Tag: Old Duffers

40th Birthday Weekend (27th-29th September 2024)

I thought it would be nice to mark my round-number birthday with a trip to the Lake District, and was really pleased that 19 of my friends from the band running club, Gentian Club and Old Duffers were able to join me. Our base for the weekend was YHA Borrowdale, but Kate and I travelled up as far as Ruth’s house on Thursday night to get an extra day on the hill.

On Friday morning, we drove up to Buttermere to meet up with Gentians Claire, Sheena and Vivienne for a walk along the High Stile ridge. Sunny spells and crystal-clear visibility made for a super day on the hill. We ascended fairly steeply to Red Pike via Bleaberry Tarn, pausing regularly to enjoy the views over Buttermere and Crummock Water. From the summit, we gained views the other direction to Ennerdale Water, Pillar, and the Isle of Man in the distance.

Buttermere village and Grasmoor
Looking along Buttermere to Fleetwith Pike
Ennerdale Water and the Isle of Man

The rest of the walk was much less strenuous, with easy going on the undulating ridge over High Stile to High Crag, where we paused for a lunch break overlooking Ennerdale with fine views of Great Gable and Scafell Pike. We had plenty of time so opted to continue over Haystacks and descend by Warnscale Bottom then the north shore of Buttermere, getting back to the cars around 4:45pm – perfect for getting over Honister Pass to the hostel in time for first check-in at 5! I had a bar meal at the hostel for dinner and relaxed over a couple of drinks as the others gradually arrived between 5:15 and 11:30.
High Stile route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2769130

High Crag, from High Stile
Lunch overlooking Ennerdale
Vivienne, Sheena, Claire and Kate on Haystacks
Buttermere from Warnscale Bottom

We had a prompt start on Saturday as most of us were keen to go to parkrun, Keswick being the nearest and one that I’d been looking forward to trying. The course is a fairly flat out-and-back on the old railway line, now a cycle path, and had beautiful views of the River Greta below the numerous viaducts and of the surrounding hills, particularly Blencathra. The benefit of the slightly uphill first half was a flying second half and I was surprised to cover the final 2km in little over 7 minutes and achieve my best parkrun time since 2019 (1 second quicker than 2 weeks ago in Lichfield!). Thanks to my birthday, my age grade was also pleasingly boosted by around 0.5% to 72.54%. Several of the others also had good runs, with Jeff, Jo and Steve all beating their all-time PBs!

Once we’d caught our breath, we strolled down to the Museum Café for a quick coffee. Then we returned to the cars and drove the few miles east to Threlkeld, parking at the cricket club (except for the Farrows, who headed to Latrigg for a more child-friendly stroll). I had picked Blencathra as the destination for our walk, a 10km loop ascending via the Doddick Fell ridge and returning via Blease Fell.

The weather was still quite bright as we set out and traversed below the end of Hall’s Fell, but we could see drizzle blowing in over the valley by the time we started to ascend the steep nose of Doddick Fell. It got gradually damper as we climbed, and was pretty heavy for the final 250m or so of ascent! Ruth and Josh turned up at Threlkeld about an hour later (Ruth had had DofE commitments in the morning) and set off in pursuit, catching us shortly before we reached the summit. Despite the rain, mist and chilly wind, everyone managed to look happy for the summit photo and tuneful rendition of Happy Birthday (the advantage of hillwalking mostly with musicians!).

Heading up the Doddick Fell ridge (Heather, Heather, Will, Steve, Jake, Ashleigh, Helen and Rob)
Doddick Fell
The wet summit of Blencathra (Heather, Heather, Jeff, Helen, Will, Jane, Jake, Ruth, me, Rob, Claire, Sheena, Ashleigh, Kate and Steve. Photo by Josh.)

Soon after we set off walking again, it began to clear, with intermittent views appearing towards Skiddaw and Great Calva. By the time we were heading down the easy slopes of Blease Fell, the rain had pretty much stopped and we enjoyed some good views of Derwent Water, the Vale of Keswick, and St John’s in the Vale. As we descended the lane from the Blencathra Centre back to Threlkeld, we passed lots of participants in the Five Valleys Ultra race going the other way, generally walking but not looking especially tired considering they were 45km into their 55km race! We were back at the cars at around 4:30pm and at the hostel half an hour later for tea, hot showers and a pre-dinner drink.
Blencathra route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2769132

Heading along the ridge of Blencathra
Derwent Water and the Vale of Keswick
Descending with views towards the Dodds

Based on a second-hand recommendation via Ruth, I had reserved us tables for dinner at the recently-opened Yew Tree pub in Seatoller. This was around a 20 minute walk up the lane from the youth hostel. Although only a small place, they were able to accommodate us comfortably on two tables of 10. Everyone enjoyed the excellent food and a few drinks after a busy day (and a couple of cold and wet hours) in the fresh air. We walked back by headtorch and chatted for a while longer in the bar before heading to bed.

