Cairn Lochan and duly located said scarce birds for us all to observe and Derek to photograph. The wind moderated a little in the afternoon as we trudged through some extensive snow patches to complete a circuit. We resisted the temptation to continue to Cairngorm itself so we spent a day in the mountains without visiting a major summit!

The following day the weather changed from windy with blue skies to overcast and drizzly. Derek and Eileen had an early start as they were to be at RSPB Loch Garten for 5.30am in a search for Capercaillie. I on the other hand had a lie-in though I did generate enough energy to get out to climb the Graham Creag Liath 743m near to Newtonmore. I had hoped to go on to the Munro beyond but it was much further across wet ground and as the weather was already cold, breezy and drizzly it didn’t take much to persuade me that my time would be much better spent with a cup of tea back at the campsite.

The following day we all settled for a birdwatching day along the River Findhorn and to Loch Ruthven. Nice drive but a pity it was generally overcast. Viewing the Slavonian Grebes in breeding plumage was worth the drive.

The next day myself and Eileen took to the hills while Derek took his camera and Poppy on a local tour. Glen Feshie looked uninviting early on but it brightened up and we made good time to Mullach Clach a’ Bhlair 1019m. On the descent we caught sight of a Peregrine along a line of cliffs and lower down by the Feshie you could almost believe it was summer. The bridge across the Feshie at Carnachuinn was interesting with its warning notice concerning the state of the bridge. On this day it wasn’t too much of a issue but the Feshie is a proper river and in spate conditions I would certainly have walked the 2.5km downstream to the next bridge.

On the final day we all went for the birdwatching option again, this time to Lochindorb and the coast near to Nairn. I wont bore you with a species list lest to mention that we all eventually got to see a Capercaillie at Loch Garten. Only modesty prevents me from mentioning who actually was first to spot the birdie in the heather.

Nice trip. Thanks to Derek, Eileen and Poppy for their splendid company.

GREAT LANGDALE CAMPING WEEKEND 19^th-21^st July 2009 Eileen

By Friday evening 12 club members plus one baby (Isobell) and a dog (Max) finally made it to “Midge City” the NT camping site in the Langdales. We were on the group field so could all pitch together, with the exception of Alastair, Kim and Isobell who chose to camp on the other side of the field from the rest of the group, in case Isobell did not enjoy her first camping trip and became noisy. Not that this would have mattered as the group camping adjacent to us were none too quiet. We did retaliate with Keith H’s snoring and Richard’s 3 am mattress inflating, but some of the other group finally got the edge by getting up, flashing lights, packing tents and mini vans at 3 am on Sunday morning. However none of this spoilt a great weekend.

Saturday dawned a bit grey and showery. The weather forecast was for it to brighten later, so we prepared for the mountains. Keith and Michele opted for Bowfell and the various Nuttalls in that area. Richard and Max chose a valley walk, Kim Alastair and Isobell did their own thing and the rest of us – Colin, Saul, Keith H, Les, Anna, Liz and myself went up to Stickle Tarn. We did not attempt the scramble up Jack’s Rake on Pavey Ark as weather conditions were still very wet and the rock slippery, but we carried on to Sergeant Man and High Raise contouring down to Stake Pass. Here we had intended to take the path to Angle Tarn but managed to miss it and continued down Stake Pass into the valley and back to the Old Dungeon Ghyll for a quick refreshment break before heading back to camp.

The weather did improve as the day went on, the showers stopped and we had a warm dry night much to the relief of Keith H who’s tent leaked on the first night.

Sunday morning was warm and sunny. We packed up, leaving the cars at the camp site. Keith H, Les, Anna, Liz and myself left the camp site at 9.15 to climb Pike O’ Blisco. Got some great views from the top, we returned via Oxendale getting back to the cars at 2 pm for the return journey home.

Dear All,
I am contacting you to let you know we have a climbing store in Hinckley. We have an extensive range for Wild Country, Red Chili, DMM, Petzl and Beal ropes in stock. Plus we can get almost anything in to order, normally next day.
I would like to offer all your members a in store/ over the phone Discount.
All they need to do is let us know they are a member of the Nuneaton Mountaineering Club and we will give them 10{0f26faa9c0b3f117931ea341f900fb983db575de004bb51ae2b36b8aa3f7b6a4} off. This includes everything in store, not just climbing gear.
We also stock clothing and footwear, snowboarding, waterboarding, kite surfing, mountain boarding and inline skate equipment, including wetsuits, watches, sunglasses etc.
For the families among you we also have a great range of children’s clothing from ANIMAL.
Anyway, I would be really grateful if you could pass this information on to your members and we look forward to maybe meeting some of them too. Check out our website http://www.bornextreme.co.uk/

PS DEBRA TELLS ME THAT YOU SHOULD EXPECT A 15{0f26faa9c0b3f117931ea341f900fb983db575de004bb51ae2b36b8aa3f7b6a4} DISCOUNT RATHER THAN JUST 10{0f26faa9c0b3f117931ea341f900fb983db575de004bb51ae2b36b8aa3f7b6a4}. Ed.

Posted in 2009 | Tagged 2009, newsletters | Comments Off

Newsletter 31 – April 2009

Posted on August 15, 2009 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 31 April 2009

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

PROGRAMME APRIL – SEPTEMBER 2009 Matt

April 4^th Snowdon horseshoe with Debra. You’ll kick yourself if you miss it.

April Friday 24th NMC 10^th Anniversary meal. Check it out with Eileen.

May 14^th – 18th Backpacking in Scotland. Location – The Grey Corries. See Matt or David.

May TBA Brecon Beacons day walk.

June 19^th-21^st Great Langdale, Lake District. See David for camping and/or seeing the sun up on solstice weekend.

July 10^th-12^th Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales camping weekend. See Michele – you know it makes sense.

August 7^th-9^th Peak District with Debra. Weekend camping or just come for the day.

Aug 24^th – 3^rd Sept 2009 Pyrenees with Eileen.

September 2009 TBA Backpacking in Scotland. Matt or David.

Also Saul has expressed an interest in doing the length of Hadrian’s Wall. Any takers?

10^th ANNIVERSARY DINNER Friday 24^th April Eileen

The Club will have been running for 10 years this April and we have decided to celebrate the with a get together and a meal at The Chase Hotel, Higham Lane, Nuneaton on Friday 24th April 2009. Arrive 7.30pm to eat at 8 pm.

I have booked a private room and the food will be ordered off the normal menu which has a good range of sensibly priced dishes (the most expensive three course meal is in the region of £15.00) so hopefully it is within everyone’s budget and can cater for everyone’s tastes.

I have contacted as many of our past members that I have contact details for and have invited them to come and join us for the meal, so it would be good to have a good turn out of our present members on the night. Husbands, wives, partners and friends are also welcome.

It should be a great social evening, one not to be missed so get the date firmly fixed in your diary.

I would be pleased if all those coming to the meal would let me know by Friday 17th April 2009. You can contact me in person at club night, by phone on 02476739012 or by email derekwalsh@ntlworld.com.

I look forward to hearing from you.

COMING-UP SNOWDON HORSESHOE 4^th April 2009

An ever popular walk with Debra out in front as a follow up to her lead ascent of Tryfan last year. One not to miss.
BACKPACKING – THE GREY CORRIES 14^th – 18^th May Matt
We have managed to get reasonable priced train tickets for the backpacking trip in May. The plan is to get off the train at Corrour Halt at approx 15:30, waking in a few miles before camping for the night. The next day we are planning to move the camp to the lochan beneath Stob Ban, and then bag it with minimal gear. The next day we will walk the main ridge of the Grey Corries and camp near the Steall Falls. On the final day we can walk out to Fort William or do the CMD arête, weather and energy permitting. The final night will be spent at a B&B or hostel in fort William TBA.

If interested the cost of the train ticket is £68.00. Also allow about £25.00 for the B&B (Hostel accommodation is available for £15 – £17). You will need suitable camping equipment and sufficient food for 3 nights in the wilds. Contact David or myself if interested.

ANYONE FOR BACKPACKING? Two days in the Lakes Eileen

I am planning a short back packing trip in the Lakes either late May or June.

This came about because Anna who has never had the opportunity of backpacking or wild camping said that she would love to have a go but can only be away for one night. She also particularly wanted to go to the Lake District.

An exact date or route has not been finalised but we were looking at 23-24 May or end of June.

At the moment there are 4 of us – myself, Anna, Ann and Shiela but if anyone else is interested please let me know.

BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT Information via Debra

Kim and Alistair are proud to announce the birth of their first child. The beautiful Isobel Amelia was born at 02:39am on Thursday 19 February at Warwick Hospital weighing 3.1 kilos (6lb 13 oz). All are doing well and even after sleepless nights and constant feeding they are both enjoying getting to know the new addition to the club.

A big hello and welcome from all at Nuneaton Mountaineering Club.

FACEBOOK UPDATE Debra

For all of you who haven’t tried it yet…you don’t know what you’re missing. The photo section of the club Facebook page is offering a great selection of action and group pictures of most of the recent trips we have taken part in. If you would like to take a look log on to Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ and create you own profile and find us on the ‘Nuneaton Mountaineering Club’ page in the groups section. Keith and I have uploaded the most recent programs and newsletters for potential members to see. We currently have 14 Facebook members.

SPANISH PYRENEES 23^rd Aug – 3^rd Sept 2009 Eileen
I would like to put the above proposal forward for the Nuneaton Mountaineering trip abroad.
I have looked at flights and the cheapest I can find are:-

with BMI Baby from Birmingham to Barcelona, Monday 24th August £26.04 returning on Thursday 3rd September £26.04.
With Easyjet from East Midlands to Barcelona, Wednesday 26th August £25.99 and returning 3rd September £36.93.
(We could of course go from East Midlands on 26th August for £25.99 and back to Birmingham on the 3rd September for £26.04)
I have not as yet looked into accommodation or route but would anticipate spending a day or so in Barcelona, then hiring a car and heading for the mountains.
I would like to hear from anyone interested in this or any other proposal as soon as possible, to get the cheap flights we must book soon. Cheers Eileen.

FROM THE SECRETARY Andrew

As a BMC associate member you are entitled to discounts at the following stores and centres. Discounts are usually around 10{0f26faa9c0b3f117931ea341f900fb983db575de004bb51ae2b36b8aa3f7b6a4}. I’ve got the club’s BMC membership card if you need it.

ALL OVER Black’s, Millett’s, Mountain Warehouse

ON LINE Extreme Outdoor Clothing

BIRMINGHAM: Cotswold Outdoor, Rock on, Snow+Rock

HINCKLEY Striding Edge (Has either moved or no longer in business Ed)

LEAMINGTON Lockwoods

WARWICK Escape 2

RUGBY White and Bishop

BMC NEWS via Matt

Issue 7 of the BMC Midlands Area newsletter is now online, keeping you informed about what’s happening in the region; with all the latest news, upcoming events, club and wall information, and more.

The newsletter has been produced entirely by the volunteers of the BMC’s Midlands Area, and is intended to keep you informed of the work they’re doing on your behalf. Feedback is welcome, as are contributions from climbers and hill walkers about their exploits locally and further a field.

The next Midlands Area meeting is at 7.30pm on Thursday 26th March, at the Holywell pub in Hinckley.

Come along and get involved. See the newsletter for further details.

Tony Ryan, Information Co-ordinator, The BMC, 177-179 Burton Road, Manchester, M20 2BB, www.thebmc.co.uk
Switchboard: 0161 445 6111, Direct Line: 0161 438 3334, Fax: 0161 445 4500
Registered in England and Wales, A company limited by guarantee Number 2874177.

DERBYSHIRE EDGES 7^th February 2009 Colin

Colin, Andrew and Felicity had a splendid day on the Edges from Baslow. Parking on the roadside (better than the car park at £4.50) the most difficult manoeuvre of the day was getting out of the car onto icy pavements without doing yourself an injury. The snow was right down to the town and above there were blue skies and bright sunshine. Needless to say it was a delight all the way to the Grouse Inn. There were lots of photographs and good views of a snowy Kinder in the distance. A return was made along White Edge. Walked in snow all day but it was cool in the breeze.

10^th Anniversary Dinner – Have you booked your place yet?

Check it out with Eileen.

ANYONE FOR THE ANTARCTIC?

NMC have been notified of vacancies for Field Assistants with the British Antarctic survey for the coming Austral season and Winter 2010. Mountaineering and leadership skills are essential.
For further details please visit www.antarctica.ac.uk/employment

PEN Y FAN 14^th February 2009 Colin

Keith, Michele, Colin and Anna made it to the foot of the Brecons on a cool and misty morning. Now, never let it be said that your editor only ever comments on the misfortunes and mistakes of others, while glossing over his own shortcomings. Fifteen minutes into the walk Colin realised that he had left his crampons in the car. To return or not to return – that was the question? Some time later Colin reappeared with said crampons and from then on it was a certainty that they would not be needed. Taking a diversion to collect Y Gyrn Anna managed to get a foot full of snow and slushy water which required socks wringing out. Higher up there was some proper snow on the ascent to Corn Du but almost everything had been blown off the summit ridge. At Pen y Fan the descending ridge to the north looked nice so we took it, admiring the tracks left by a skier who had previously skied remarkably close to the edge of the cwm. Good day out despite the mist. Thanks to Keith for driving.

SCOTLAND, NEWTONMORE 19^th – 22^nd February 2009 David

Newtonmore Bunkhouse

This provided good quality accommodation with three rooms (4, 4 & 2 beds). The communal area was just right for 10 people but the log fire did make it rather hot. The owner was a bit of a card in that he had lots of rules (eg how to put the shower curtain inside the shower – with diagram). The guest book contained some direct criticism of the owner, and rather than delete it he had left it in with his own comments – quite bizarre). When speaking to him however, he seemed reasonably normal. The accommodation was about 15 minutes from the station, and a stones throw from two pubs which did serve food.

In attendance – Colin, Ann, Keith, Michele, Sheila, Debra, David, Steve, Matt and Les.

Day 1 – Friday

David, Matt, Les, Steve and Debra, caught the bus to Dalwinnie this was expensive for a short journey of £6.30 each. Nonetheless we tackled A’ Bhuidheanach Bheag via the track to the quarry, not that we saw it due to the snow and ice. On the whole the going was reasonably hard with little to see although the weather did slightly improve as the day wore on. Matt’s plan was to reach the top of the return route for 2pm to ensure that there was time to return to Dalwinnie to catch the train back to base. On reaching this point it seemed to me to be a shame to miss the second Munro even at the risk of no transport back. Not worrying about the consequences, Steve and myself nipped on to the second top of Carn na Caim. At this point the wind intensified and was bitterly cold. We elected for a direct route back to the road in the far distance with a steep decent reaching the road 20 minutes after the train had left. Intending to hitch back, we were rewarded by being seen and collected by Keith & Michele. 930m 6 ½ hrs.

Day 2 – Saturday

David, Matt, Steve and Les. As we had no transport we walked from the bunkhouse (increasing the distance by almost 4 miles for the day), to take in Carn Dearg. The wind was the most significant feature making a tough day a very hard day. On the whole the weather was grim. There was a lot of water, bog, heather, peat hags, more water and a snowfield which was steep all the way to the top of the ridge. Steve kick stepped most of the way. We had earlier met a chap who said that he had to crawl on his hands and knees to the summit due to the wind – by the time we arrived, it was strong, but not that bad. This was a tough day, arriving back after dark with a trip to the pub. And then emptying the boots of bog and water. 1045m, 8 ½ hrs.

Day 3 – Sunday

Colin, Ann, David, Matt, Steve, Keith, Michele & Sheila.

This was a straightforward day, with the advantage of getting a lift to the furthest car park rather than having to walk as we had the day before. The weather was cold and windy but much less so than the day before. This took in A’ Chailleach and Carn Sgulain (my 140^th Munro). A good day out. 900m 6 ½ hrs.

