Karabiner Mountaineering Club

February 2000 Forthcoming Meets

All note the following small print when taking part in meets :-

January 23^rd - Dovedale - Duncan Lee

This idyllic valley provides a good winter venue if the weather plays ball with Tissington Spires in particular catching any available sunshine. Classic routes in the area include The Ten Craters of Wisdom (VS 5a**), Silicon (HS 4b**), Caesar (E4 6a**), George (E1 5b ***) and John Peel (HVS 5a***). In the unlikely event of rain the plan is aid climbing in the Doveholes with The Bat (A1) providing a good safe introduction. If anyone has any ets bring them along but I will have enough kit for two teams.

The area also provides excellent walking so any walkers attending can stop and laugh at the climbers in order to get a tick. Fingers crossed for good weather and hopefully I will see you at Milldale carpark at 11am. or earlier at the Whaley cafe; bring your own biscuits

January 29^th - 30^th Working Meet - Dave Wylie, Hut Manager

Another millennium(*), another working party.

There will be three lines of attack this time round:

Finish off the painting in the Ladies Washroom and Hall. This will require a couple of people to wield brushes for a few hours. There’s nothing technical involved, so if we don’t get any suitable volunteers from the club we may have to resort to child labour again.

Continue working under the floors at the dormitory end of the Hut. This is a bit more technical, and we’re still pondering exactly how we’re going to get some ventilation into the under floor space. We should at least get some insulation in place this time round. Cavers welcome.

Get a few small jobs completed and have a general clean up. We still haven’t put up the proposed slate “blackboard” in the front porch; the store room needs a thorough tidy up (as usual); there are a couple of loose slates on the roof at the rear that need attention; the kitchen and hall floors need polishing and an early “Spring Clean” for the whole hut wouldn’t go amiss. Again, most of these are non-technical and if we have enough people along then we should be able to get them all done in one day.

The usual rules will apply (assuming that I’ve survived the intense competition for the role of Hut Manager at the AGM!): i.e. everybody is invited to come along and lend a hand, but please let me know in advance if you are planning to.

Thanks,

(*) Or, for pedants who claim we need to wait till 2001, another year.

February 6^th - Rivington Walk - Phil Ramsbottom

Meet at 9.15 for a 9.30 start in the road leading North East from Rivington Barn (the one with the Information Centre) Grid Ref 629140. There is ample parking here PLEASE DO NOT PARK IN THE INFORMATION CENTRE CAR PARK - this is for the tourists who do not stop long.

I intend to walk up through the remains of Lord Levers gardens on to Rivington Pike then over Winter Hill before dropping down to the Belmont road, from here I will head North West above Belmont Reservoir, then over Great Hill to White Coppice (tea at the Cricket club). From here I will return along the very pleasant paths which follow the sides of Anglezarke and Upper Rivington Reservoirs.

Recommended map is the Explorer 19 West Pennine Moors.

A fairly easy 14 or so miles-just right for this time of year....

February 12^th - 13^th - Glencoe, SMC Hut, Lagangarbh (GR. NN 220559) - Sean Kelly

Glencoe is a magnificent area in which to walk ski or climb, and in full winter condition it will entertain allcomers.For Munroe baggers there's plenty to go at, the Blackmount and Bridge of Orchy hills, Glen Etive and Glencoe,theMamores,and even Ben Nevis and the Aonachs are not too distant. The Crianlarich Tyndrum or Arrochar area is a good bet for the Sunday with a shorter run home at the end of the day.

Good ice climbing adjacent to the hut on the Buachaille, Stop Coire an Lochan and the Lost Valley. If you fancy somewhere different try Beinn an Dothaidh which has a wide selection of middle grade routes or harder on good water ice. The highlight of the region however are the stunning ridge traverses on Bidean and Aonach Eagach. A word of warning. Scottish mountains are a serious environment in full winter conditions and bad weather is never far away. Make sure that you are fully equipped and if lacking the necessary experience team up with a member who knows the ropes. SAIS avalanche information available on http://www.sais.gov.uk/

The facilities at the hut are excellent having been modernised in recent years, similar to the Raeburn hut but with foam on the bunks! There are 16 places available so its first come first served. A deposit of £ secures your place (all cheques payable to KMC please!) I shall be down on Thursday nights so lifts can be co-ordinated nearer the time.