The Yew Tree, Seatoller

The brass banders all declared themselves too tired to walk again on Sunday, and duly headed to the Pencil Museum in Keswick. Naturally, the walkers were full of energy and raring to turn out again. The Farrows headed to Fleetwith Pike while the others joined me for a walk from Seathwaite up Scafell Pike – the most scenic route, in my opinion.

It was an overcast day with barely a glimpse of the sun, but stayed dry and we had views almost all the time. We ascended via Stockley Bridge to Sty Head then followed the Corridor Route – with its dramatic views of Great Gable and Piers Gill – up to Lingmell Col, pausing on the way for first lunch. Claire had not bagged Lingmell so we took that short detour before joining the busy tourist path for the final short climb to Scafell Pike, where the mist was intermittently clearing to give fleeting views of Mickledore and into Eskdale.

Approaching Stockley Bridge
Styhead Gill
LIngmell Beck
Piers Gill and Lingmell
Kate, Ruth, Claire, Sheena and Josh on Lingmell

It was a cold wind, so we didn’t delay long before continuing along the bouldery ridge to Broad Crag – again making the short detour to the summit despite its non-Wainwright status – and on to Great End, another new tick for Claire. We dropped down to Esk Hause and were glad to drop back out of the wind for second lunch at the head of Ruddy Gill. That just left an easy descent of the fairly gentle path beside Grains Gill back to reach Seathwaite around 4pm.
Scafell Pike route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2769133

The view from Broad Crag to Lingmell and Great Gable
Grains Gill

Despite a short queue on the M6 near Lancaster in the aftermath of an earlier vehicle fire, I was able to get Kate to Derby station to catch her train back to Leicester soon after 8:30 and was home by 9pm.

All in all, a brilliant weekend with a selection of my best friends to start my fifth decade! Thanks to everyone for taking the trip and putting up with the poor weather on Blencathra. You can find my full photo album here.

CUHWC 35th Anniversary Trip (16th-18th February 2024)

I took a weekend trip to the Lake District to celebrate 35 years of Cambridge University Hillwalking Club, meeting up with around a hundred Old Duffers, current members and dufflings at Derwentwater Independent Hostel. To avoid the Friday evening traffic, but not wanting to miss a Thurday-night band rehearsal, I got an early start on the Friday morning to drive up to Mum and Dad’s house in Kendal and work there “from home” for the day. Then I popped across to Natland for an early dinner and got a lift up to Borrowdale with Ruth and Josh, spending a sociable evening in the hostel catching up with old friends as they gathered.

Saturday started with a full English breakfast prepared by the hostel caterers. After that, I chose to join Michael’s proposed walk from Seathwaite up Great Gable, which attracted a real multi-generational group including both current members and some of the oldest attending Duffers (but no children). Fifteen of us drove up the valley in four cars and parked at the end of the lane. We ascended together on the very greasy path beside Sour Milk Gill, then split into two smaller groups for the ascent of Base Brown. Some (including me) opted for the mild scramble up the north ridge while others took the easier route up the hanging valley and back up from the south. The summit was just about clear, with views down into Borrowdale but the surrounding higher hills not visible.

Looking up Grains Gill
Looking back down to Seathwaite

The direct route had been quicker, of course, so we actually met the others near the col with Green Gable. To mix up my company for the day, I switched groups and made a second visit to the summit of Base Brown before continuing up the ridge to Green Gable, then back down to Windy Gap – aptly named, as so often. Michael led five others directly down via Aaron Slack while I led two current club members up the steep rocky path to Great Gable, a few minutes behind the six others who had also gone that way.

Damp and misty on Green Gable

It was pretty cold and damp in the cloud at the summit, so we didn’t linger long before checking the compass bearing and starting the descent to Sty Head. We could see the other half-group ahead, and finally caught up with them by the stretcher box. We descended together beside Styhead Gill, getting back to Seathwaite about 15 minutes after Michael’s part of the group, and a little while before a band of heavy rain was forecast to sweep in from the south.