Many thanks to Michele, Matt and Ann for the meals and for those who assisted.

There was a fair amount of wildlife including ptarmigan, lots of white mountain hare, deer and buzzards, and lots of noisy birds at twilight.

There was an interesting return home by train for David, Matt and Les. Our train being cancelled and being left on the platform at Newtonmore still after 3pm. The last train was caught home arriving back at midnight – not a journey to be repeated.

Overall, the verdict was another cracking weekend.

Not yet to booked your place for the 10^th Anniversary Dinner?

See Eileen ASAP.

SCOTLAND, NEWTONMORE 19^th – 24^th February 2009 Colin

The Newtonmore Hostel was good. We had sole use and it had all the facilities we needed. It was purpose built; clean, good drying room and the bedrooms fitted the personnel present. The owner Pete was a bit delicate and there was a surfeit of notices. Most people don’t need a notice with picture to show you how to put the shower curtain inside the shower but presumably experience had taught Pete that some hostellers do need guidance on this matter. There were also some pretty forthright comments from other guests about the way in which Pete ran his hostel, and equally robust replies from Pete himself. But hey! This is Pete’s place and if you don’t like it there is other accommodation in town. I’d have no problem using his hostel again.

Note must also be made of the new scientific discoveries made on this trip. Previously unknown species of bird were observed by some members that are yet to be fully described. As well as Chaffii and Ptarmigii there were also Crowy things lurking in the hills and around the town. The Editor waits for confirmation of these new species with bated breath.

Day 1 – Friday

Colin, Keith, Michele, Ann and Sheila used both cars and organised a linear walk. From Dalnaspidal Lodge we ascended into increasingly white-out conditions to A’Bhudheanach Bheag 936m via a minor 936m top. Descending we met the other group as it was clearing and from then on enjoyed views for the rest of the day. For lunch the five of us easily snuggled into one of the group shelters before moving on to the second Munro Carn na Caim 941m. Despite descending a north facing slope there was less snow here than the south facing slope of ascent and after a bit of a walk out easily reached the car for 4.25pm.

Day 2 – Saturday

Keith, Michele, Ann, Sheila, Colin and Debra drove to Garva Bridge further up the Spey Valley. It was breezy and overcast and there was an impressive flow in the Spey and the side rivers. Further up we needed to cross a minor stream but followed it for the best part of a mile to ensure we got across dry shod. Climbing the heather was heavy going but eventually we reached Greal Charn 926m. Here it was misty, blustery and cold on the fingers (and other parts) so with no good reason to stop for long we descended, missing out a minor top and descending long snowy and boggy slopes to the valley below.

Day 3 – Sunday

Les and Debra headed for Aviemore and the funicular railway to Cairngorm while the rest of us ascended the long slopes to A’Chailleach 930m on a much improved day. Most of the snow had been blown off the summits but there was still plenty on sheltered slopes and in the corries. Moving on to the unremarkable Carn Sgulain 920m, we continued on the high ground (two ptarmigan) to Am Bodach before descending for the long damp valley and a return to the starting point.

Day 4 – Monday

While the others were heading for home Colin, Ann and Sheila stayed on at the Strathspey Mountain Hostel just down the road in Newtonmore. We would have remained at the Newtonmore Hostel but unfortunately he was closing for a couple of days. Sheila believed that new hostel was probably the shortest distance she had ever travelled to a new accommodation base and I can’t think of a shorter one either. Here there were few rules and when you left you were asked to put the key under the dustbin. The jolly Scotsman who ran the place was laid back but you felt that you might not have wished to break any rule he set whether or not it was illustrated with a diagram.

From Balsporran Cottages we set off for A’Mharconaich 975m which involved crossing a bit of a stream. Safely across we ascended the ridge into mist and onto the top where it was cool and breezy. A pity, because this route would have been quite nice in good conditions. Descending some sizeable snow patches we made it to a col where we came out of the mist temporarily. Climbing to Geal-charn 917m was easy and a straightforward descent was made to the starting point.

Day 5 – Tuesday

Drove down to Cuaich were we left Keith and Michele’s car on day 1 and did Meall Chuaich 951m. There was a 4km walk in before you get to grips with the hill but otherwise straightforward. We got very close to some mountain hares and ptarmigan and reached the summit just after the mist came in. Another walker arrived soon after us, the first we had actually met on any of our hill days. We came out of the mist not long after leaving the summit and lower down we looked back to see that the top was clear! Eight Munros for us during our stay in the area and if David doesn’t get a move on I’ll be catching his first round up with my second ascents!! On Wednesday we left having a straightforward journey with the exception of being near to the front of a traffic queue for half an hour in the vicinity of Dunkeld. Thanks to Ann for again letting us use her car. Nice motor.

There is still time to book your place for the 10^th Anniversary Dinner.

Friday 24^th April 2009.

The Chase Hotel, Higham Lane, Nuneaton.

7.30pm for 8pm.

ARENIG FAWR 7^th March 2009 Colin NMC 10^th Anniversary walk

There were 13 of us on this walk: Colin, Len, Keith, Michele, Debra, David, Anna, Ken, Saul, Eileen, Ann, Sheila, and Veronica. That’s the same number as there was ten years ago on 27^th March 1999 – scary.

Which reminds me of the story told to me by my friend Roy who was once sitting by himself in a local restaurant. He was approached by a lady from a group on an adjacent table and asked whether he would consider joining them on account of the fact that there were 13 of them and he would conveniently make 14. Personally, despite the kind invitation, I would have considered leaving at once lest I finished my days in some wicker basket on a remote Scottish island.

Of interest also was the make up of the group. Seven women and six men. Not often the chaps are outnumbered! The day began well enough with us all arriving at a similar time. By the time we reached the little bothy on the shores of Llyn Arenig Fawr the first rain showers were arriving. Soon afterwards as we gained height we entered the mist and the wind began to pick up. Lessons began to be learnt. Anna was in trainers as she had left her boots by the house door. Keith had forgotten his coat but had borrowed a spare one from David and Debra had forgotten her No 1 mitts. The sad tale continued as Ken had his spare clothes in his rucksack without a rucksack liner and more than one person failed to put on their over trousers until their walking trousers were already soaked.

Continuing into the blustery wind and rain we eventually made the top of Arenig Fawr 854m where there was a thin covering of snow. We had a bite to eat at the shelter but the prospect of continuing directly into the wind gained no supporters so we turned our backs on the elements and returned by the same route.

The intention had been to eat out on the return journey but as we were finishing relatively early we contented ourselves with finding a nice café in Bala for a pot of tea etc. Sadly Veronica had got quite wet and cold and absented herself from the tea room in favour of sleep.

Not a remarkable day but one none of us will forget anytime soon. Thanks to Keith/Michele, Eileen and Ann for driving. Anyone for Arenig Fawr in 2019?

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Dear Colin, This message was sent to me in error by my old pal, “Arctic” Willie. Despite Arctic’s typically fulsome and forthright language I have reproduced the letter in full. Andrew

Message reads:

Sir,

Have just finished reading the February 2009 edition of your newsletter, and feel must congratulate you and your contributors on same.

This marvellous periodical will give every walker something to chew over along the way. Deliciously compiled like the rich segmented sections of some ideal fruit, nut and chocolate bar, it can be savoured in chunks, gorged in slabs or kept secure as hard rations for emergency use. Only wish I had had a copy when my tent was blown to buggery that November night by Sprinkling Tarn. An organ of this calibre is an asset to any organisation.

Yours etc, “Arctic” Willie.

Posted in 2009 | Tagged 2009, newsletters | Comments Off

Newsletter 30 – February 2009

Posted on February 5, 2009 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 30 February 2009

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

PROGRAMME FEBRUARY – SEPTEMBER 2009 Matt

February 19th – 23^rd Scottish Highlands. Southern Cairngorm area. Newtonmore Hostel. We have exclusive use of the hostel. Limited to 10 places. See Matt.

March 7^th Arenig Fawr. 10^th anniversary of NMC. A repeat of our very first walk. See Colin.

April 4^th Snowdon horseshoe with Debra. You’ll kick yourself if you miss it.

April Friday 24th NMC 10^th Anniversary meal. Check it out with Eileen.

May TBA Ullapool, Scotland. Camping and/or SYHA plus lots of Munros.

May TBA Brecon Beacons day walk.

June 19^th-21^st Great Langdale, Lake District. See David for camping and/or seeing the sun up on solstice weekend.

July 10^th-12^th Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales camping weekend. See Michele – you know it makes sense.

August 7^th-9^th Peak District with Debra. Weekend camping or just come for the day.

Aug – Sept 2009 Pyrenees with Eileen or another cunning plan.

September 2009 TBA Backpacking in Scotland. Matt or David.

Also Saul has expressed an interest in doing the length of Hadrian’s Wall. Any takers?

COMING-UP 10^th ANNIVERSARY WALK 7^th March 2009 Colin

Day trip to Arenig Fawr 854m just beyond Bala for a repeat of the first recorded club walk which took place on 27^th March 1999. My diary recorded 13 Nuneaton hillwalkers. Can we beat that?

NMC 10^th ANNIVERSARY MEAL Eileen

An invitation and a date for the diary.

A meal to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Nuneaton Mountaineering Club will be held on

Friday 24th April 2009 at The Chase Hotel, Higham Lane, Nuneaton.

All past and present members, husbands, wives, partners and guests are very welcome.

Early indications of the numbers would be helpful so, if you could let me know if you will be able to attend, it would be much appreciated. I will need final numbers by 17th April. I will circulate the menu, which is quite extensive, nearer the time. As a guide an average 3 course meal will cost in the region of £15.

I look forward to hearing from you.

COMING-UP SNOWDON HORSESHOE 4^th April 2009

An ever popular walk with Debra out in front following her lead ascent of Tryfan last year. One not to miss. I wont.

SPANISH PYRENEES Aug/Sept 2009 Eileen
I would like to put the above proposal forward for the Nuneaton Mountaineering trip abroad.
I have looked at flights and the cheapest I can find are:-

YHA MEMBERSHIP David

Nuneaton Mountaineering Club’s Group YHA membership has been renewed reference no.018 8619227. See David if you wish to make use of it in 2009.

SOCIAL SCENE Michele

Friday, 6th February 2009, 8:00 PM at Atherstone Memorial Hall
*The Last Resort* presented by *Strangeface Theatre Company*
A darkly comic folk tale with masks, puppets and live music. A remote village on the verge of ruin is visited by a soldier with a fortune on his back and a devil at his side. Think /Spitting Image/ meets /Wallace and Gromit /!

Tickets – £8.50.
Friday, 6th March 2009, 8:00 PM at Atherstone Memorial Hall

*Cat’s Cradle* presented by *Miracle Theatre Company*
Film, music, comedy and clever theatre in this tale of mad scientists and a promised apocalypse. Who will save the planet? Tickets – £8.50.
Saturday 28th March, 7.30 PM at Nicholas Chamberlaine School,Bedworth

*Bedworth Symphony Orchestra* – Spring Concert
Programme includes Greig, Brahms, Holst. Tickets £5 on the door.

NEWTONMORE BUNKHOUSE TRIP 19^th-22^nd February Matt

If I haven’t spoken to you yet please let me know your plans for travel.

For those still undecided about accommodation the other independent hostel in Newtonmore may be worth a look. They have a decent web site.
Strathspey Mountain Hostel, Main Street, Newtonmore, Inverness-shire, PH20 1DR. Telephone: 01540 673694
For those who have booked into the Newtonmore hostel I have picked out some key information. If you require any more the web site has a seemingly unending list of do’s and don’ts. Address is as follows: Craigellachie House, Main St, Newtonmore, Inverness-shire, Scotland. PH20 1DA. Telephone 01540 673360. http://www.highlandhostel.co.uk/
The hostel supply all bedding, wood, tea towels, cleaning cloths, pan scrubbers, toilet paper, and washing up liquid.
The kitchen is well equipped so you just need to bring yourselves, your gear, and your food.
Provided that you arrange it in advance, it might be possible to arrive before 3pm.
If you are delayed and likely to arrive after 10pm please phone to let the hostel know.
Playing cards and board games are provided.
There is no TV, by request of our customers. The Glen Hotel has a ‘big screen’.
There is a small ‘hi-fi’ system in the lounge (radio, tapes and CDs).
There is parking space for four vehicles side by side facing the Hostel. You are welcome to squeeze more vehicles in behind them at night but please remove them in the morning. See you soon.

Stop Press – There seems to be at least two group meals being planned. One by chief chef Matt and the second by Keith and Michele. Do your own thing on the Thursday. Ed.

streetmap

No responsibility is taken by the Editor for the face in the bottom right corner of the above map from the hostel website. I would certainly have deleted it had I the computer skills to do so. Bah Humbug.

EDALE 13th December Eileen

Six club members (Eileen, Keith H, Colin, Ann, Saul, and Anna), and two guests (Yvonne and Craig) set out from our free street parking in Castleton on a rather grey and damp day. The weather was better than forecasted, (no wind), but wet weather gear was the order of the day against the persistent drizzle, which Colin assured us would stop by 11 am.

Our route took us over fields up to Hollins Cross and then down into Edale. We followed the Pennine Way path up Grinsbrook Clough. Because of all the recent rain there was a lot of water in the brook which made crossing the brook interesting, especially as we had just seen a guy from a group in front of us fall in. The route up the gully is made interesting by having to pick your way through boulders to reach the open moorland at the top. Unfortunately the steepness of the gully proved a little too strenuous for Craig and he and Keith opted to return to Edale.

The drizzle turned to sleet for a little time then cleared up but there were still lots of snow and ice patches left over from the recent cold weather which allowed for a bit of snowballing fun. The walk over the moors affords great views into the valleys and also has the added interest of a series of impressively large and fantastic shaped gritstone outcrops which, with a bit of imagination form shapes of fish, chairs, anvils etc. After passing one such outcrop the path starts to descend and then joins the Jacobs Ladder path back down to the valley.

At Upper Booth we left the Pennine Way and continued on the road to Barbers Booth. It was starting to get dark so we made the decision to continue on the road rather than back across the footpath to Hollins Cross, and completed the walk by returning back to Castleton down Winnats Pass. 20km 12 ½ miles.

COLIN’S DIARY

December 20^th Malvern Link to the car park below Herefordshire Beacon (British Camp) via North Hill and Worcestershire Beacon and back to Malvern Link with the aim of getting some exercise and testing out my new winter mountaineering boots. Overcast and breezy but mild. Diversion to The Map Shop in Upton upon Severn for some pre Christmas retrial therapy.

December 28^th Bredon Hill from Elmley Castle with Eileen. A short diversion in the morning to see Hawfinch (scarce birds) in nearby Croombe Park. Successful outcome on both counts. Bright but cold in breeze at top of hill.

January 17^th Lathkill Dale with Eileen, Anna and Saul. Started from Youlgreave and walked the River Lathkill to Monyash spotting a number of Dippers on the way. We resisted the café, despite muddy boots being welcome, and returned to Youlgreave via the River Bradford. Mostly sheltered in the valley but cool and breezy on top. Home in time for Total Wipeout on BBC1. It makes you wish you’d have walked much further.

STIPERSTONES 2^nd January 2009 Colin

Colin, Les, Anna, Keith, Michele, Andrew, Nick, Eileen, Len and Keith H. Started from Snailbeach in cold, frozen and misty conditions. We climbed into some woodland and from there Keith K took us on a meander to the north of Stiperstones. Higher up on the moor there was some cracking sunshine on frosted trees but it wasn’t until getting on for 2pm that the mist lifted to reveal any views. It was worth waiting for and we then headed for the pub in Stiperstones village where some of the Hinckley Mountaineering Club were also trying to get to the bar. Afterwards we resisted the temptation to re-ascend to the moor again and instead returned to the cars for 4.10pm.