February 19^th-20^th - Ty Powdyr - Joint meet with Salford University Mountaineering Club - John Dobson

This meet is another part of the Committees ‘grand plan’ to get the KMC better known by ‘younger things’. For the second year we are holding a joint meet with SUMC, and the students are keen, .so the advance party who conducted a reconnaissance of the KMC last year, must have reported back that the ‘oldies’ were not that bad. The provisional plan is to hold a joint walk on Saturday, but the exact route will obviously depend on the weather, and how much we want to prove to the students that our ‘over 60s’ have no respect for age when it comes to walking up mountains. It is hoped to have a linear walk ending up at the hut, with a few short cuts for the students who can’t keep up. And we should be able to use the students’ minibus to ferry the drivers to collect their cars, but the students don’t know about this yet.

All welcome.

February 26^th - 27^th - Aite Cruinnichidh, Roybridge - Andy Croughton

WALK, SKI, CLIMB, BAG A FEW MUNROS

Chris has doubled booked this year and has asked me to take over for the weekend whilst he is off skiing in France. The usual five star accommodation has been booked and this year could also offer the luxury of a sauna (as long as building has been completed).

Still one or two places still available for this very popular winter venue, in the heart of the Highlands. £16 will secure you a place for two nights luxury accommodation so book early.

February 27^th - 3^rd - Mill Cottage, nr Aviemore (mid-week) - Andy Croughton

Following on from Roybridge is Mill and those keen to extend their Scottish stay, Mill Cottage, near Aviemore is another excellent venue to reach the Highlands from, and at only £4 per night it’s a bargain as well. Mill Cottage has been booked midweek from Sunday night February 27^th until Friday March 3^rd. Again places are limited so please book as early as possible, and for only £20 you can have five nights in the Scottish Highlands in perfect winter conditions and surrounded by the finest Scottish malt whisky.

Bookings for both Roybridge and Mill Cottage should be made via myself as soon as possible.

March 5^th - Howgill's Walk - Brian Taylor

Meet at 9:30am for 9:45am start. Park cars and meet on side of road just south of where the minor road crosses Carlin Gill (GR 625995 OS map 97, 1:50,000).

Directions to start point – come off the M6 at Tebay (J38), take the A685 south towards Kendal, the road runs parallel to the motorway. Approximately 2 miles south of Tebay take the minor road off to the left (probably signposted Howgill/Sedbergh). This minor road runs underneath the motorway and railway line. Follow this minor road for approximately 1½ miles. As soon as you cross Carlin Gill, park on the right.

The proposed route is about 12 miles taking in some very varied terrain ranging from the hightops of the Howgills to the scenic valley of the River Lune. Initially we will walk/scramble up Carlin Gill crossing numerous small waterfalls on route. A final steep ascent takes us up onto the tops of the Howgills, we then walk as far as the Calf. We then head in a southwesterly direction past Bram Rigg to the hamlet of Bukhaw. From there we cross undulating farmland until we reach the Dales Way. It’s then a lovely walk along the Dales Way, which follows the course of the River Lune. The final stretch of the walk is across open heathland alongside a Roman road to where the cars are parked.

March 11^th - 12^th - Muir Of Inverey, near Braemar - Roger Mapleson

We have 18 places booked in what I am reliably informed is particularly pleasant accommodation. There are full catering facilities, drying room, and showers. You will need sleeping bag and pillow cases. You will also need some 20 pees for heating in bedrooms if your bag’s a bit iffy. The main room is made cosy by solid fuel stove (fuel provided).

Location is 5 miles west of Braemar, grid ref 076896. Mark Garrod says the hut is on North side of road, with parking immediately adjacent to the hut.

I’ve not been to this area before but I suspect tastes for all winter activities are well catered for. Lochnagar looks like the nearest location for winter climbing but other Cairngorm locations are accessible if you’re fit enough. Walkers, skiers and mountain bikers will not struggle to find something to do either.

A tenner to me secures your place. Cash or cheque payable to KMC.

March 12^th - (Alt) Peak District Walk - Iain McCallum

A fine tramp among the edges, dales and moors on the east side of the Peak District. Good weather guaranteed! Distance about 13/14 miles on good paths. The walk can easily shortened (or extended!) to suit the conditions.

Route: Longshaw Lodge - Froggatt - Eyam - Eyam Moor - Hazelford - Leadmill Bridge - Hathersage - Stanage - Carls Wark - Longshaw Lodge.

Maps: OS Outdoor - Leisure Sheets 1 & 24 Dark and White Peak.