Styhead Tarn

Back at the hostel, we refreshed ourselves with a few cups of tea and hot showers, relaxing and chatting until dinner. The dress code had been advertised as “what you would wear for formal hall”, so I was pleased that lots of other Duffers had made the same decision as me and brought Black Tie anyway, in-keeping with previous Anniversary Dinners. The meal of soup, Cumberland sausage and crumble was simple but hearty, well accompanied by wine and a fun CUHWC-related quiz to tackle in our table-groups. Conversations continued long into the night and I eventually went to bed at around 2am.

On Sunday, I joined Ruth’s proposed walk around the Coledale horseshoe, along with Josh, Phil and John. We parked in Braithwaite and walked anticlockwise, starting with the long ascent to Grisedale Pike. The summit was just in the cloud, but we enjoyed views most of the way up, with the occasional sunny spell.

Looking over Coledale to Outerside, from Kinn

We continued along the easy ridge to Hopegill Head, then dropped down to Coledale Hause. From there, we reascended by the direct route – new to me – to Crag Hill and then around to Sail, pausing for lunch in a sheltered spot on the descent of the ugly zigzag path down its east ridge.

Phil, John, Josh and Ruth on the ridge to Hopegill Head
Descending from Sail

We then opted to take the direct path to Outerside, rather than going over Scar Crags and Causey Pike, and continued along the ridge from there to Barrow and back down to Braithwaite. A good walk with good company, with views most of the way, and drier weather than the previous day.

Sunshine towards Catbells

I travelled back to Natland with Ruth and Josh, paused for a coffee, then hit the road back to Derby, arriving just before 7pm for a fish and chip supper and an early night.

It was great to catch up with lots of old friends, many of whom I hadn’t seen for a few years, and to see that CUHWC continues to thrive. I look forward to the 40th Anniversary! There are a few more photos here and maps of my walking routes here (Great Gable) and here (Coledale).

Lake District (7th-8th May 2022)

I took a weekend trip to the Lake District to participate in the first of this year’s Kong Mini Mountain Marathons, held on the Sunday in Kentmere. Leaving home on Saturday morning, I broke the journey with another parkrun just off the M6, this time Haigh Woodland, near Wigan. It was a lovely sunny morning for a run and the perfect time of year to visit this parkrun, with the bluebells in flower in the woods. Considering the course is a pretty accurate 5km distance and features around 80m of ascent, all in the second half, I was pleasantly surprised to reach the finish in 20:04, which seemed a little better than my recent form. I hoped I hadn’t tired out the legs excessively before the following day’s endurance race!

The finish area at Haigh Woodland parkrun

After parkrun, I pottered on to Arnside Knott, where I met the Patricks around midday in the upper car park. We spent a couple of hours pottering up to the summit at toddler pace, which gave a good opportunity to catch up for the first time this year. There were good views over the estuary into the Lake District, and inland towards the Howgill Fells.

Looking over the Kent estuary
Looking towards the Howgill Fells
Emma, Ian and dufflings at the summit of Arnside Knott

I spent the rest of the day relaxing at Ruth’s house. In the evening, Andrena and Joe joined us for a chiminea barbecue – bonus opportunity to catch up with a couple more Old Duffers.

Sunday started fairly early as I had chosen a start time around 8:30am from Kentmere village, and the event parking was a mile down the valley from there. The day again dawned bright, clear and calm, but thankfully some high level cloud formed in the first hour of my run and prevented it getting too warm! My chosen route was up the Garburn Pass to the ridge then over Ill Bell to High Street, then down via Nan Bield to Mardale Head. From there, I reascended steeply to Gatesgarth Pass and a short way down the other side, then went over the ridge of Harter Fell and down to Kentmere Reservoir, and down the valley back to the village. A total of around 28km and 1600m ascent, and well-judged as I finished with just 29 seconds of the four-hour time limit to spare! A really enjoyable mountain run and excellent views throughout, but no time for photographs! I was pleased to finish in 10th place out of 129, my best result at a Kong event to date. You can see my route here: https://www.kongmmm.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#11&route=50010

My full photo album is available online here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/hjDe2btz8BQenmZa8

Duffers' weekend in Windermere (15th-16th February 2020)

Many of the Duffers and their Dufflings spent February half term week in the Lake District, staying in the large and comfortable Cleabarrow Manor, near Windermere. I didn’t really want a full week of toddler walks and playroom supervision, but went to stay in Ruth’s house for the weekend and visited the group both days.