CANADIANS CLAIM SOUTH POLE RECORD David – from BBC News

Three Canadian men have claimed a new record for the fastest trek across Antarctica to the South Pole.

Ray Zahab, Kevin Vallely and Richard Weber said they had completed the 1,130 km (700 miles) journey in 33 days, 23 hours and 30 minutes.

They say they suffered white-out but survived on a high-calorie diet of deep-fried bacon, cheese and butter.

The Canadians’ journey took them from Hercules Inlet on Antarctica’s Ronne Ice Shelf to the South Pole.

“If you took a cloud, wrapped it around your head and then duct-taped it, that’s what a white-out is like,” Mr Zahab, 39, told The Associated Press by satellite phone from Antarctica.

He had previously run across the Sahara desert but told reporters his feet were more worn out by his latest adventure.

Tom Sjogren, founder of ExplorersWeb.com, a New York-based Web site that compiles statistics on adventurers’ feats, said the men beat the previous record of 39 days, 7 hours and 49 minutes, which was set by American Todd Carmichael just last month.

The Canadian trio used their satellite phone to post photos and podcasts of their journey as they did it.

They pulled 170-lb (77-kg) sleds of equipment, with Mr Zahab travelling on foot and on snowshoes while the other two men skied. At night, they slept in a tent.

They endured altitude sickness, vertigo and massive, painful blisters.

They kept themselves fuelled with a 7,000-calorie-a-day diet of deep-fried bacon, cheese and huge chunks of butter.

“I’m dying for some pizza,” said Mr Zahab, who added he was too excited to sleep.

CONISTON WEEKEND 9^th – 11^th January 2009 Colin

Nine members made it to Coniston Holly How Youth Hostel on the weekend that the weather changed from cold and clear to wet and misty! Richard, Mark and Michele arrived in the day and got in a walk as far as Torver where sadly (well, at least Richard was) the pub was closed. David, Keith and Mo; and Rachel, Chris (a very close Canadian friend of Rachel) and Colin arrived simultaneously and found the others – in the pub drinking expensive beer.

Saturday – Richard and Mark headed off to Tarn Hows and a low level walk while the rest made for the mist and Coniston Old Man 803m. The ground was frozen and it was damp without actually raining as we climbed to the quarries. Keith, Michele and Colin temporarily lost touch with Rachel, Chris, David and Mo (excess speed on behalf of one team) but we all made it to the summit in just over 2 hours where it was icy underfoot, misty and there was a cold wind blowing. The original intention was to go on to Swirl How but as the head of the group took a left path towards Goat’s Hause in the mist and wind no-one really objected. Lower down the path was covered in ice and for a hundred metres we descended open frozen grass and rock slopes. At Goat’s Hause there was no real desire to go on to Dow Crag and we passed a frozen Gaot’s Tarn to the Walna Scar Road. With the hour still being young we started to contour back to the quarries where Rachel and Chris descended to Coniston.

Shortly afterwards I had a call on my mobile for David! It was David’s wife Belinda passing on the news that Mark was sitting in an ambulance having collapsed (not far from a pub). Consequently we all headed down to sort ourselves out and see what could be done. Thankfully the hospital in Barrow in Furness declared Mark fit to leave so we picked him up, got him back to the hostel, and after something to eat he went to bed while the rest of us (who were not already there) went to the pub.

Sunday – Not a day to encourage an early start as it was raining, misty and blowing. The boys were up first and all breakfasted. Chris dutifully waited for the arrival of Rachel in the kitchen while Keith left Michele to her cereals. That’s 15 or so years of marriage for you!

Richard and Mark started off for home while the rest of us braved the mist and rain walking in the Grizedale Forest. Keith was handed the plastic map and GPS taking us on a tour of the forest and nearby moor. It’s surprising just how wet you can get in 3 ¼ hours of drizzle and mist but always very satisfying to dry off and then go to Ambleside and watch other people engage in some retail therapy.

Thanks to all especially the drivers.

WOLVERINES David

Having been entertained by Chris with stories of close encounters with grizzly bears it turned out that the bears are not the only critters out there you may not wish to meet in the dark – or light. Top of the list, apparently, is the wolverine.

Wolverines are one of the larger species in the weasel family. A stocky, muscular animal, the wolverine averages about 13 kg (30 lb.) in weight. The wolverine has been credited with the ability to defend its food against wolves and even grizzly bears.

Like other weasels, wolverines are pugnacious, bold and curious. It is primarily solitary, is active both day and night, and seldom seeks shelter even in the most severe winter weather.

The wolverine is omnivorous and consumes a wide range of edible roots and berries, carrion, small game and fish. They have been known to kill animals as large as caribou and mountain goats. They often follow migrating herds of caribou and clean up carcasses left by wolves and bears, crushing the bones with their powerful jaws.

The wolverine’s range is extensive: individual animals often have a movement pattern that exceeds 30 km (18 mi.) per day. In North America, the animal is found primarily in the northern regions of Canada, between the tree line and the Arctic coast. Wolverines also occur in Europe and northern Asia.

SNOWDON 24^th January 2009 Colin
Keith, Michele, Matt, Eileen and Colin arrived at Nantgwynant to find that the car park now had a £4 daily parking charge. No extra facilities of course unless you pay extra in Snowdonia for having no water in the men’s toilets and no light either.

We set off on the Watkin path and at the quarries decided it was time to head for the col with Yr Aran. Soon we got into the snow and higher up into the mist which came and went. As we approached the narrower part of the South Ridge conditions became more wintry and care was needed on the firmly packed snow as there were significant drops on each side. There were plenty of other people out and about and at the summit dozens. The café is yet to be completed, delayed due to poor weather conditions – well who would have thought that! Nevertheless it proved to be a useful weather break for us to have a bite to eat and put on our crampons for the descent.

Sadly, Eileen had forgotten to bring her crampons and ice axe so additional care was required on the descent. For the rest of us it provided useful practise in proper winter conditions and certainly made the descent easier. The top of the Watkin path was very steep and dropped into the mist, so as Eileen didn’t fancy it we returned by the South Ridge which was no loss as there were numerous photo opportunities and some cracking sunshine lower down. Excellent day and you can see the photos on our Facebook site (Nuneaton Mountaineering Club) but you only get to see them all if you become my friend. Thanks to Keith for driving and to Michele for letting him use her car.

THE STORY OF EDDIE FROM FLINT

At the club on a Thursday in the middle of December the conversation turned to our distant member Eddie Logan from Flint. Matt then pronounced to Michele, ‘You know Eddie’. ‘No we don’t’, she replied, ‘we’ve never met’.

There then followed a pantomime of ‘Yes you do’, ‘No we don’t’, followed by Matt’s assertion that they met on a walk on Y Lliwedd. ‘We weren’t on that walk’, replied Michele.

Here Colin interjected with the suggestion that he refer to his diary and that should resolve the issue.

The missive below was written by Colin and sent to Matt and Michele in the festive style of Genesis.

In the beginning there was the Diary and the Diary was the Word,

And verily it came to pass that the Word of the Diary was True,

As it was written at the very time of Ancient Happenings.

And the Diary said that on the 8th Day of February AD 2004,

Thirteen men and women Good and True did set forth from Nant Gwynant.

And it came to pass that David, Eddie and Ian did go another way.

But Colin, Les, Keith H, Ann and her friend Chris, Len, Eileen,

Ben Goode and his friend Mark, and Matt did go the right way round.

For the right way round is Clockwise not Anti-Clockwise!

For if God had intended Anti-Clockwise circuits,

He would have put Wales in the Southern Hemisphere,

And the wind did blow and there was Great Tempest but all was well in the End.

Therefore, verily it can be said, that Keith and Michele do not know Eddie from Flint,

At least not from this occasion, as they were not there, for it is Written,

In a Black n’ Red book for all to see,

So Matt must eat Humble Pie or provide all present next Thursday with Minced Pies,

For they are Good, and only by this means can all be Well.

On the following Thursday there were minced pies and they were good. Colin.

Well it seemed a funny story at the time anyway.

GLYDERS 24^thJanuary 2009 David

David, Mo, Paul, Saul, Felicity, Eddie and Anna.

This was an early start – 5.30 am to maximize the day and to meet Eddie who has not been walking for a long time near Pen y Pass. The plan had been to go up Snowdon from the north. It is a route I have been on twice before, once leading a party, which in summer conditions is fine, and on another occasion with Eddie in full winter conditions. On the last occasion it had had its moments on the two Grade 1 scrambles. On arriving, the winter conditions were such whereby for a party of our size and not everyone having the right gear it was best to change the plan.

Instead we parked at Idwal Cottage to tackle the Gylders. The snow line was just at 500m. Until the top of The Devil’s Kitchen the conditions were good, the wind then started and it was very cold. The ice and snow made the going difficult and in places dangerous. On reaching the top of the first hill the wind dropped and we even saw the sun with the cloud base lifting. The snow conditions were great with many good photo’s being taken (thanks Saul for the copies received). Eddie broke open a bottle and provided seven glasses for a wee dram in celebration of Robbie Burns (for the day after). There was lots of laughter as be wended our way to Capel Curig and the tea rooms.

This was an exceptionally good day out, with winter conditions all the way and good views. 6 ½ hours, 905m.

WEBCAM David Foster

An interesting webcam for the newsletter – not only shows the traffic in Scotland but also the up to date weather conditions. http://www.trafficscotland.org/lev/index.aspx

THE ARANS 31^st January 2009 Colin

Now, not that I’m one to gossip, but this trip turned out to be a Nuttall bagging walk for Keith and Michele, with Colin being above such things as you know. From the bottom there appeared to be little snow but higher up there was quite a lot of patchy stuff. It was also cold and very windy and the ground varied with plenty of soft grass but also some crunchy hard stuff and patchy ice. Walking into the breeze was quite an effort and we took breaks wherever there was shelter. Not a day to stand around much we kept on the move taking in various smaller tops but resisted the temptation to go on to a wintry and cold looking Aran Fawddwy. By the afternoon the wind seemed to moderate so we took the rather longer return route down the little walked Cwm Terwyn and back to the usual starting point at the head of Cwm Cywarch.

FACEBOOK – YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE (or Colin needs more friends)

If you haven’t joined the Nuneaton Mountaineering Club Facebook page then you’re still in time. View pictures (lots of mine and a few from Keith, Saul and Debra etc) and don’t forget to become my friend and write lots of informative and uplifting messages, especially to me.

Posted in 2009 | Tagged 2009, newsletters | Comments Off

newsletter 29

Posted on February 5, 2009 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 29 December 2008

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

PROGRAMME DECEMBER 2008 – August 2009 Matt

December 13th Peak District with Eileen. Edale area.

January 9th-11^th 2009 Lake District. Coniston YHA weekend. Book it up with David.

February 19th – 23^rd Scottish Highlands. Southern Cairngorm area. Newtonmore Hostel. We have exclusive use of the hostel. Limited to 10 places. See Matt.

March 7^th Arenig Fawr. 10^th anniversary of NMC. A repeat of our very first walk. See Colin.

April 4^th Snowdon horseshoe with Debra. You’ll kick yourself if you miss it.

April TBA NMC 10^th anniversary meal. Check it out with Michele.

May TBA Ullapool, Scotland. Camping and/or SYHA plus lots of Munros.

May TBA Brecon Beacons day walk.

June 19^th-21^st Great Langdale, Lake District. See David for camping and/or seeing the sun up on solstice weekend.

July 10^th-12^th Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales camping weekend. See Michele – you know it makes sense.

August 7^th-9^th Peak District with Debra. Weekend camping or just come for the day.

September 2009 TBA Possible trip to the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. Or somewhere else warm.

Backpacking in Scotland. Matt or David.

Also Saul has expressed an interest in doing the length of Hadrian’s wall. Any takers?

MEMBERSHIP

I’m sure that if you haven’t re-joined yet it’s just an oversight. So to put that right drop a cheque for £17 into the post to: Eileen Walsh, 102 Copsewood Avenue, Nuneaton CV11 4TG.

Alternatively visit us any Thursday from 8.30pm at Attleborough Liberal Club, Bull Street Nuneaton.

SOCIAL SCENE Michele

There is plenty going on over the next 2 months so please get in touch if you want tickets for any of these events.
Saturday November 29^th    Bedworth Symphony Orchestra plays Beethoven Leonora Overture, Mozart Piano Concerto No.23, Dvorak Symphony No.6 at Nicholas Chamberlaine school, Bulkington Rd, Bedworth. 7.30pm. Tickets £5 on the door.
December/January    Panto? let me know if you’re interested then we can fix a date
Sunday December 21^st    Carol Concert – Our Lady of the Angels church, Coton Rd, Nuneaton.

NMC CLUB FACEBOOK GROUP PAGE Debra

Calling all club members and those who wish to get down with the kids!

We are planning to set up a Facebook Group Page for the club. This will allow everyone to download their trip photos straight to the facebook site, an easy sharing option and apparently easier than downloading photos straight onto the NMC web page.

We plan to link both of the NMC web page and the Facebook site.

Facebook groups are a great way to spread the word about your organisation and maybe even recruit a few new members. Keith and Debra ask you to watch out for forthcoming details.

UPDATE FROM DEBRA

The Facebook site is up and running. NMC members can find it by logging onto Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/login.php and searching for the group. It’s listed as Nuneaton Mountaineering Club page.

I’m going to be down loading all my photos onto the site from now on and others will be able to do the same as it’s an open group page which means anyone can join. This will be better than sending photos out to everyone’s individual mailbox’s.

The Facebook page holds all relevant club details and a brief synopsis of ‘what we do’, activities, where we meet and membership price. We have also linked docs to the NMC webpage including this years events list etc…and more will be added as info goes out. Cool! We are definitely down with the kids!

COMING-UP 13^th DECEMBER EDALE Eileen

Planned destination for the day walk on the 13th December is Edale and Jacob’s Ladder. Starting at Casltleton, then north to Edale, up the Grindsbrook Clough onto the Pennine Way following the head of the dale round then dropping down via the Jacob’s Ladder path back to Edale.
I will be back to sort the meeting time and transport arrangements on 4th or 11th December. (She’s away in Egypt Ed.)

COMING-UP LAKE DISTRICT WEEKEND IN CONISTON 9^th-11^th Jan 2009

Seven places have been booked so far but there is plenty of room for more. See David to secure your place or for more information.

COMING-UP NEWTONMORE, SCOTLAND 19^th-23^rd February 2009

Long weekend with the expectation of some proper snow. Winter gear plus ice axe and crampons required. Check it out with Matt.

COMING-UP 10^th ANNIVERSARY WALK 7^th March 2009 Colin

Day trip to Arenig Fawr 854m just beyond Bala for a repeat of the first recorded club walk which took place on 27^th March 1999. My diary recorded 13 Nuneaton hillwalkers. Can we beat that?

COMING-UP 10^th ANNIVERSARY IN 2009 Michele

Next year Nuneaton Mountaineering Club will be celebrating its 10th birthday. The committee are in the early stages of planning the celebrations. We hope to have a function towards the end of April. We would like to have as many past and present members and friends and family there.
It would be really helpful to have an idea of how many people would be interested so please would you let me know if you are interested (there is no firm commitment needed at this stage).

TRYFAN & GLYDER FACH Saturday 20^th September 2008 Debra

Debra, Mark, Anna and Ken.

Departing from Hartshill at 7.30am we began our walk just after 10.30am. Parking in the small car park opposite Llyn Ogwen we walked the short distance to the marked footpath which lies to the left hand side of the dry stone wall. The weather was dry and clear, almost perfect for the day ahead.

The ascent followed a path marked with stone steps and after a few catching of breath moments the first scrambles of the day began to appear. We stopped to take a few pictures and have a drink and then slowly picked our way up and over the grade 1 scramble.