Meet at 9:30am for a 9:45am start at Longshaw Lodge car park (NT) GR 267 801 - first right on B6055 after passing the Fox House Inn.

March 18^th - 19^th - Ty Powdyr, Paddy’s Night Cheilidh - Mary Stuart

Be there! Or you’ll miss a good time.

March 26^th - President’s HotPot - The President, Duncan Lee

The hotpot and slide competition is to be held at The Royal Hotel, Market Street, Hayfield. The bar is open all day with the meal being served at 7.30 pm. The cost for hotpot and apple pie is £7.50p per head. I need to know numbers at least a week beforehand, so book now to avoid the rush. Please let me know if you want the vegetarian option.

The annual slide competition will follow the meal so take advantage of the long winters nights to review your last 12 months of photographic endeavours. The categories are:

Mountain Landscape,

Rock Climbing Action,

Human Interest and

Mountain Action.

The slides should have been taken in the last 12 months with a maximum of three slides per person in each category. Please mark all your slides (name and category) to make it easier for the judge and to guarantee ease of return. Please submit slides to me as early as possible. The absolute latest is Thursday March 23rd at the Joe Simpson lecture. Anyone who wishes to show any other slides should bring them along on the night for a viewing after the competition.

Bookings for the hotpot to me either at the pub, on a meet, or by phone.

March 26^th - Pre Hot Pot Climb and Walk - Duncan and Derek

To work up an appetite for the above mentioned evening try out one of the options available for the daytime’s entertainment.

Stanage, Duncan Lee.

Option one is a chance to shake a winters worth of dust off the climbing gear and to venture out into the spring sunshine (fingers crossed) at the Wall End area of the crag. Park at The Plantation and meet up at the crag , from 10am., to sample some of the delights of grit on such classics as Fern Crack (VS 4c**), Fern Groove (E2 5c **), Wall End Slab (VS 5a **), Archangel (E3 5b***) and Goliath’s Groove (HVS 5a ***). The area offers great routes from diff upwards along with some superb bouldering if belaying gets a bit chilly late in the day.

See me at the pub on Thursdays for further information and help in arranging lifts out.

Alternative Attraction: Grindleford to Stanage, Derek Seddon

Join me on a walk on some varring tarrain, over Burbage and Hallam Moor, via the back of Stanage where we join the climbers for lunch. Then back through Hathersage and a riverside amble along the Noe. About 12 miles. Meet Grindleford at 9:15am for 9:30am start.

April 2^nd - Rossendale "Round the Hills" Walk: Rawtenstall - Pete Walker

Maps: Landranger 103 Blackburn & Burnley, also latest edition of South Pennine Sheet Outdoor Leisure 21.

Park: Marlpits Recreation Ground, Newchurch Road, Rawtenstall. GR 820 230.

Start: 9 o’clock.

Distance: 18 miles.

The ROUTE takes in Cribden hill, Hamelden Hill, Clowbridge Reservoir, Water, Dean, Edgeside, Cowpe Lowe, Cloughfold. Possible pub stop at the commercial Inn at Water (Hancock’s bitter).

This walk roughly follows the route of the Rossendale Fell race and is now an “official” route i.e. waymarked; with certificates from the Mayor of Rawtenstall if you happen to complete the round on the right day (September; the first Sunday). It was a favourate of Milly and Bowden Black’s which is enough recommendation in itself.

Eighteen miles of paths and tracks with enough bog to satisfy you for a whole year.

April 9^th - Stoney Middleton - Chris Williamson

Philosophical question: Some reputations are unjustly deserved? A meet at Stoney Middleton? You can’t be serious? Haven’t you heard... Experience is sometimes about reflecting on the past. But, some experiences dim with time, though a reputation sticks. So, too, with the venue for this meet. The previously polished nature of the routes has dimmed over years of neglect. Maybe we should welcome the advent of acid rain as a way of revitalising once popular crags? Maybe some other natural force has been at work? Either way, I was impressed by the quality of the climbing when Duncan took me there last year. And to think I’d never been, all because of a years old reputation. Yes, caution is sometimes required when choosing your line, but there’s still plenty to go at. Loads of well starred routes and no crowds or queues. Try the excellent Padme HVS 5a **, Frisco Bay VS 4c**, Aurora VS 4c *** …

Park at the layby on the south side of the A623 (RHS approaching from Manchester) at the west end of Stoney Middleton village. Access is by the track on the uphill side of the garage / petrol station. See you on the Crag, 10:30 on, for a top day on Limestone - The odd Severe, with VS though to any E you’re capable of getting up. Note - Change of date from the published meets calendar due to rescheduling of the Fell Race.

