The essentials are that the race starts at 11; if arriving by car, expect long queues to get into the car park (£1) on Thorpe Meadows. Advisable to aim to arrive soon after 10 to leave time to register (£2.50). Latest news from the Thorpe village committee is that the car park is now wetter than it was on either of the two recent occasions when the Dash was cancelled. This year's event is under threat! The organisers plead with competitors and spectators to FILL their cars. The car park at the start will only accommodate 100 cars this year so you are advised to arrive early or expect to be shunted down to the NT car park beside the river. Anyone looking for a lift or with space to spare, please contact me and I will join you up! More and last minute details on http://www.dovedaledash.co.uk I will also put a message on my answering machine no later than 0900 on Saturday.
For those of you who want to come to the dinner, but have not yet sent in your order and cheque, please do so now. Do remember to give choice for first and main courses.
I have only had one entry for the photo competition, and I am not sure if I can enter my own ! I suppose I could just have one judge, my pardn'r and hubby, Bob, but he might be biased.! (He was a member of the Royal Society of Photography, but gave up his membership some years ago.)
Six Decades and Six North Faces from PBS with help from CJR who unfortunately hasn't completed them yet (Cima Grande, Matterhorn still not ticked off). However we did the Walker, Eiger and Dru north faces together in the late sixties and early seventies.
Chris will deal with the really tough stuff .... Croz Spur in winter and the Bonatti Gobi on the Grand Pilier d'Angle, both of which he ascended in the company of Pete Holden (ex Oread). [Some uncertainty as to whether work commitments will actually allow Chris to be there. Ed]
Meet at Heatherdene car park (GR 203860) 10.15 for 10.30 start. A 9 mile round walk: Moscar Lodge - Stanage High Neb - Bamford Moor - Yorkshire Bridge and back to Heatherdene. No Bar Brook Bogs on this amble!
The wandering meet returns to its roots this year with a weekend in the Dark Peak. I plan to meet up at the Yorkshire Bridge Inn on Friday night from about 9.00 p.m. for an hour of Oread rounding up before moving on to Fairholmes and the abandoning of cars.
A couple of hours brisk walk should find us at the luxury Lower Small Clough Cabins (for those who have been before you know what to expect and those who have not, well it's better not to ask!)
Entertainment is usually provided by at least one of the party but we will probably not be able to surpass John Green the human fireball or Daryl getting lost in the middle of the night with just his underpants for protection against the December frost.
Saturday will see us heading for Grinah Stones and Bleaklow Head where we pick up the Pennine Way continuing over Kinder and Jacob's Ladder to our haven for the night at Upper Booth Camping Barn. For those still with some energy the Pub at Edale might be in range but mere mortals like myself will make do with what we can carry.
Sunday will probably depend on how we have survived the previous 2 days as we make our way back to the cars.
Accommodation is unlimited at Lower Small Clough but we are restricted to 12 sleeping places at Upper Booth (a second night out is traditional anyway) so get your names on the list quickly if you want some shelter. As it's a campsite as well they have no restrictions on the number of Oreads bivvying but the person I spoke to did question our sanity!
If you are not up for the full weekend adventure then please feel free to join us for the Saturday evening and Sunday walk - The more tents, food and alcohol you can bring the more welcome you will be.
An excellent weekend, well attended by old and young. Fourteen of us sat down to sausage and mash. I thought it would be simple to do, but the potatoes were the hard work! The crumble was good, apples from my brother's tree in Leicester.
The young ones, Paul and John had a good day on Tryfan and the slabs, doing Grooved Arete, and then rushing over to do Tennis Shoe. Ah! Those were the days. Chris, Barbara, Colin, June, Tony, Keith et al, had a good day on Mynydd Mawr, but the wind was strong. Whilst Charlie and Mary had a really good haul of blackberries, enough to make a gallon of hooch! Thanks must go to John Fisher, who cut the grass between showers, supervised and instructed by Johnnie Welbourne and Ernie Phillips. Rusty arrived late, on his BM. He stayed over on Sunday and with John Fisher went up Snowdon via Aran and the south ridge and down by Llechog, in very bad conditions. It was indeed absolutely foul!
Attended by John Welbourne, Ernie Phillips, John Fisher, June Walker, Meg and Mike Moore, Colin Barnard, Charlie and Mary Cullum, Barbara Smedley, Rusty, John Salmon, Paul Howe, Merle and Bob Gartside. Finally - Colin Hobday, Tony Smedley and Keith Gregson, who ate up at Plas y Brenin, where they attended a hut Reps Meeting. MG
I intend to publish the newsletter on the first Tuesday of each month. Those who receive their copy electronically should find it in their inbox sometime during the day. Printed newsletters should be available in The Royal Oak. Those not collected will be posted, second class, the following day.
The next newsletter will be published on the first Tuesday in December - the 7th. Please let me have all copy ASAP and in any event not later than Sunday 5th. The following edition will be published on Tuesday the 4th. January 2005 ,