Reaching the top in just over 3 hours we found ourselves in the mist of hordes of people! What! I though. Grannies and children of all ages! And I thought I was special but alas no. So with the crowds amassing we decided not to attempt Adam and Eve just in case I fell off or even worse made a fool of myself in front of the crowds….so we just sat contemplating while we ate our lunch looking at the views across to Y Garn and surrounding hills.

In front lay the Glyder’s and Bristly Ridge and after a short discussion it was decided that we should go for it up the scree path to the left of Bristly Ridge. After lots more stops for breath we found ourselves at the top of Glyder Fach with the beautiful views down the Nant Francon Valley all the way to the sea. From here it was straight across over the tumbling stones and slabs to a moment of frivolity on the Cantilever resulting in some strongman picture moments.

From there our descent took the route of Y Gribin which Mark described as more frightening than on the way up! We scrambled a little and then found the path which lead us slowly down to Llyn Bochlwyd and across and down again to the exact spot where we parked the car! It was great day, the weather was superb some of the best I have ever experienced in Wales and I was pleased as it was my first walk leading. Hopefully not the last!

NMC CLUB DISCOUNT WITH COTSWOLD David

It seems that our club discount is still available with Cotswold under the club account number of N2031.

This can have a saving of up to 15{0f26faa9c0b3f117931ea341f900fb983db575de004bb51ae2b36b8aa3f7b6a4} on most of their range of goods. If you are to purchase anything it is worthwhile checking that the discount is applicable to the type of items being purchased.
Each year they offer an increased discount of up to 20{0f26faa9c0b3f117931ea341f900fb983db575de004bb51ae2b36b8aa3f7b6a4} but only for one day at their stores in Betws-y-Coed providing that they are notified in advance.
If any club member wants to take advantage of this discount, can you please let David know ASAP at so that I can negotiate the date with Cotswold direct.

SCOTLAND BACKPACK – SEPTEMBER 2008 David

In attendance, David, Matt, Ian, Paul and Graham.

We traveled by train to Aviemore to stay at the YHA for the third season. The Indian restaurant closest to the YHA was our venue this time which was good, and was perhaps better than the one closest to the station.

This year we were able to keep to the proposed plan.

Friday – Having traveled by bus to the ski centre we ascended Cairngorm. The height ascent was just about 2000 feet which I completed in one hour with the others coming up half an hour later. The weather station on top although erected by a University still managed to include at least one spelling mistake on their plaque.

We then headed towards Benn Macdui, but to the west to try to contour around. Although described as a plateau, Cairngorm is anything but one. There followed a long walk. To cut the walk shorter we descended very steeply towards our camp site at the east end of Loch Etchachen for about 3pm. The camp at 900m was established amongst the many midges that should have long since disappeared. Ian, Matt and myself then ascended Beinn Mheadhoin for a two hour jaunt with good views. 1225m + approx. 16k

Saturday – the weather had changed in the night. The mist was down and it was wet and cold with strong winds. We all left together and descended past the Hutchinson bothy, and having walked down the valley and crossing the stream Matt, Ian and myself made to head north whilst the other two spent their day walking in the valley. We then ascended Beinn Chaoram in really poor conditions. It was very cold in the strong wind and wet – almost winter conditions without the snow. There was then a very long walk over the plateau towards Beinn Bhreac which was hard going in the same conditions with deeply rutted and awkward ground with numerous bogs everywhere. It as a relief to reach the top. There was then a descent directly into the valley with a long walk back up Glen Derry with a 650m re-ascent to reach the camp site in poor conditions arriving for about 5pm. No one ventured from their tents until the next day as it was grim outside. 1100m 18.5k

Sunday – The other two headed off back to the ski centre whilst myself, Matt and Ian took in Derry Cairngorm. To get back to the ski centre we had to go over Benn Macdui. It was cold and windy with low cloud over the first hill. It was then back to the YHA and a fish supper (having had a few pints). 700m, 13k.

The best mountain for myself was Derry Cairngorm. We took in 6 Munro’s, 4 were new ones for Ian and myself and 5 for Matt.

I would recommend Expedition dried foods (800 cal) which were tasty and filling rather than the usual meals we take and to take fresh batteries for the Steripen!

THE REAL PENNINE WAY 15^thNovember 2008 Andrew

“I’ve put my money down for the Novemberfest, darling,” I said when I got home after the AGM on Thursday night. “I’m really looking forward to it – I can’t remember the last time I went out with the club.”

“That’s the weekend the German exchange party are here,” said Angela immediately.

BLOODY HELL! ACHTUNG!! DIE DEUTSCHEN KOMMEN!!!

How could I have forgotten that? And why that week of all weeks?

But by the time the German teachers arrived three weeks later I had had time to get used to the idea and was ready to do my bit for international relations. They are great people and I always enjoy their company. Best of all – it came out in conversation that they had a chapter in their English schoolbooks about the Pennine Way, and were keen to use their free Saturday to see what it was really like.

Plan A for that day had been a trip to Tryfan, Bristly Ridge, Glyder Fach and Castell y Gwynt, but the forecast was so bad that I was happy to change to the Dark Peak and at six-fifteen that morning we were heading north like a bunch of kids just let out of school.

The day started well but as we reached Chesterfield there were two sun dogs in the sky and sure enough we encountered driving rain as soon we climbed out of the town.

By the time we got to Edale there was nothing of the surrounding hills to be seen. I was glad to get out of the car – sick of being shaken and bumped on the increasingly narrow roads after Hathersage. It must have been much worse for the passengers, Jörg and Christian.

We set off through the village, up along Grinds Brook and soon reached the access land. The old familiar sense of joy and exaltation began to transform us all. Like us, the walkers we met also gloried in the wind and the wet. The Lancashire voices and friendly banter put me in mind of my parents, who so loved to get out of Stockport and walk here before the war, and of the Mass Trespass and ‘The Manchester Rambler’ and everything else that proves how essential the moorlands of the Dark Peak were and are to the well-being of people in the industrial towns around.

The gentle ascent was made more interesting by the amount of storm water coming off the plateau. Normally you would follow the path across from one side of the stream to the other without a thought, but to-day every crossing had to be planned and carried out with care. But the gritstone boulders were always a delight to walk on – often wet but never greasy. The water was a golden peaty brown, capped with a cream foam. It sounded and tasted beautiful.

Once on the plateau, we followed the path west for about one kilometre to the head of Crowden Clough, then struck out WNW across the top, aiming to reach the point where the Red Brook flings itself cheerfully off the western edge.

The peat was saturated and the water courses much fuller than usual, but by not sticking slavishly to the compass bearing, and following the water courses up-stream along the peat groughs we made quite good progress.

At the watershed I was embarrassed – it was impossible to ignore just how much damage man has done to this country: by destroying the forests in prehistoric times, by over-grazing and not least by the pressure of the sheer number of walkers in the twentieth century. I only found out recently about the extent of the harm. Apparently as the degraded peat banks are exposed to the atmosphere they release the carbon dioxidethey hold, with the result that the Kinder Plateau and Bleak Low now give off an amount of CO₂ equal to over a third of that emitted by the entire city of Sheffield.

Once over the watershed, the wind grew stronger and the rain peppered us. “Go back! Go back!” called the odd red grouse, but otherwise there was no sign of animal life at all. What we did see were white sacks full of the empty plastic plug packs which had contained young bog cotton plants. These seedlings are air-lifted in their millions on to the plateau and planted out by volunteers to stabilise the peat and reduce erosion. This work is something we could join in as a club. It must be tremendous to feel you have done a little to undo the harm and leave the place better than you found it. The further west we went the more the wind-chill became a factor to be reckoned with. We hit the western edge of the plateau more or less where we expected to and turned NNE to complete the short step to Kinder Downfall.

At the Downfall a river plunges off the plateau into the teeth of the prevailing westerlies. Sometimes these winds are so strong that none of the water reaches the bottom: as soon as it falls over the edge of the plateau it is whipped back aloft by the up-winds striking the escarpment.

It felt cold enough to seek the lee of a large rock and also get out the group shelter to have our dinner (fresh fruit, Dr Oetker’s pizza, pepperami and cheese and pâté sandwiches for any one who gives two hoots). Then we got the map out and had what is known in Lancashire as an eyladsey. You say “‘ey, lads, ‘ey!” – call the lads together and talk over what you will do

Our decision was to head south, lose some height down Jacob’s Ladder and follow the Pennine Way back to Edale.

The western edge of the plateau is well walked. We met fell-runners and ladies’ rambling groups as well as the usual hairy-arsed types. Everyone greeted us with the same Northern warmth, openness and humour.

South we went past Kinder Low and Edale Rocks. As we gradually fell below the cloud base it was apparent that the weather had improved: we could see clearly now the rain had gone. The Edale Horseshoe was revealed in stunning glory, and also the prospect westward across the Cheshire plain to Alderley Edge and beyond. These extensive views were an unexpected revelation, and so instead of descending by Jacob’s Ladder we agreed to stay high for a bit, turning NE past Edale Head and Crowden Tower before dropping off the plateau down Crowden Clough.

This way down involves a bit of scrambling which stops you getting bored or remembering you are little tired. We lost height quickly, but then went back to help a couple with two children going the same way. We offered guidance and supported their boys with a bit of discreet spotting. The two young lads acquitted themselves extremely well in situations where a slip could easily have resulted in serious injury.

After that the walk off ran due south down the valley then back eastward in the dark along the minor road to Barber Booth and Edale.

Jörg and Christian said there was no high moorland like this in Germany.

Sometimes it takes visitors from far away to make you realise just how lucky you are.

COLIN’S DIARY

11^thOctober Cannock Chase with Keith K

18^th October Church Stretton with David and Anna. Whilst sitting having lunch a group passed us and we exchanged a few words about whether there was an M&S or café or something on Ragleth Hill. Later I received an e-mail from the main trig bagging man who asked if it was really me having lunch at the bottom of Ragleth Hill. Seeing me out of context had thrown him. Being more interested in a warm coffee I hadn’t noticed him at all. Makes you wonder just how many times you might pass or just miss someone you know.

25^th-31^st October Scotland with Trevor and Sue. Self catering cottage at North Connel 6 miles from Oban. Monsoon conditions on the way up. Loch Lomond road awash with water and some pretty impressive streams and waterfalls visible from the road.

Something done every day but there were beefy wintry showers early in the week and a biting NE wind. Proper snow covered the upper parts of Ben Lui and Ben Cruachan (very impressive as always) and all the Munros, but not much below 700m. Early in the morning the Glen Orchy road needed caution as there were icy patches. If you ever consider climbing the Graham Meall nan Gabhar resist the temptation to drive to the farm at Succoth (despite the pleasant greeting and parking in the farmyard) in favour of preserving you car suspension.

TARN OUTDOOR CENTRE WEEKEND November 14^th-16^th 2008 Colin

Nineteen members made it in the end and a good time was had by everyone.

En route walks on Friday were undertaken in the Peak District, Forest of Bowland, Kentmere and Orton – though as this last one is an overshoot it may not quite count as en route!

The centre was modern, spacious and well equipped and positioned for easy access to various hill areas we rarely walk.

On Saturday most headed for the Howgills from the Cross Keys. A good choice as the ground is mostly dry and there are plenty of easy going paths once you have made the steep ascent. The fact that the group were off the hill by 3pm had nothing to do, of course, with the Rugby Internationals being on TV.

More sturdy folk (Eileen, Ann, Mike and Colin) set off directly from the Centre and ascended Wild Boar Fell before going onto Baugh Fell. No namby pamby paths here I’ll have you know but plenty of squashy North Country bog and a return to base under cover of darkness.

Keith and Michele were hitting the Nuttalls so drove round to the south of Kirkby Stephen for High Seat etc. Good walk but wet (understatement) underfoot.

The evening buffet went very well. Mulled wine and mince pies started us off followed by far too much food, but it was a lot less trouble for our regular chefs. Evidence of the entertainment that followed can be found in part in Saul’s photos and video clips. Also, we now have it on the good authority of Alasdair that Keith H’s favourite film Alien v Predator is rubbish. There were then some drinks consumed before most sensible people went to bed. Others seemed to stay up for half the night – I should have hidden my Ardbeg – but apart from Matt falling into our room at 2.40am all was well (so far as can be ascertained).

On Sunday most of the group returned to the Howgills with a linear walk from Sedburgh to the Cross Keys. A bit cool but fine and clear. Keith, Michele and Saul walked over Gragareth, Green Hill and Great Coum north of Ingleton. A bit further than Colin’s estimated 7 ½ miles was the conclusion but at least it slowed Saul down who had been up until 5am or something!

Thanks to all who set up and organised the weekend and to all who got stuck in to the clearing up.

CLUN YHA WEEKEND 17^th-19^th October 2008 Debra Debra, Michele, Keith, Eileen, Mark, Richard and Sheila.

Michelle and I left Nuneaton at 10.30am on the morning on the 17^th. We took a steady drive finally parking at The Offa’s Dyke Centre in Knighton, Powys.

The Centre opened in 1999, forming the focus for activities based on the 8th Century earthwork built by Offa, the King of Mercia. The dyke follows the Welsh English border from the hills above Prestatyn to the Severn Estuary near Chepstow.

The weather was bright and sunny, really perfect as we walked out along the river bank and up the steep grassy hill to meet the dyke. Photos taken during the day included falling beech leaves that dropped from the trees that lined the river bank at the beginning of the walk, amusing sheep and of us on the dyke.

The walk took a roughly circular route, crossing fields and other footpaths. Unfortunately the return path we planned to take had been permanently closed with an official notice, an old rusty gate plus barbed wire just in case one was tempted to cross.

So quickly consulting the map we took a slightly different route cutting back on ourselves just a little to bring us out above the town, we then walked further on debating which descent to take. Some looked so steep they looked unsafe so we carried on a little to find a much better route down which lead us though the town centre and back to the car park with perfect timing to meet Richard and Mark who had just left the local pub. The walk that day was appox. 7 miles.

We then departed for the YHA arriving just as the doors opened. The Mill itself was a beautiful building which had been fully refurbished to a lovely standard, the only downside if there was one, was that the dorms were a little cramped with all the beds taken.

Friday night saw us eat in and head off for an early night to rise again the next day for a longer walk over the local Shropshire hills. We walked out from the YHA through Clun village passing the castle to firstly join the Shropshire Way. The weather was bright and sunny as we headed off along the route passing through farming fields and then on and up to join Offa’s Dyke again but this time from higher up along its length. We walked several ups and downs along the 11 mile route which finally brought up directly back to Clun village. As we walked back into the village we decided to take a short diversion into the village church. It was really lovely inside, the fruit, vegetables and wheat dollies were all still in place from the last Harvest Festival, all every well put together we thought.

We the took a well deserved tea and cake stop at the local tea shop which sits next to the lovely stone bridge in the centre of Clun. We departed to make our way back to the YHA to see the local ducks swimming around under the bridge arches. Some of the ducks were very unusual indeed with pom poms for headdresses. I really have never seen anything like it!! I was laughing my head off. I have included some photos but like so many things in life you had to be there to truly see how funny it was!

Saturday evening saw us all making our way to the pub for a group meal and a few drinks. Sunday I headed back early to Wolverhampton to see my family and the others went for another walk, all in all a very good weekend.

HIGH SUMMITS ‘COULD HARM BRAIN’ From BBC News via David

Top mountaineers may be suffering subtle brain damage each time they reach the upper slopes of the world’s highest peaks, say scientists.

Italian researchers scanned “world-class” climbers before and after expeditions, publishing their results in the European Journal of Neurology.

They found changes in brain tissue even though, outwardly, the climbers had no obvious new neurological problems.

The most likely cause was a lack of oxygen at high altitudes, they said.

‘Most climbers are aware that if you are going over 8,000 metres, there may be a small amount of damage to the brain associated with that’. Dr Mike Grocott, University College London.

At the summit of Everest, the world’s highest mountain, the concentration of oxygen in the air is reckoned to be only a third of that found at sea level, more than 8,000m lower.