April 15^th - 16^th - Annual Fell Race (under new management), Lakes Hut - Alan (L) Jones

Please note later date than shown on the provisional meets list in the December Newsletter.

The Fell Race this year returns to the Lake District, which is the natural home for this sort of event. There will be new attractions to make the event an occasion not to be missed. The well-appointed Lancashire Climbing & Caving Club Hut at Tranearth, Torver, near Coniston (GR 281 957) has been booked as the venue. This offers excellent access to Dow Crag for climbers on the Saturday, if they are so confident that they do not need to prospect out the route for the race, which will be held on the Sunday. The hut fees are £4 per person per bed-night. Please book as soon as possible by sending a cheque to me made payable to KMC. Places are limited, but you can always turn up for the day if all else fails. (There may be a day fee, I need to check on this). Access to Tranearth is via the A593, turning off at GR 285 945. Follow the lane past Scar Head and continue along the dirt track. Park on the left about 100m past the first gate. Continue along the track on foot for about 10mins (if you are not over-loaded) to reach the hut.

The race will be between 2 and 20 miles; there will be down hill sections as well as up; it may or may not be on recognised paths; there will be one or more check points; the weather will be fair or foul; a new handicap system may be released in due course; you may or may not win one of the much-prized KMC Trophies. However two things are certain: a good time will be had by all; no further information about the course will be released unless the bribe is extremely high. The custom of starting in three groups, according to fitness, at 11.00, 11.30 and 12 noon will be retained, so that nobody should be back too late even if they only walk. The route will be published about an hour before the first group leaves, giving plenty of time to confuse your rivals with unhelpful suggestions for the best route. Refreshments will be served following the race if volunteers come forward to organise them. Whilst this is a fun event. do not forget that mountains can be a dangerous environment and it may still be Winter in high places in April. Please therefore come appropriately equipped for all weather. Whistles and compasses are essential but use of GPSs will result in disqualification (except for check points).

Newcomers to the KMC should note that the Concordia Trophy is specially for them, open only to members who have not previously taken part in a KMC fell race as a member. It was intended to encourage the young members who were expected to achieve a fast time. However, as young members are few and far between these days and I will not be running to set a minimum pace, the field is wide open. The field is also wide open for the famous Sheilagh Manning Trophy which goes to the winner on handicap. If I can win it, so can you all: I did not discover that I could even complete a fell run until I was nearly 50! There are also trophies for the fastest male and the fastest female. Only Members (Full, Honorary or Associate) are eligible for trophies, but there will be something for the overall winner whether or not a member. Prospective members are advised to turn out to gain good Brownie points for when they apply to join, and keen fell-running guests are always welcome to show us how it should be done. The older members will be expected to turn out to show the younger members that they are not past it yet. The Committee will be expected to turn out in full to catch votes for the next AGM and to settle any disputes. The President should replace his 1980s hair style with a 1990s skin-head shave to keep him cool and give that aerodynamic advantage that he will need to retain his supremacy. By then, I will have moved from my 1990s style to something more appropriate for the new millennium, leaving him behind again. I hope there will be some serious rivalry at the sharp end and that all previous winners will turn out, that includes my name-sake who will give most of the younger end a good run for their money. Alison will be expected to set the pace for the ladies, after her Bob Graham success, but I am sure she will he challenged by Michelle. All in all, I expect everyone to be there so that the event once again becomes the most well attended meet, apart from the Dinner, which was the case in its earlier years. So get training, and it should set you up for an excellent climbing season. especially if you are aiming at the big mountain ranges of the World.

I shall need some volunteers to act as marshals at check points and to provide refreshments. Priority will go to those with bone fide doctor's sick notes. Please remember though that events of this kind can only take place with willing helpers and these should not be the same people year after year. I shall be looking forward to taking part next year. rather than organising, if I can get back to fitness after sundry operations, injuries and ailments. I know that Kevin will welcome the opportunity to take part this year having organised them in his own inimitable style for the last two years. I also hope that Ken will amble round, with an eye on Sheilagh's pot, after organising the event so successfully for very many years.

Will last year's trophy winners please dig them out of their attics, clean them up and return them to Mark Garrod, or any other Committee member, so that they are all available on the day. For further information and moral support please ring me.

February Newsletter Index.

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