On Saturday morning I tried the new Rothay Park parkrun, in Ambleside, just about getting around the course and back across town to my car before the rain arrived. After lunch I drove across to the house to spend time with the group as everyone arrived, unpacked and settled in, heading back to Ruth’s after dinner (the flooded roads just-about passable, but unnerving in the dark!).

On Sunday morning I returned to Cleabarrow and joined almost everyone for a short walk (long for the Dufflings!) up nearby Brant Fell, with a few rocks to scramble over on the way, good views along Windermere from the top, and lots of puddles to jump in on the walk back!

Scrambling up the rocks on Brant Fell

There are a few more photos on Google Photos here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/nWEGYypCcBtZoW3b6

Great to catch up with lots of my friends even though the annual group New Year trips to the Highlands have come to an end.

Yorkshire Dales (24th-26th August 2019)

As I was taking part in another Mini Mountain Marathon in the Lake District on the Sunday, I spent August Bank Holiday weekend in the northwest of England. Having broken the drive up with a dash around Preston parkrun – in an attractive park beside the Ribble – I met up with Ian and Emma (and Ellen) mid-morning and we chose to head to the Howgill Fells for a walk away from the crowds. Starting in Sedbergh, we ascended by Settlebeck Gill to Arant Haw and Calders, returning via Winder, and enjoyed sunshine and very clear views over the Dales to the Three Peaks. Then it was back to Kendal for dinner and chat.

Descending from Calders

On Sunday I took part in the King Mini Mountain Marathon, a four-hour score event, starting in Loweswater and heading up onto the Grasmoor fells. Tough going on a hot sunny day, but great scenery and a great challenge. No time for photos though!

On Monday I was tempted back into the Yorkshire Dales by MWIS’s suggestion that higher summits may be above the cloud. I opted for a round of the Gragareth group from Ireby. Unfortunately these hills proved not to be quite high enough, and I was in damp mist most of the way! On Great Coum, I could see a hint of blue sky above, but still didn’t emerge from the cloud. I descended via Bull Pot Farm and then along the scenic Ease Gill.

The track to Bull Pot Farm

My full photo album is available on Google Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/HfnpJvdgHtd41U6h7

Alison’s Munro completion weekend (20th-21st July 2019)

From Glen Feshie it was less than an hour’s drive down the A9 and over the hill to Kinloch Rannoch where Alison had booked us bunkhouse accommodation at the Outdoor Centre for her Munro completion weekend. I was first to arrive and checked us in with the caretaker, but didn’t have to wait long before various others started arriving from Edinburgh.

Saturday started fairly early as the chosen final hill was a remote one: Beinn Bheoil, on the shoulder of Ben Alder about half way up Loch Ericht. Six of us hardier walkers opted to walk the entire way and set off walking up the track at around 8:30am, initially through forest and later along the loch shore. Superb air clarity made for great views east and north to the adjacent hills, and over Rannoch Moor towards the Glen Lyon and Bridge of Orchy hills. The remaining 19 saved time and effort by cycling as far as the end of the track, which petered out in the bog about 3km short of Benalder Cottage.

Looking along Loch Ericht to Beinn Bheoil
The walkers paused at Benalder Cottage while we waited for the cyclists to arrive

Once we’d all convened at the bothy, we ascended together up the reasonable path to Bealach Breabag, then up the ridge to Sron Coire na h-Iolaire and on to the summit of Beinn Bheoil, arriving around 2:30pm. It was great to be there to celebrate with Alison as she completed her ten-year project, and to ensure that CUHWC had a representative. I had the unique honour of being the only person to have accompanied Alison on both her first and her last Munro (and quite a lot in between)!

Looking back to Sron Coire na h-Iolaire
Alison, becoming the latest Munro ‘Compleatist’

After some celebratory fizz near the summit, we all made our way back the way we’d come, in smaller groups now so we could travel at our own pace. Keen to get the many miles behind me, I yomped ahead once we reached the track, and reached the road just as the last of the cyclists were loading their car. I was glad to be able to hitch a lift back to the bunkhouse with them rather than waiting with the midges for the other walkers to catch up!

A big day out at around 38km in total! Thankfully the weather was ideal, dry throughout with sunny spells and the cloud staying above the summit of Beinn Bheoil. Once everyone was back at base, we enjoyed a celebratory late-evening meal of chilli and cheesecake together.

On the Sunday, I opted for a short (90-minute) walk up Blath Bhalg, a Graham just east of Pitlochry, before the drive back to Derby.