All of the nine male climbers involved in the study, at the IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia in Rome, had reached their summit without the use of a supply of extra oxygen, a frequent practice among leading mountaineers.

Before the trip, they underwent MRI scans, and were checked for any neurological illnesses, then matched against “control subjects” of the same age and sex, who had never climbed above 3,000m.

Three of the climbers reached the top of at least one 8,000m peak, while the remainder reached altitudes of at least 7,500m, spending in excess of 15 days above 6,500m.

When they were scanned eight weeks after returning, compared with the “controls”, there was a fall in the density and volume of brain tissue in two parts of the brain, the “left pyramidal tract” and the “angular gyrus”.

Memory worry

However, Dr Margherita Di Paola, who led the study, said that this reduction did not appear to have a direct impact on their neurological performance.

“The climbers in our study did not suffer any significant neuropsychological changes after the expedition,” she said.

However, some abnormal results on both the “before” and “after” tests, she said, might be the result of small, progressive brain damage caused by repeated trips to high-altitude.

These included tests on memory and brain functions such as the ability to anticipate outcomes and adapt to changing situations.

Dr Mike Grocott, from University College London, who has himself helped carry out research high on Everest into the effects of altitude, said that there was other evidence of the potential impact of high-altitude mountaineering on the brain.

He said: “Most climbers are aware that if you are going over 8,000m, there may be a small amount of damage to the brain associated with that.

“Even a year later, people might not be as sharp as they were before.”

He said that the research did not show this type of climbing to be unacceptably dangerous, but should be viewed alongside other sports such as football, where studies suggests that even too much time spent heading the ball could cause subtle brain injuries.

Posted in 2008 | Tagged 2008, newsletters | Comments Off

Programme 2009

Posted on January 1, 2009 by keith

Jan 9^th-11^th	Lake District. Coniston YHA weekend. Contact David. Places still available.
Feb 19^th – 23^rd	Scottish Highlands. Southern Cairngorm area. Newtonmore Hostel. We have exclusive use of the hostel. Limited to 10 places. See Matt. Hostel now full but there are alternatives if interested.
March 7^th	North Wales. Arenig Fawr. Club 10^th anniversary walk with Colin.
April 4^th	Snowdon Horseshoe with Debra.
May TBA	Scotland. Munro bagging week based at Ullapool. See Matt / David for details.
June 20^th-21^st	Lake District. Midsummer camping at Langdale. See David.
July 11^th-12^th	Yorkshire. Camping in the Kettlewell area. See Michele.
Aug 8^th-9^th	Peak District. Camp, Climb, Bike. See Debra.
Aug 24th – 3rd Sept	Pyrenees with Eileen
September 5th	North Wales Cadair Idris with Colin
September 17th – 21st	Highlands Crianlarich SYHA. See Matt or David.
October 9th-10th	Lake district YHA 2 dayer. Details TBA see Eileen
November 20th-22nd	Novemberfest, Bulch, Brecon Beacons. See Matt.
December 12th	Peak District with Matt.
January 8th – 9th	North Wales YHA weekend. See David
Feb half term week	Highlands Glen Shee area. Details TBA. See Matt.
June 2010	Ann & Mike’s Corris BBQ. Details TBA. See Ann
	Other Events – all welcome
2010?	Morocco and the Atlas Mountains If interested please contact Eileen or Matt.

And there’s much more than this going on. Visit us on a Thursday at Attleborough Liberal Club, Bull St Nuneaton for impromptu activities, or ring Andrew on 01827 717 648 or Matt on 024 76 758322 if you can’t get down.

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Newsletter 28 – October 2008

Posted on November 27, 2008 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 28 October 2008

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

PROGRAMME NOVEMBER 2008 – FEBRUARY 2009 Matt Liggins

November 14th – 16th Howgills / Lakes. Novemberfest Weekend. Tarn Outdoor Centre. Contact Matt.

December 13th Peak District with Eileen. Location TBA

January 10th-11^th 2009 Lake District. Langdale YHA weekend. Contact David.

February 19th – 22^nd 2009 Scottish Highlands. Southern Cairngorm area. Newtonmore Hostel. We have exclusive use of the hostel. Limited to 10 places. See Matt.

A.G.M.

If you weren’t down on 16^th October then you missed it. However 18 others attended with two apologies so it was well attended and business was conducted smoothly.

MEMBERSHIP DUE NOW

This is due now and has been increased from £15 to £17. You can thank the BMC for all of this increase and I hope that we will be making representations to them as they may well be minded to increase fees next year too.

In the meantime send your cheques for £17 payable to Nuneaton Mountaineering Club to:

Eileen

Alternatively visit us any Thursday from 8.30pm at Attleborough Liberal Club, Bull Street Nuneaton.

NEWSLETTER

Will now speed to you via e-mail whether you want it to or not (Speak to Matt if you feel this is a personal invasion of your e-space). There will also be a hard copy version to encourage you to read it! Alternatively you can get an edited version on the website.

The newsletter will be more regular but shorter. There will still be accounts of walks, weekends and other expeditions but I will not chase after them. If they come I will publish but otherwise the juggernaut will move on. Hopefully information will get to you quicker and more often.

10^th ANNIVERSARY OF NMC

The first recorded NMC walk took place on Saturday 27^th March 1999. There were 13 members present but sadly I only positively recorded two other names. We went in a council minibus organised by Peter Lloyd to Arenig Fawr and it may well be appropriate to repeat the walk next March.

There is also a proposal to organise a celebratory meal. Express your views and ideas ASAP.

PLANNING MEETING

To be held on Saturday 15^th November at the Novemberfest meet. However you don’t need to wait until then to put in your ideas for the next six months of the programme or even be at the Novemberfest. I submitted my cunning plan to Matt at the A.G.M.

Also, while we need people to take on the responsibility of running events just because you make a suggestion doesn’t mean that you have to organise it. Suggestions anytime from now onwards.

COMING-UP

There are still places left for the Novemberfest, 14^th – 16^th November so book now to avoid disappointment.

We’re at the Tarn Outdoor Centre between Sedbergh and Kirkby Stephen.

Likewise the trip to Scotland in February 2009 is selling out. There is another hostel in Newtonmore for overspill but at this one we have sole use.

No need to book the day walk to the Peak District on 13^th December but the January 2009 weekend trip to the Lakes will require deposits soon.

POLAND AUGUST 2008 Eileen

As you will see from Richard’s report we all had a great time in Poland. After a few days in Krakow we headed for Zakapane and the mountains. On our first day there we all took the cable car up to the ridge and then walked the rocky 6.5 km (Height Loss = 925m.) back down. I do not think that Rita has forgiven Richard yet for this as this was the last time that Richard and Rita came walking with the rest of the group. After a day off on the Sunday Ann, Keith, Nick, Les and myself took the minibus to Gronick and followed the Dolina Malej Laki (938m) valley up to Kopa Kondracka (2005m) and then along the ridge to Kasprowy Wierch (1987m). Although we only walked 10.5 km on what the book classed as “moderate” there were a lot of steep up hill sections (height gain 1452m). It was also very cold and windy along the ridge so we all opted to go back down on the cable car.

The next day was warm and sunny. We walked up to and had our picnic and a sun bathe by the lake at Czary Staw Gasienicowy before climbing up to the ridge via Karb (1853m) – Swinicka Przelecz (2051m) and Posrednje Kopa (2128m) and along the ridge to the cable car. We got to the cable car station just minutes before the last car of the day left which was lucky for us otherwise we would have been in for a 3 – 4 hour descent which none of us fancied. We had been near the highest peak on the ridge but spent too long over lunch and had not had time to climb it. Les and Keith said that they would return the next day and bag it but they never did. Ann and I wanted to complete the ridge so took a minibus to Kiry and completed a very strenuous 15.5 km walk from Polana Cudakowa (952m) to Ciemniak (2096m) along the ridge to Kopa Kondracka (2005m) and walked back down to Kuznice (1025m). We certainly earned our dinner that night.

The walking here is spectacular but as we only had a few days we concentrated on the ridge that marks the border with Slovakia. All the paths are way marked and there are even sign posts at junctions and at the top of the mountains so very easy to navigate.

POLAND AUGUST 2008 Richard Dean

On the trip were -Ann, Eileen, Les, Keith H, Nick, Richard & Rita.

The first two and half days were spent at Krackow staying in a nice little hotel in the Jewish quarter. The city is similar to Prague with magnificent buildings, churches, statues and large squares full of restaurants with outdoor eating. The climate is good with temperatures at 27-29 degrees C.

One excursion was to Auschwitz the World War 2 German concentration and extermination camp. This is now a museum. After watching a short video taken by the Russian liberators of the camp we were left to wander around 20 or so blocks which each used to hold around 400 prisoners but now are dedicated to show what the living conditions were like. Some of the blocks were just full of the personal belongings of the victims such as shoes or suitcases with the owners name and address painted on. One block held the punishment cells, one for starving prisoners to death, one airtight to kill by lack of oxygen and one which had just enough room for 4 men to stand, not sit, and this they spent 12 days in. The tour finishes with the gas chambers and incinerators and the gallows where the camp commandant was hanged by the liberators.

The next day we took a bus to Wieliczka salt mine first worked in the 13th century. The fee to go in is £10 for Polish tourists and £15 for English. I wonder what the European government would do if we did that in England. There are 350 kilometres of passages in this mine but tourists are taken around 3 kilometres of this with some chambers having carvings in the rock salt. Two chambers are chapels with many large chandeliers. We were told that 5000 people a day visit the mine which equates to £60,000 a day income. When I asked the guide where did the money go to she said “maintenance”. We had to miss some of the tour because we had checked out of our hotel and put our cases in lockers at the bus station ready to catch a coach to Zakopane about a 2 hour drive away and we only just caught the last one.

Eileen is writing an account of the walks but briefly Zakopane is a great place for walks of any grade because the Tatra Mountains close by form a long ridge up to around 6,000ft high (which is also the border with Slovakia) and along the base leading out of town is a road parallel to the ridge. Minibuses leave every 10 minuets or so and for between 70 pence and £1.10 you can be dropped of at the bottom of many river valleys leading up the ridge. The walks are colour coded on the maps together with posts on the ground. There is also a cable car going directly to the top but there was usually a long line of people waiting to ascend. I found two mountain refuges at around 3,000ft where you could get food and drink for not much more that down in the town.

The town was very lively at night. The streets were lined with restaurants and bars with entertainers such as jugglers, artists, living statues, violinists etc. On Saturday there was a market and one particular product stood out. It was fried smoked sheep’s cheese called Oskipiki. Hard to believe but there were 47 stalls selling nothing but that plus a bit of honey. I tried one piece but found it inedible. There is one main thing to avoid in Zakopane – the musical trios that seemed to be in most bars. Polish music is an acquired taste and we did not acquire it.

We spent the last day back in Krakow and some of us had a boat ride on the river. We had caught a tram to our hotel from the bus station. The trams are very cheap, about 70p for any journey, but we had a surprise when we came to do the return journey for the flight back. The road had been dug up so there were no trams. We dragged our cases for about a mile before we found a road with a tram on it and this was only about 100 yards from our destination.

In all another great NMC trip.

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Newsletter 27 – September 2008

Posted on November 27, 2008 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 27 September 2008

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING – 2008 Andrew Holder

Our annual general meeting is on Thursday, October 16th, at the Attleborough Liberal Club. It is a great chance to make your views known and shape the way the club develops.

If enough people want to, we can get rid of the old bunch of scoundrels on the committee and elect an entirely new bunch of scoundrels.

Here is the agenda as it stands at present. If there are any other issues you would like to be discussed and decided on by all our members please let me know by Friday, September 15th, and I’ll circulate a revised version of the agenda.

AGENDA

for the annual general meeting to be held on Thursday, October 16th, 2008 at 8.30 p.m. at the Attleborough Liberal Club, Bull Street, Attleborough, Nuneaton.

1 Apologies for absence.

2 Minutes of the last AGM.

3 Reports: chairman, secretary, meets secretary, treasurer.

4 Setting the subscription rate for 2008-9.

5 Election of committee for 2008-9. Nominations are sought for all of these positions:

• Chair

• Vice-chair

• Treasurer

• Secretary

• Meets secretary

• Social secretary

6 Election of officers for 2008-9. Nominations are sought for these positions:

• Newsletter

• Web site

• Quartermaster

7 Appointment of auditor

8 Dates of future meetings: committee planning AGM 2009

9 Any other business.

PROGRAMME SEPTEMBER 2008 – FEBRUARY 2009 Matt Liggins

August 26^th– September 6^th Tatra Mountains in Poland.

September 20th Snowdonia. Tryfan with Debra

September 11^th-15^th Scottish Highlands. Backpacking in the central Cairngorms area. Youth hostel in Aviemore on first and last nights. Contact David or Matt

October 18th – 19th Clun Shropshire. YHA weekend. Contact Michele

November 14th – 16th Howgills / Lakes. Novemberfest Weekend. Tarn Outdoor Centre. Contact Matt.

December 13th Peak District with Eileen. Location TBA

January 10th-11^th 2009 Lake District. Langdale YHA weekend. Contact David.

February 19th – 22^nd 2009 Scottish Highlands. Southern Cairngorm area. Newtonmore Hostel. We have exclusive use of the hostel. Limited to 10 places. See Matt.

COMING-UP TRYFAN with Debra 20^th September 2008

No information at time of going to press but reserve this date for a popular ascent, no doubt involving Tryfan North Ridge and the Bristly Ridge on Glyder Fach if conditions are fine, or not so fine if you just want to go for it.

COMING-UP CLUN 17^th-19^th October 2008 Michele

I have now filled the places I had booked at Clun Mill Hostel. If anyone else would like to come they will need to contact the hostel directly and book themselves in, if there is still room. There is also the possibility of a day trip on the Saturday.

SOCIAL PROGRAMME Michele

There is plenty going on locally – if you fancy any of the following events or want to know more contact Michele.

Friday 26^th Sept. Stand-up comedy night, Bedworth Arts Centre. 7.30pm. £8

Friday 10^th Oct. ‘The Other Woman’ (play), Atherstone Memorial Hall, 8pm, £8.50

Saturday 1^st Nov. CBSO at Bedworth Civic Hall,7.30pm. Programme includes Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. tickets £8.50-£24 (I suggest something in the middle of the range!)

November 22^nd – ‘Hoedown’ in Hinckley

This is a barn dance with live music. A group of us went in April and had a really good fun evening.

November 28^th – Ken Nicol and Phil Cool in concert (Folk) 7.30pm. Abbey Theatre, Nuneaton. £12.50

November 29^th – Bedworth Symphony Orchestra concert at Nicholas Chamberlain school 7.30pm. £5 Programme includes Mozart piano concerto no.23

TEGG’S NOSE 9^th May 2008 Michele

Despite various club members being in Scotland – some back-packing and some on Skye, there was a good turn out for the day walk in a lesser known part of the Peak District (at least lesser known to us!).

Two full cars containing Eileen, Keith H, Len, Mark, David, Rachel, Debra, Keith K and Michele met up at Tegg’s Nose Country Park near Macclesfield. It was a hazy start to a very warm day but everyone realised that we were starting at the top of a hill and therefore the end of the day would involve going uphill!!

Of course, that meant that we started by going downhill – past Clough House and then back up the other side of the valley via the edge of Macclesfield Forest to Shuslingsloe (with it’s trig point at 506m). Here Rachel finally allowed us to have elevenses at 11.45!

It was then downhill again to Wildboarclough. Various members of the party were not too happy at passing a pub without stopping but at this point they did not know that there was to be another pub in a short while – the Wild Boar Inn at Wincle, where we were all glad to stop for some refreshment.

The afternoon took us to Greasley Hollow and Rossen Clough where we picked up the Gritstone Trail and eventually back to the cars. The final uphill to Tegg’s Nose was quite an effort for just about everyone but as we had walked 15 ½ miles and done 860m of ascent it was felt acceptable to be tired!

RAPID SPREAD OF LYME DISEASE CIEH PRESS RELEASE Debra C
The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) is calling on the Government to tackle the growing public health threat posed by Lyme Disease and other pest related illnesses.
According to the National Public Health Service in Cardiff, there are an estimated 800 Laboratory cases of Lyme Disease confirmed annually, however this figure does not take into account between 1000-2000 cases each year that have been diagnosed and treated by GPs. Lyme disease is caused by infected ticks and can cause symptoms from a rash to blindness and paralysis. Treating Lyme disease is often complicated by the fact that it is often misdiagnosed and underreported.
Recent developments in pest-borne diseases in the US and Europe and the spread of Lyme disease in both Europe and
Northern America, have signalled strongly the crucial need to carefully assess the potential threat of urban pests to
public health.
The call to action coincides with the launch of a World Health Organization book entitled ‘The Public Health
Significance of Urban Pests’, which urges governments to better address the rising public health threats posed by pests
related illnesses.
Commenting, CIEH Chief Executive, Graham Jukes said: “We strongly urge the Government to take greater responsibility for pest management and to raise the profile of diseases such as Lyme disease. Over the past decade we saw how West Nile Virus spread from small area of the USA to a disease that now affects the whole country.
“Lyme disease in this country is spreading and the number of cases is rising significantly. This is a misunderstood
disease that can cause untold misery to its victims. We urge the Government to make this a notifiable disease.”
The National Pest Advisory Panel (NPAP) of the CIEH is currently drafting some guidelines on tick management which will be available later this year.
The CIEH has developed a summary of the WHO book highlighting the main findings from a UK perspective. Please visit: http://www.cieh-npap.org/documents/Urban-pests-publichealth-significanceJULY08.pdf.

A full version of the WHO book is available as a PDF on the WHO website at:
http://www.euro.who.int/InformationSources/Publications/Catalogue/20080617_9

The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) is the professional voice for environmental health. It
ensures the highest standards of professional competence in its members; in the belief that through environmental health
action people’s health can be improved
The CIEH represents over 10,000 members working in the public, private and non-profit sectors. For more
information about the CIEH visit http://www.cieh.org/
For further information please contact Andrew Hamadanian, CIEH Corporate Communications Manager.
Tel: 020 7827 5922. Mobile: 07944 262 100. Email: a.hamadanian@cieh.org

SKYE 10^th-22^nd May 2008 Colin and Ann

A blow by blow account could take up some space so I will restrict myself to the highlights.

Staying at Sligachan bunkhouse for the first few days we drove down towards Blaven on the 11^th in a rather depressing shower of rain. Nevertheless upon arrival it began to clear and we set off up the hill. At 430m the route steepens and higher up there are boulders but no difficulties (in clear conditions). At the top it was hazy and the famous view of the Black Cuillin was hardly discernable. The traverse to the South Top is easy by Skye standards but we left another walker pondering whether he was going to attempt the ledge. The descent was steep with scree but without problems.

On the 12^th we walked straight from the bunkhouse and headed for Sgurr nan Gillean. This is a magnificent peak with some proper scrambling at the top. I had forgotten quite how steep and rocky the top was, but its not graded Grade 3 for nothing. At the summit there is only room for a handful of people as the ground drops away precipitously all around. As a return by the same route is required for scramblers we were content to descend with a group of three climbers who had just completed the ridge and were therefore in a charitable mood. A couple of hundred feet down when easier ground was reached the climbers shot off while we surveyed the scene and surveyed the route for the following day.

On the 13^th we took the rope and climbing gear. The route to Coire a’ Bhasteir is straightforward and impressive and we then headed further uphill to Sgurr a’ Bhasteir. The rope and climbing gear seemed very heavy on the ascent but the rocky ridge and then easy ascent to Bruach na Frithe made it worthwhile. Moving on we took in the little summit of Sgurr a’ Fionn Choire before the intimidating traverse below the cliffs of Am Bhasteir. At the col on the far side we kitted up for Am Bhasteir. The ridge is steep and narrow in places but the gear was for a descent and then re-ascent shortly before the summit. We set up the belay. Ann found the location exposed at first (it was) but once I was over the edge the foot holds became apparent and all was well. The re-ascent was much easier as you could see where to put your feet and we both got up and down without incident. Fortunately there was no-one else around as we spent quite some time here but the sun was shining and at the end of the day there was a drink in the Sligachan to help us re-hydrate.

After a rest day we set off on the 15^th from our new home at Glenbrittle Youth Hostel for Coire a’ Ghreadaidh. This was the only day we encountered mist and it was down to about 500m. The GPS got us to the base of the stone shoot and then it was just a matter of climbing to the very small col of An Dorus. Here there are rock steps on both sides of the col which lead without further difficulties to a Munro each side. First we tackled Sgurr a’ Mhadaidh. The first couple of moves were a bit of a puzzle but after that all was well. The descent was just an undignified lower over a slab. The other side is supposed to be harder but went without incident both up and down. On top it tried to clear but never quite managed it.

The 16^th was a top day. We had met a couple of climbers and they offered to take us to the In Pinn. After a practise abseil in the coire we gained Sgurr Dearg and set about roping up. The East Ridge is only moderate with good holds but the exposure is considerable. It is also a two pitch climb so the stance half way up was cosy. Once on top all that remained was the 20m abseil. Back on terra firma Ann and climber Martin, who lives in Wales, sang the Welsh national anthem to the assembled throng. Even today Ann is still on a high from the experience. Colin is chuffed too.

The 17^th was a relatively easy day as we only climbed the single Munro of Sgurr na Banachdich directly from the hostel. There was scree but no difficulties to the summit. Colin then went out for Banachdich Central

ANN CLIMBING THE ‘IN PINN’ PITCH 2

Top while Ann chose to give it a miss. Not a bad decision in the end as Ann was able to help me locate the footholds on the descent.

After another rest day we set out on the 19^th for our finest mountaineering day of the trip. The walk to Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda is a scramble in its own right but the coire is truly awesome being just a mass of rock. After climbing boulders we ended up on the ridge and made our way with light scrambling to Sgurr nan Eag. The route to the next Munro involved traversing Caisteal a’ Garbh Choire and Sgurr Dubh an Da Bheinn before we got to grips with Sgurr Dubh Mor. The route up and down was Grade 2 and potentially intimidating. Re traversing Sgurr Dubh an Da Bheinn we dropped down and skirted below the TD Gap to the Bealach Sgumain. Here the SW Ridge of Sgurr Alasdair is Grade 3 and accessed via a chimney which looks fearsome but much easier upon inspection. The route then leads up scree and rock and comes out on the ridge with some formidable drops down to Coire Lagan on the left. The summit of Sgurr Alasdair is a wonderful place but there is still a short Grade 2 ridge to descend to reach the top of the Great Stone Shoot. The shoot almost did for Ann’s knees as we slipped and slid over 1200ft down to Coire Lagan – it seemed further. Glenbrittle was still almost two thousand feet lower and a welcome sight. 11 hours 55 nimutes.

The final Munro on the 20^th was Sgurr Mhic Choinnich. Back in Coire Lagan we skirted the An Stac screes on the left to reach Bealach Coire Lagan. The ascent and descent of Choinnich is Grade 2. We were both tired after previous exertions and conscious of not wanting to make a mistake. Choinnich is not all gabro and many of the slabs are covered in grit and pebbles. Careful manoeuvring was requir pin ed in places. After photos, as usual, we cautiously descended and not until we were safely back at the bealach did I get my congratulatory 12 Munro hug from Ann. All that was left was the descent of the An Stac screes which went easily enough before we descended to Glenbrittle and a celebratory ice cream from the campsite shop.

All achieved we headed for home staying at Crianlarich on the return journey. Wonderful trip.

THE INACCESSIBLE PINNACLE

ELIDIR FAWR & Y GARN 8^th June 2008 Colin
Colin, David and Rachel parked at Ogwen Cottage on a warm sunny day with clear blue skies. Walking downhill towards Bethesda we continued for about 4 km before making our way steeply uphill towards Carnedd y Filiast. The going over grass and heather improved with height and eventually we picked up a path that led to the Carnedd y Filiast North Top 721m. Any suggestion that this walk was constructed purely to attain this new Nuttall top would be scurrilous and if such is said in public I will consult my legal team.

The top of Carnedd y Filiast 821m was soon reached where David decided to take the easier option and miss out Eilidir Fawr. Nevertheless Colin and Rachel pressed on but I must advise anyone who is due to walk with Rachel to make sure that they get in front and set the pace, because despite her many charms following her uphill is exhausting work.

Replacing our steps from Elidir Fawr 923m we made for Foel goch and Y Garn 947m before making for the top of the Devil’s Kitchen. David had long gone so we descended with almost no one around despite the crowds below. The only group we saw on the descent were poorly equipped for the high street let alone steep rocky ground. Sandals just will not do! David was found at the drinks and ice cream shop so we joined him for some re-hydration. A fine day.

BLACK MOUNTAIN CAMPING 11^th-13^th July 2008 Colin

The venue was the Black Mountain Caravan & Camping site south of Llandovery sorted out by Michele. For those interested in birds it was next to a Red Kite feeding station so there were plenty of kites flying around and about. Keith and Michele had a short Friday walk on Foel Fawr 616m where they waved goodbye to Nick who decided to camp out for the first night. Len and Jan arrived in their new motor home and Colin and Ann soon afterwards making up the weekends complement.

On Saturday there were showers but Keith, Michele, Colin, Ann and Len set off from the camp site for Black Mountain. On top (Fan Brycheiniog or Carmathan Fan 802m) it was cool and blustery but fine once we were walking again. The route continued over Bannau Sir Gaer 749m and Waun Lefrith 677m before we made our way across acres of grassland to the bridleway heading to Llanddeusant and the campsite.

On Sunday Len and Jan headed home but Nick survived his night in the hills to join us. From the A470 just north of the Storey Arms we climbed in very pleasant conditions to Fan Frynych and Craig Cerrig-gleisiand both 629m. Afterwards we made our way to Fan Fawr 734m and its nearby trig point. Descending we reached the Storey Arms and returned to our starting point via the Taff Trail.

An excellent weekend. Nice meal at a pub in Llangadog on the Saturday evening and some splendid hospitality in Len and Jan’s motor home.

NEW WELSH HEWITTS? – THAT’S NUTTALLS AS WELL!

Yesterday we carried out detailed GPS surveys with Leica Geosystems of the two Welsh 609m hills, Craig Fach and Mynydd Graig Goch, in order to see if either/both reached 609.6m (2000 feet). We were able to quite quickly ascertain that Craig Fach was lower than 2000 feet by about 1metre. However, the results for Mynydd Graig Goch (End of the Nantle Ridge – Ed) were very close and we are now awaiting data verification from the Ordnance Survey. We will announce the exact results of these surveys once we have obtained this verification.
John Barnard. From the RHB website 12^th August 2008.

DROSGL, BANC LLECHWEDD-MAWR and DISGWYLFA FAWR Colin

Where I hear you say. West of Plynimon I reply. Maybe none the wiser but this is one I did on my own and you may be thankful that you weren’t available. On 20^th July I crossed the dam over the Nant-y-moch Reservoir passing the ‘Road Closed’ sign as there was no evidence it was closed. Other traffic was using the road so I parked up and set off towards the hills. Drosgol 550m was not too bad but the deep vegetation was tiring. A new bridge over a major stream made Banc Llechwedd-Mawr 560m possible but it was steep and seemed a long off. Returning to the bridge I then followed the river for a kilometre or so over some of the worst vegetation in creation. Tussocks, holes, grass and heather up to my thighs, slime and bog made every step a real effort. I’d have made quicker progress wading knee deep in water up the middle of the stream. Eventually I got across the worst of it probably lucky not to get a twisted ankle or broken leg! Taking a short cut over Cefn yr Esgair in the rain was a pleasure by comparison.

Down the valley I was sufficiently recovered to tackle Disgwylfa Fawr 506m. Approaching the summit were two other walkers who turned out to be Charles and Jill Levinton and we arrived at the top almost together. ‘Are you bagging hills? ‘the man said. ‘Yes’ I replied, ‘And so are you I believe as there are few recreational walkers on these lonely hills.’ I was right, and after a few photographs of each other we exchanged e-mail addresses and went our own ways.

BERWYNS 26^th July 2008 Colin

Keith, Michele, Colin and Rachel arrived at Pistyll Rhaeadr on a sunny morning with the car park quickly filling up. Climbing above the waterfall we continued up the river with some heavy going higher up as the vegetation thickened. Once on the ridge walking became easier and we quickly passed Meol Sych 827m and onto Cadair Berwyn 827m. From here we continued to Cadair Bronwen 784m before dropping to the col with Tomle. Descending to the valley below looked unattractive so we re-ascended to Cadair Berwyn before dropping down to the ridge ging out to Godor. The walk to Godor took in a couple of other tops but also required some backtracking before we were able to descend to the main track – more excess vegetation – and a welcome drink at the café. Good walk anda nice day.

KINDER SCOUT 2^nd August 2008 Colin

Colin, Nick and Anna arrived at Blackden Beck at the base of the Snake Pass after a very wet journey. Fortunately there was only a short shower soon after leaving the car as the rest of the day was a mixture of cloud with some sunshine. Colin gallantly offered to carry Anna’s second new pole as there was no strap on the back of her rucksack but only managed to achieve the loss of a snow ring which fell off the end of the pole – sorry. It took a long time to climb the beck but once on the plateau the better path made for easier going. We did a bit of pacing and compass work and eventually crossed the plateau via the 590m trig point. At the head of Crowden Brook we headed for the summit but realising we were running out of time turned and crossed the peat at its widest point! Finding a Mountain Rescue navigation box on the plateau provided some interest but otherwise we descended without incident on the open slopes alongside Blackden Beck. Good walk with much better weather than forecast.

EXMOOR CAMPING TRIP 8^th – 10^th August Michele

The August Club trip was to the Doone Valley in Exmoor.

Matt was the organiser but unfortunately work commitments meant he couldn’t go so he suggested two possible campsites and let us get on with it!! We couldn’t really decide which site would be best so we decided on Cloud Farm. Cloud Farm is in an idyllic setting in the Badgworthy valley but there is limited flat ground for pitching and it got quite muddy too!

Mo, Nick and Mark arrived first and found a fairly flat area for us to camp. They then went off walking onto Exmoor. Keith and Michele arrived in the early afternoon and pitched their tent before also heading out onto Exmoor for a lovely walk in the summer sunshine. In the evening we gathered round our disposable BBQs and later made a campfire. As we weren’t sure whether Kim and Alastair were definitely coming, we hadn’t been able to keep enough space for another tent so when they arrived at 7.30pm there was ‘no room at the inn’ so to speak and they decided to go to the Doone Valley campsite up the road. They actually did well by this as it was flatter, less crowded and cheaper!

When Saturday arrived it was with the forecast wind and rain. We went out anyway, walking to County Gate (the border between Somerset and Devon) and then onto the coast path to Lynmouth. Here the party split, some staying around Lynmouth and Lynton and getting a (open-topped) bus back as far as County Gate whilst Keith and Michele walked back, mostly along the River via Watersmeet.

Everyone was fairly /very wet by the time they returned to Cloud Farm so it was a very anti-social evening, each staying in there own tents!

Sunday dawned a much brighter day. We decamped in the dry then drove to Allerford (near Porlock) and did a nice half day walk to Hurlestone Point and Selworthy Beacon before driving home.

It would have been better in wall to wall sunshine but was still a nice weekend away.

THE LAST WELSH TRIG BUILTH WELLS 8^th-10^th August Colin

Sadly I missed the Exmoor trip as I wanted to take the opportunity of meeting some serious baggers/triggers/geocashers for the occasion of Rob Woodall’s last Welsh trig on Red Hill.