Full photo album on Google Photos at: https://photos.app.goo.gl/UzzMtxejo6ESSCcS9

Black Forest and Vosges (8th-12th May 2019)

I spent a long weekend visiting Alex and Ausma in Vögisheim on the edge of the Black Forest, a little over two years since my last visit. Although the forecast looked rather wet for much of the trip, the reality was much better with only a few short showers, all of which we managed to avoid!

Having flown out on Wednesday evening, I had Thursday to entertain myself while my hosts were at work. I went for a morning walk from Vögisheim through some of the nearby forests and vineyards, followed by an afternoon run on a shorter route. In the evening we took a short bike ride over the hill to Mauchen for dinner at a “Strausse” (seasonal vineyard restaurant). On Friday Alex was able to take the day off work, and challenged me to a run up the Blauen, the highest nearby major summit in the Black Forest. The run amounted to 25km, my longest ever, with over 1000m ascent, the most I’ve done without walking! After some well-earned pasta carbonara for lunch we had a more leisurely afternoon picking up provisions from some nearby farm shops.

On Saturday we headed north to the low hills of Kaiserstuhl just west of Freiburg. The highest point, Neunlinden, proved to be a good viewpoint with the Black Forest to the east and the Vosges mountains to the west. I also enjoyed ascending the distinctive terraced slopes with vineyards, and passing through an interesting arboretum on the descent, with many unusual trees from all around the world. We followed the walk with a late lunch at the restaurant of a free-range turkey farm!

Finally, on Sunday, we drove west to France for a walk in the foothills of the Vosges mountains, starting in Husseran-les-Châteaux. As well as some attractive mixed forest and the occasional rocky outcrop, we enjoyed looking around five ruined castles, and some great views over Colmar and the Rhein valley back to the Black Forest.

All in all, a lovely relaxing weekend and it was great to catch up with Alex and Ausma.

Full photo gallery at: https://photos.app.goo.gl/vgnwFy2mRU7Rd25K7

Looking over a vineyard to the Blauen
A rocky outcrop near Château de Hohlandsbourg

New Year trip to Crianlarich (30th December 2018 – 6th January 2019)

I joined Dave and Jo (+ baby), Ruth and James for New Year week in Crianlarich, where I enjoyed re-visiting six Munros (including three with baby thanks to the calm, dry, non-snowy conditions!) and bagging four new Corbetts.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/GqbkUqLAmqH4mVhCA

Jo (+1), Dave and Ruth at the summit of Ben Lawers (baby’s third Munro, at just 12 weeks old!)

Peak District with a few Duffers (17th-18th February 2018)

Ruth came to visit the South Derbyshire Duffers for the weekend. After a morning dash around Rosliston parkrun, we had time for a Saturday afternoon walk on Stanton Moor and Robin Hood’s Stride. On the Sunday, we were joined by Phil Withnall for a longer walk around the Lower Edale skyline.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/tmNFPvNo258PafeB7

Ruth, Dave and Jo atop Robin Hood’s Stride

Duffers’ New Year trip to Snowdonia (27th December 2017 – 2nd January 2018)

Breaking with our ten-year tradition of heading to the Highlands for New Year (due to the arrival of several ‘Dufflings’), the Duffers instead spent a week in the more accessible hills of Snowdonia, staying in a large house near Caernarfon. My walks included old favourites on the Carneddau and Glyderau, a traverse of the Nantlle Ridge, and a few new Marilyns on the wetter, windier days!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/urETsbjtkTiTSVy56

The waterfall above Aberglaslyn

Berlin (22nd-24th September 2017)

I spent a long weekend in Berlin to catch up with the Bibens family, who were on holiday from the USA to take part in the Berlin Marathon. As well as returning to some sights I’d enjoyed on my previous visits, I made first time visits to the Zoo and the Reichstag, and was delighted to be able to attend a fantastic concert by the Berlin Philharmonic.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/uH2uPRAPoQNBjE1o9

Sarah, Katie, Ruth, Emily and Doug on Museum Island

Stubaital (4th-10th August 2017)

For the remainder of our Alpine holiday, we headed northeast across the Austrian border to Stubaital. Volderau proved a convenient (if very wet in the evening!) base for some very spectacular and varied mountain walks and a couple of days’ mountaineering on Zuckerhütl, Wilder Pfaff and Wilder Freiger.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/LqFQKnygSKntx1iS9

Ruth, Emma and Ian at the summit of Zuckerhütl (3507m)