I travelled on Friday to a very good campsite near Hundred House a few miles before Builth Wells. Not an area I have ever visited before but one I shall return to. On the Friday I climbed (well about 300 metres along a road) Mynydd Eppynt. Not too difficult you may say but I waited until 7.30pm as it’s on a military firing range and the red flags are apparently always up. Needless to say I saw no-one and was quite content not to do so.

Saturday morning was wet. I sat in my recently purchased tent thinking – shall I bother going out – but the call of the wild was too strong. The first hill Pen y Garn-goch was alright until I got to within 75 metres of the summit. Here I was faced with a seemingly impenetrable wall of young plantation. I stumbled through the thickets and eventually came out near the trig point in a clearing invisible from more than a few metres away. Returning seemed easy enough as I could clearly see the larger trees of the main forest only metres away. After a fight in the trees I got stuck in the branches and could see neither my feet, the sky or ahead as the branches were so thick that I had to turn away to avoid the millions of pine needles before pushing forward. What fun, and by the way I was also being rained on and it was misty! Back at the car I was comprehensively wet but I pushed on to the next hills Crugiau Merched – steep and wet, Mynydd Cynros – excess bracken and Pen-crug-melyn – teeming it down.

Sunday I met up with the A team. You may believe I’m moderately eccentric, amongst other things but this crew take some beating. Mythydd Phillips – a man who has 16 and soon to be 17 rounds of the Nuttalls! What do you do if a new one is discovered I asked him. Go and climb it 16 times to bring it up to par he replied. Ted Richards – a man who has walked the coastline of England and Wales (3,500 miles). Roland and Ann Bowker – the grandparents of British bagging. Rob Woodall a man (as has Ann Bowker) who has climbed everything in the UK except the St Kilda sea stacks. Mark and Leanne – a younger couple who seemed normal but talked of nothing but geocashing. (That’s taking your GPS or map and compass to find an obscure box, who’s location you can find on the internet, but hidden to make it difficult. You then log it and exchange one of the items in the box with one you have brought along for that very purpose. You then travel some distance to do another, and another etc. Apparently there are thousands of these hidden all over the UK and you collect as many as you can. One or two seemingly normal people I have omitted from the list above. Nevertheless it was sociable and we climbed Colva Hill in the morning and Red Hill in the afternoon with lunch at Hundred House between.

CLIMBING – THE ROACHES 16^th August 2008 Colin

On a day where the forecast was iffy at best nine of us managed to get up to The Roaches for some climbing. Keith and Michele, Keith H, Colin, David, Saul and Anna were ably marshalled by Steve and Eileen. Looking for something easy we headed for Prow Corner VD but as it was busy and occupied we slung a rope down alongside what turned out to be Chalkstorm E4 5c. Needless to say even with a bit of roving off line only Steve got to the top. Prow Corner became available which was much more like it before we moved on to Maud’s Garden VD. Here even Saul gave it a go and got to the top while others tried Contrary Mary VS 4b and Broken Slab S.

An enjoyable day and it never did rain on us. Best entertainment was provided by Keith K who never did quite manage to throw the rope from the top of Maud’s Garden to the bottom. It snagged in a tree and on various rocks before we eventually had to climb up to retrieve it. Also Saul had a close shave when he disturbed a mouse just about to tuck into his sandwiches. A nice cup of tea too at the café down the road.

CARNEDDS 23^rd August 2008 Colin

David, Colin, Anna and Saul arrived at the eastern end of Llyn Ogwen with mist on a number of adjacent mountains. The climb towards Pen yr Ole Wen was warm even with the broken cloud above and at the top there were even some blue skies and sunshine. At Carnedd Dafyedd 1044m there was a cool breeze but it was still a fine walk along the cliffs to Carnedd Llewelyn 1064m . From here we descended SE and continued on to Pen y Helgi Du 839m where the skies began to look more menacing. Descending southwards we eventually caught the rain and by the time we had reached the A5 were quite wet. The walk along the main road is never that exciting but at least it eased off as we reached the car while we sorted ourselves out. A cup of tea at Ogwen ensured we were ready for the long drive home.

Posted in 2008 | Tagged 2008, newsletters | Comments Off

Newsletter 26 – May 2008

Posted on November 27, 2008 by keith

NUNEATON MOUNTAINEERING CLUB

NEWSLETTER 26 May 2008

Website http://www.nunmc.org/

Edited by Colin Green

PROGRAMME APRIL – AUGUST 2008 Matt

May 3^rd Keith H’s Birmingham Balti Night Special.

May 10th Peak District. Wildboar Clough with Keith and Michele.

May 8^th – 12th Backpacking to the Glen Carron area of the Scottish Highlands. See David or Matt

May 10th for 2 weeks ish Scottish Highlands. Isle of Skye. Stay for a week or more. See Colin or Ann.

May 23^rd 4-5 days Canoeing with Andrew, Nick and Mark in south Wales.

June 21st – 22nd North Wales. Midsummer Madness camping & BBQ with Debra near to Dolgellau.

July 12th – 13th SouthWales. Camping with Matt in the Black Mountain area. (NOT BLACK MTS)

Aug 9th – 10th Exmoor. Camping in the Doone valley. See Michele

November 14^th – 16^th Tarn Outdoor Centre, Howgills/Yorkshire Dales for another Novemberfest.

Other Events – all welcome!

Sept date TBA Poland High Tatra mountains. See Eileen if interested.

Summer Anyone interested in doing the coast to coast? See Ann.

PRICING POLOCY Eileen (Treasurer)

The pricing policy for residential events introduced by Matt at last years AGM seems to be working well.

The Novemberfest at the Eagle Bunkhouse made a small profit of £16.40 with 18 members paying £35.00 plus one £10 deposit covered both the accommodation cost of £560 and the evening meal.

The Corran Bunkhouse (Scotland) in February broke even with 12 members paying £56 per person covered the £672.00 cost of the accommodation.

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES Michele

There is a charity night out on Friday May 2nd. It is an Abba tribute by Abba Revolution and Elvis will also be appearing! It takes place at the ‘Piv’, Stockingford, Nuneaton. Tickets are £7 and it’s all in aid of the Mary Ann Evans Hospice.
Let me know if you can come and join the fun as well as helping a good cause.

BALTI NIGHT Saturday 3^rd May Keith H

Keith has suggested having a “Balti Night” in Birmingham. He is going to look into Balti Houses and report back. In the meantime can anyone interested in principle let Matt or Eileen know so it can be passed on to Keith.

LATEST – Saturday 3^rd May location TBA.

GLEN CARRON BACKPACKING 8^th – 12^th May Matt
Matt, David and Ian have booked on to the overnight sleeper train from Nuneaton to Achnashellach arriving at approx 10:30am on 08/05/08. Anyone who requires train details please contact Matt. If you are intending to go by car the hotel one stop down the line will provide a convenient parking and meeting place. Again contact Matt for details.

CANOEING TRIP May 23^rd ish Andrew
Mark, Nick and I are thinking of going to south-west Wales canoeing for about 4 or 5 days, starting on or about May 23rd. We might camp or take a bunk house. There are a numbers of good rivers in the area, including the Eastern and Western Cleddau. It would also tie in with walking part of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path.

All welcome. If you are interested, please let Andrew, Mark or Nick know ASAP, even if you can’t commit yourself at this stage.

POLAND 26^th August – 4^th September 2008 Eileen Walsh

The Poland trip is now all set to go and our basic plan is as follows:-

Seven of us have signed up to go, myself, Keith H, Les, Richard and wife Rita, Ann and Nick. We will be arriving in Krakow at about lunchtime on the 26th August and stopping in the city for a couple of day’s sight seeing, before taking the bus to Zakopane and the Tatra mountains. We will spend 6 nights in Zakopane during which time we will spend time exploring the mountains and may even venture over into Solvakia where I am told the terrain is spectacularly beautiful.

On the 3^rd September we will take the bus back to Krakow for last minute sight seeing and shopping before catching the flight back the next day. The flights with Ryan Air from East Midlands Airport have been booked. (Total cost £71.58 p.p. including baggage and check in fees). Accommodation has been booked on a B&B basis at the Kolory in Krakow and the Adria Pension in Zakopane. Accommodation cost for twin bedded rooms is approximately 50 Euro per room per night. Both B&B’s are in the town/city centres so handy for shopping, restaurants and bars.

Details of the accommodation can be obtained on: http://www.staypoland.com/.

NOVEMBERFEST 14^th-16^th Nov. 2008 TARN OUTDOOR CENTRE Matt
We have booked the Tarn Outdoor Centre in the Howgill Fells for the above weekend. We have sole use of the outdoor centre with space for up to 24 people, so friends and family will be welcome on this trip. The tarn centre is nicely placed in the Howgills, but near enough for a day out in the Lakes if you feel the need. The weekend will follow the usual format with a get together on Saturday night; the only difference this time is that I won’t be in the kitchen. (Hooray!) This year it’s your turn to shine. We will be having a fuddle, as they call it in Leicestershire. You may know it better as an American supper. The club will provide the basics i.e. bread, salads and snacks, and then everyone will bring a dish of their choice. You can buy it or make it and it could be hot or cold. We have very good cooking facilities on site so if you want to show off and do a Prune and Armagnac soufflé for 20 people now’s your chance. Anyway more on that nearer the day. The trip will cost £39.00 per person for the weekend. Couples will have a very good chance of getting a twin room as there are a few on offer. Have a look at the web site below and I think you will agree it looks pretty good. Also have a look at the attached word document it has detailed information on the centre and pubs and restaurants in the area.
http://www.tarnoutdoor.co.uk/ <http://www.tarnoutdoor.co.uk/>

SPICY TOMATO SALSA Chef’s (Matt’s) Special

As eaten at the 2007 Novemberfest Serves 4
Finely chop the following:
2 Large Beefsteak Tomatoes (seeds juice and all)
1 Medium Red Pepper
1 Medium Green Pepper
1 Large red onion
1 – 3 Fresh green Chilli’s (depending on how hot you like it).
1 Small bunch of fresh parsley (Optional but recommended)
1 Garlic Clove
Add to this:
2 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive oil
The Juice of 1 Lime (or half a lemon)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Stir well and leave in the fridge to for 15 – 30 minutes before serving.
Serve as an appetiser with tortilla chips or as an accompaniment to grilled or barbequed meats and chilli con carne.

DERWENTWATER YH 11^th – 13^th January 2008 David

12^th January 2008 Colin, David, Mo and Rachel in the Lake District. (Matt, Ian and Les did their own thing).

There was another adverse weather forecast which was not as bad as stated. Parking at Braithwaite we ascended Grisedale Pike. The ground was particularly hard underfoot and was very cold and windy on top. There was a quick detour to Hopegill Head then back over Sand Hill, Crag Hill, Sail and Causey Pike to complete the Coledale Horseshoe. It was only as we reached the end that the cloud lifted and we could actually see the hills. Taking the ice axe and crampons were an unnecessary weight.

The best bit was Mo forgetting to take his waterproof. Luckily David had a spare so we didn’t have to scurry back to the hostel to retrieve it. What Mo did have in his rucksack that he didn’t need was a spare pair of boots! Ed.

1275m 6 hours approx. 9 miles (including the trip to the village pub) a good day for all.

13th January 2008

Colin, David, and Rachel – took in a trip around and over Cat Bells (2 hours). This time the weather forecast was correct with very high winds. It was just as well that we decided to go with the wind direction on top, as those coming up the normal way were taking to sitting down to get over the top. Colin made a detour to Swinside for another bag to add to his list. On collecting Mo from Keswick we went home, being back in time for tea.

LATHKILL DALE 19th January 2008 David

Colin, David, Sheila and Ann in the Peak District

As there was yet another severe weather warning (which did not materialize) we went for a walk commencing at Over Haddon and descending into the valley of Lathkill Dale. The river was flooded, with much of the path being swamped. Colin, armed with his new camera was taking some rather good photos of a small bird to add to his overall total. There were some further impressive sights with the river pouring out of the hillside. There was then a trip into Moneyash, walking past the pub (!) and into the café next door (which was a good move). Following refreshments it was out into the hills just to the north which were a little more wet than before the café with lunch at the head of old lead mine (which was 222m deep) and back to the car. 6 hours 330m.

CORRAN BUNKHOUSE 7^th – 11^th February 2008 Colin

The accommodation at Corran certainly lifted the bar for all future trips. En suite, TV in rooms and a decent drying room all made it well worth the money. We didn’t have sole use so had to contend with another group but apart from some mumbles about door banging all was well. With a pub next door and an even better one a free ferry ride over the loch all was set for a good weekend.

Friday 8^th A wild day. The forecast mentioned ferocious winds, and it certainly was strong. Keith and Michele headed for the forest north of Fort William and eventually to the swimming pool. Colin, Ann, Debra and Steve walked from the bunkhouse up Glen Righ before ascending steeply to Beinn na Gucaig 616m. Here it was unpleasant but rather than take the straightforward SW ridge into the wind and rain a longer route was taken back to Glen Righ. Later it was almost pleasant and the waterfalls near to Inchree on the return journey were worth the detour.

Matt, Ian, Les, Alastair and Kimberley tried for the two Munros of Sron a Choire Ghairbh and Meall na Teanga alongside Loch Lochy. Here the wind was ferocious and at the col between the two Munros no further progress could be made so there was nothing left but to retreat.

Saturday 9^th Still not a pristine day and forecast but Keith, Michele, Alastair, Kimberley, Colin, Ann, Ian, Matt and Les set out optimistically for Sgor na h-Ulaidh 994m in Glencoe. The tops were in cloud and there was a steady breeze even in the valley so the steep slopes were tackled more in hope than expectation. Higher up at the 798m col things were more promising but it was a misty and snowy walk to the top of Stob an Fhurain 968m. Thought the descent to the next col was fine the ascent to the Munro proved to be steep and snowy. He descent of this grade 1 snow slope was treated cautiously by most but there was plenty of fun on the lower easier slopes. The rest was just a walk with a little drizzle during the last hour.

Meanwhile Debra had done some damage to her feet on the previous day so with Steve drove down to Oban and went over the ferry to Mull as foot passengers for lunch.

Sunday 10^th This was to be the best day so an ascent of the Aonachs was selected. From the gondola station Ann, Debra, Steve. Keoth, Michele and Colin ascended with assistance to the top station and then also on a chair lift to about 920m (£8.25). Here it was quite misty, cold and breezy. The walk to Aonach Mor 1221m was straightforward but there were significant snow patches on the descent requiring caution as with the mist it was close to a white out. At the col a path developed up Aonach Beag but with height a general snow cover created true white out conditions as we approached the summit. The GPS indicated that we had arrived at the summit and with the edge close by no one was keen to investigate further. A hole was dug to establish the depth of the snow and a retreat made down the hill. On the descent we met Matt, Ian and Les who had missed out on the 200m chairlift ride and had been puzzled as to why they had taken so long to catch us up. They continued by following our footprints and proceeded no further than the whole in the snow that we had dug. The two groups rejoined on the ascent of Aonach Mor and we continued together in improving conditions to watch the climbers at the top of the Aonach Mor cliffs. It never did quite clear which was a pity, but it will be there for another day.

Monday 11^th This was the day that most people were heading for home so it should be no surprise that there were clear blue skies and bright sunshine. Keith and Michele managed to climb the Corbett Ben Ledi 879m near to Callander and were rewarded with a temperature inversion. Colin and Ann were able to stay on a little longer so on the way to Tyndrum for a couple of extra nights drove to the Inveroran Hotel near to Bridge of Orchy for an ascent of Ben Inverveigh 639m and Meall Tairbh 665m. It was frosty underfoot and very cold in the shade but wonderfully bright and sunny. The route was straightforward but the lower part of the descent in the heather and grass a little tedious.

Tuesday 12^th For the final day Colin and Ann returned to Bridge of Orchy for an ascent on the two Munros of Beinn Dorain1076m and Beinn an Dothaidh 1002m. The climb to the col between the two mountains went remarkably easily and the south slopes of Beinn an Dothaidh were ascended first to give the north slopes on Beinn Dorain time to soften up a bit. There were some snow patches on Beinn an Dothaidh but all were fairly soft. Opposite things looked more wintry. Climbing Beinn Dorain the ground was still quite frozen in the shade and the snow was like concrete. Though we climbed some hard snow there were enough grass and rock patches to make the going more comfortable. On top the wind and sun had cleared most of the snow away and we were able to enjoy the view confident in the knowledge that an easy descent could be made. Ann was sufficiently impressed that she started phoning friends and family from the summit. Well it was a very fine location and view indeed.

WINTER TRIP TO SCOTLAND 16^th – 20^th February 2008 Mo

Saturday 16^th

We started out at 1.30am and got to Fort William at 9am. Had a good trip, sharing the driving with my son Daniel. We had breakfast at Morrisons – it was crap! Then we drove to the North Face car park, packed our rucksacks containing our food, four pints of milk, a bottle each of wine and beer, ready for three day stay in the CIC hut. (Yes, the same hut that no-one at NMC wanted to stay at!) Arriving two hours later we dropped off our heavy sacs and, as the weather was so good, after our lunch we decided to go for a climb.

The route we chose was No.5 Gully, grade one, as it was straight up from the hut. There was a lot of snow all the way up the gully and a lot of avalanche debris at the bottom. It was a long way up, and at the half way point we came to the fracture point of the avalanche, which had a two foot step up in the snow. From here on Daniel and I were in the clouds and could not see the top. Nearer the top it got quite steep and we had a great adrenalin rush as we came up over the cornice. On the way down we navigated too far south and nearly missed the half-way lochan. On finding the loch we descended north to the river and the path which led to the car park. It was a long and tiring day but we both thoroughly enjoyed it. On Saturday night we stayed at Glen Nevis youth hostel, where we met my elder son Matthew and his climbing partner.

Sunday 17th

The next morning we drove to the North Face car park for the final slog to the hut. On reaching the hut we found that the door was open, and we went inside to find a French climber who was staying in the hut with eleven more of his party. We were going to be rather snug! It may have been freezing outside that night, but the hut was nice and warm. After dinner we went outside to have a look at the view, and we could see the lights of the climbers high up on the face. Rather them than me!

Monday 18^th

After a good breakfast we packed our ice axes, crampons and the rest of our gear and set off to do the Carn Mor Dearg Arete. This is walk that Daniel has always wanted to do. Conditions were freezing, clear and wind free. We soon started taking off layers as we used the axes and crampons – it was hard going. About halfway up when we stopped to take some photos, we could see a blanket of cloud over Fort William and we could see the tops of the mountains in the distance. It was a great sight.

On reaching the ridge you could see for miles in all directions, and twenty minutes later we were at the summit and the sun came out for us. The only thing lacking was snow! We followed the ridge round to the Ben and on the walk up to the summit we came to some good, hard snow where we needed to use our crampons and ice axes again. I found a climbing helmet and donated it to Daniel as his was borrowed. At the summit the sky was bright blue and the weather perfect. We watched snow buntings as we ate our lunch.

Our descent was No.4 Gully, the most straightforward and easiest to find as it has a marker post at the top. Whilst on the gully we spotted some ice climbers on the Smith’s Route, a V5 climb. We found out later that they were our new French friends. The cornice was not large, but a bit scary going over the top, and it looked a long way down. The snow in the gully and all the way back to the CIC hut was excellent. Now for tea and cake before dinner – what luxury in the mountains!

Tuesday 19^th

The weather had improved day by day, and this was the sunniest so far. Today we decided to do the Ledge route, a grade 2 climb which is on the Carn Dearg Buttress. In my book it describes the route as ‘probably the best route of its grade on the mountain, with sustained interest and magnificent situations.’ We reached the Ledge in forty-five minutes, and found a group of climbers gearing up. We decided not to hang around and headed up to the next ledge further up No 5 gully. This looked better, with more snow and ice. A slip whilst crossing the ledge would be fatal. After fifteen minutes we reached a large pile of rocks and the danger had passed. We rested, took in the views and had some food. The remainder of the climb consisted mainly of scrambling on the bare rock, due to lack of the white stuff, but was a lot easier than we expected. We arrived on the top all too soon as my son and I were enjoying it so much.

We chose the same route for our descent as the previous day and, as it was still only early in the afternoon we did some messing about in the snow like father and son climbers do! The forecast for Wednesday was that there was going to be a break in the weather, so this would be our last opportunity before returning home.

What a fabulous adventure.

SNOWDON 16^th February 2008 David

David, Rachel & Tony. This time we took a trip to North Wales. The weather was very cold but with clear blue skies and although the temperature was below freezing, we could easily walk with just one layer on. From the car park at the bottom of the Watkins path we ascended Yr Aran and then up the south ridge of Snowdon. Awaiting ourselves at the top was a complete eyesore. The new cafe was partially built, making the place a complete mess. We agreed that the same should never have been built. It would have been better just to have knocked down the old one and never replaced it! Another eyesore was the new wall or platform which has partially been built around the top and then to make matters even worse – there were too many people! Lunch was taken further down the hill returning down the south ridge. 6 1/4 hours 1350m.

THE LONG MYND 8^th March Eileen

Shropshire’s bleak and lonely ridge. – 12 Miles.

Despite the bad weather forecast, and that England was playing Scotland at Rugby, there was very good turn out with 11 club members (Eileen, Keith H, Debra, Colin, Mark, Tony, Richard, Ann, Nick, Keith K and Michele).

We arrived at Minton to find that there was no parking, despite what I was led to believe, so we drove to Little Stretton, parked by the stream and walked back up the hill to Minton. According to my book, Minton is an ancient settlement dating back to Saxon times and could have been a frontier settlement of Mercia. Passing through the village we crossed the fields, contouring the hill and up the picturesque valley of Minton Batch over the top of the ridge, down to Asterton and on to Wentnor, where we found the Crown Inn, open and welcoming. Having rehydrated, we continued on up the spur of Adstone hill following the main footpath up to the top of the Long Mynd and along “The Jack Mytton Way” to Pole Bank (516 m) our highest point of the day. The bridle path is named in memory of “Mad Jack” Mytton, a skilled horseman who was apparently a drunken but likeable rogue, and was one time MP for Shrewsbury, before an early death at the age of 37 years.

We descended back into Little Stretton via a very fine ridge which runs to the north of Round Hill and gives spectacular views into the valleys of Ashes Hollow and Callow Bottom. Although we experienced strong, gusty winds, the weather stayed dry throughout the walk, it was rather chilly and we kept up a very good pace with few stops, so consequently we finished earlier than expected and headed for to a tea shop in nearby Church Stretton. The first one we tried “Mr Bun the Baker” turned us, and the three people who entered the shop before us, out, as they were closing. This is 4 pm on a Saturday afternoon, so much for customer service. So we made out way to another establishment who enjoyed our custom. Duly refreshed we returned to Nuneaton.

HOLWICK CAMPING BARN, TEESDALE 11^th – 13^th April 2008 Colin

If Corran Bunkhouse raised the accommodation bar then Holwick brought us back down to earth. Having said that we agreed that we would consider booking this again, but on the Friday it was cool and damp (presumably no usage in the week) and there were a couple of features such as water dripping through the light fitting and a pretty cool shower that could do with upgrading.

Friday 11^th Mark Colin and Ann defied the forecast and parked up about 3 miles east of Sedburgh in Garsdale. On the hills opposite there was a covering of snow from about 600m but our objective was Aye Gill Pike 556m. The route was short and straightforward and alongside the stone walls there was enough snow for a decent snowball fight. It was cold in the wind but at least it wasn’t raining and there were some splendid views of the Howgills. When leaving the summit there was a hail shower bu5t otherwise it was quite bright. We returned to the car just before a proper rain shower swept across.

Saturday 12^th Ann, Colin, Mark, Keith, Michele and Eileen drove to Langdon Beck in Teesdale to bag a Black Grouse before returning to Hanging Stone car park for the start of the walk. Here Colin realized that he’d left his coat in the camping barn so had to prevail upon Mark (no audible complaint) to drive him back to retrieve it. Upon returning Trevor and Sue Littlewood had arrived to join us for the day from Weardale. With such expert local guides maps were secured in pockets and we set off up the hill. Fendrith Hill 696m was reached easily enough but the mile out to Cappelfell Top was a bit tedious especially as we had to return the same way. It was breezy with hail showers so the Weardale ski station hut was a sheltered spot for lunch. The route out to Westernhope Moor was better underfoot but the snow showers became more frequent. Descending to Teesdale the café at Bowlees was a surprise but with rather more than Trevor’s 3 miles back to the cars and Susan Littlewood setting the pace at the front there were some sore feet and aching limbs by the end. However the silver lining was the walk along the Tees with good views of the waterfalls of Low Force and High Force. 15 miles.

Sunday 13^th Ann, Colin, Mark, Keith, Michele and Eileen. From the road end at Holwick on an excellent morning we walked a track until we were north of Bink Moss and then ascended another track and across the moor to the summit 618m. Cross Fell and other hills in the distance had a complete covering of snow while the Yorkshire Dales were in view to the south. The rest of the walk went easily enough and we arrived back at the cars before 2pm for the drive home.

Spring in the North Pennines is a wonderful time for birdlife so I give no excuses for listing the more interesting species seen. Large numbers of Lapwing, Curlew, Red Grouse, Meadow Pipit, Skylark and Golden Plover. There were several Black Grouse and a number of Wheatear while there were also Dipper and Grey Wagtail on the Tees. Also there was a pair of Ring Ouzel, Kestrel, Snipe drumming, Redshank and Oystercatcher.

PROPERTY TO RENT IN SPAIN Cyril Deeming

You probably don’t remember me but I was around when NMC first started. I was the first meets secretary. Well a lot has happened since then but I have ended up retiring to Spain. We have been here just over a year now living in the mountains about 50k north of Malaga. We are just buying a house here having lived in a Park home until now. We are now looking to rent out the park home; it is located at Alfarnatejo and is ideally situated for walking & climbing. It is 1.5 hours from Sierra Nevada for skiing, 50 minutes from both Malaga & Granada airports with cheap flights from Coventry. One hour from Malaga, Granada & the beach. Please see attached flyer for more details and maybe you could pass it round to see if anyone is interested in coming here for a holiday. If required we can lead walks and if a large group want to come over then the complex that we live on has other park homes for rent.

YOUTH HOSTEL 13.5m REVAMP From BBC News via David

Youth hostels across England and Wales are to be modernized in a £13.5m programme of investment. The Youth Hostel Association (YHA) said 37 would be revamped, with more staff training to improve services. It said it would also unveil three new hostels, with a £4.3m flagship premises in central London opening next month and others in East Sussex in 2009. But it also announced the closure of three hostels in North Wales, Norfolk and Gloucestershire.

The first 12 upgraded hostels, costing more than £2.7m, will be ready for the 2008 season. These range from the clifftop cottage in Pembrokeshire, at YHA Pwll Deri, to city locations in Manchester and London St Pancras.

The new Sussex hostels will be in Eastbourne and Lewes.

“When we announced a new strategy for YHA two years ago, we made a firm commitment to providing great hostels in great locations,” said YHA chief executive Roger Clarke. “Some people were disappointed when we announced 32 closures two years ago but we promised at the time it was a means to an end. “We needed to close and sell less successful properties to generate the funds needed to invest in the future so it’s hugely exciting that we are firmly on our way.”

Hostels earmarked for £1m-plus improvement schemes include Ilam in the Peak District; Bristol; Pen-y-Pass, in Snowdonia; St David’s, in South Wales; Grinton, in North Yorkshire; Treyarnon Bay, in Cornwall; Windermere, in the Lake District, and Exeter, in Devon. Schemes costing from £82,000 to £600,000 will be at Penzance, Cornwall; Conwy, north Wales and Ambleside, in the Lake District. Smaller schemes are scheduled for Arundel, West Sussex; Coalport, Shropshire; Coverack in Cornwall; Haworth in West Yorkshire; Port Eynon, in South Wales; Salcombe, in Devon, and St Briavel’s Castle, in Gloucestershire. The three to close are at Bangor, Great Yarmouth and Slimbridge.

FROM BBC NEWS via David

Tourist body in mountains gaffe.

A photograph which VisitScotland claimed was of the Cairngorms has been removed from its website after it emerged it was taken in Argyll. The shot, labelled Aviemore and the Cairngorms, showed trees outlined against a misty background with snowy peaks soaring above them. It was part of the website for the Perfect Day promotional competition run by the official tourist agency. VisitScotland described the gaffe as an “honest mistake”.

The picture sparked puzzlement and debate among outdoor enthusiasts who were trying to spot which mountain it showed. Cairngorm ecology expert Dr Adam Watson spotted straight away that it was not taken on his home turf and suggested that it had been taken in the Bridge of Orchy area. Anyone can make a mistake but it’s surprising that a body like that would not find it easy to find good photographs of the Cairngorms

VisitScotland has now admitted he was right and confirmed the snap was taken at Loch Tulla, just outside Bridge of Orchy. Dr Watson said the error was “ridiculous” and expressed his surprise that an attractive image of the Cairngorm area had not been found. He said: “It just obviously wasn’t in the Cairngorms. I know these hills very well, I’ve been going there since I was a boy and I wrote the Scottish Mountaineering Club’s district guide to the Cairngorms. It definitely wasn’t the Cairngorms. “Anyone can make a mistake but it’s surprising that a body like that would not find it easy to find good photographs of the Cairngorms.”

VisitScotland’s Helen Campbell told BBC Radio Scotland’s Newsdrive programme: “It was an honest mistake.

“As soon as we were made aware of the error we took immediate action to rectify it by replacing it with the image that’s up now on the site of Loch Morlich with the Cairngorms in the background.”

SNOWDON RESCUE From BBC News via David

Two walkers rescued from Snowdon on Sunday night have been criticized by mountain rescuers. Night vision goggles were used to locate the tw, before they were winched to safety by an RAF helicopter. Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team chairman Dr Gwyn Roberts said the 19-year-old men from Dorset were “Badly prepared and equipped”.

He said the two were “Lucky” to have escaped unharmed after becoming lost as they tried to walk down the mountain.

“This is a familiar story,” said Dr Roberts. “They had started off late in the day and had decided – to lighten their load they told us – to leave most of their equipment, including their map, in the car.” He said they were dressed in jeans, T-shirts and had no waterproof clothing, no shelter in case they were caught out overnight, no whistle, no food and “Just a little to drink”. They are very lucky that they were unharmed, it could have been much worse.

The men told mountain rescuers they had asked someone else what conditions were like on Grib Goch on Snowdon, but had got lost and had phoned for help after trying unsuccessfully for two hours to find their way down.

“We tried to talk them down, but when that proved unsuccessful we rang the RAF for assistance and they managed to winch them to safety,” said Dr Roberts.

He said 16 rescue team members had assembled at their base camp in case low cloud prevented the Sea King helicopter reaching the two men. “Luckily the cloud lifted and the helicopter got to them, but it meant that 16 members of my team gave up their Sunday evening,” he added. Dr Roberts said the men told rescuers that they had prepared for the trip by “Researching on the internet”.

“That is clearly not enough preparation, and people should have a map and compass and the ability to use them at least,” he said. “People should use their common sense and not take on too much, which had clearly happened in this case.

“They are very lucky that they were unharmed, it could have been much worse,” he added.

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Now on Facebook

Posted on November 27, 2008 by keith

Nuneaton Mountaineering Club is now on Facebook!

Please take a look and join.

http://www.new.facebook.com/group.php/group.php?gid=35955679861

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Nuneaton Hill Walking and Mountaineering Club

newsletter 33 – December 2009

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