March 2007

Busy month, but diary entries missing for a couple of events...Can you help? Were you there and do you have a story to tell?

If you want to tell your version of events, please e-mail your Blog to lynne@leedsmetwalkingclub.co.uk

Walking Club AGM - 27th March 2007

Despite the last minute change of location from the Grey Room to Caedmon building, it was still a high turnout for the AGM. Many items were discussed, such as training courses and member retention given the recent poor trip numbers. However the most important part, and the bit that most people came for, was of course the election of the committee for next year.

This year there were several people interested in running the club in the coming year. Although we expected a leadership battle, in the end the positions were settled without a head-to-head competition. The result was as follows:

President: Vince Ashby-Smith
Secretary: Ben Walker
Treasurer: Scott Wyles
Marketing & Communications: Matthew Salmon

It was good so see so much interest in the future of the club. We have great confidence in the new committee and believe that they will make 2007-08 a year to remember. The new committee take over officially from September 2007, however they will be shadowing the current committee in coming events and playing a large part in the organisation of the Scotland trip. Good luck to you all!

North York Moors Weekend - 23rd-25th March 2007

Friday
Once again it was a small group that left Leeds to head up to the North Yorkshire Moors. This was a new location for the club in recent years, and we were looking forward to exploring new terrain and hopefully getting a bit of coastal walking in.

It was a relatively short drive up to Fryupdale, close to Whitby, but when we arrived we were greeted by the bad news that the boiler had broken and there would be no heating or hot water for the weekend...The bad news was offset, however, by the quality of the bunkhouse. The outdoor centre had recently been renovated and even had a dishwasher! The bunks were sturdy and quilts provided.

Once the bus was unpacked, Chris kindly volunteered to drive us the 2.5 miles back to the pub in Lealholm where we could all warm up by the fire with a glass of local ale. It was much later and back at the bunkhouse when Estevao finally arrived, but at this point most had already headed off to bed ready for a good day's walking tomorrow.

Saturday
Brian arrived bright (?) and early Saturday morning, and after a number of phone calls, Matt had also found the bunkhouse. Chris 'offered' to lead a walk from the bunkhouse, across the fields and onto the hills surrounding Eskdale. The landscape was beautiful, athough the grey skies did not do it justice. The wind on the tops was cold, and despite our hunger we did not stop for lunch! After following the Coast to Coast path, we dropped down into the village of Graisdale and headed to the pub to warm up.

After coffee, hot chocolate and cake, it was back up the hill, and down into the valley to follow the river and train line back towards Lealholm. This was a particularly pretty part of the walk in very typical Yorkshire countryside, made better by our arrival in Lealholm and discovery of the local shop selling old fashioned sweets...mmmmm!

It was a cross-country route back to the bunkhouse, and despite being able to see the bunkhouse in the distant for some time, it seemed like we weren't getting any nearer! We eventually made it back, but the lack of hot water meant showers were out of the question (although Beate did somehow manage to wash her hair..!). Lynne and Cathy cooked dinner, but their large portions of pasta meant that there wasn't enough to go around, despite large amounts being left on plates at the end of the meal... Another pan of pasta was soon cooked, and this was followed by a delicious fruit strudel - thanks for the great shopping Bex!

It was a quite night in with a few beers and a couple of games of cards. Steesh kept us all amused with a stream of 'hilarious' anecdotes from the Reader's Digest. Louise did not seem too impressed with most of them, but when she finally cracked at the interupting cow joke ("knock knock" - "Who's there" - "The interupting cow" - "The interupting..." - "Mooooooo" ... perhaps you had to be there...), this signalled bedtime, and we decided to hit the sack.

Sunday
In a contrast to the previous day, Sunday dawned bright and sunny - perfect for the planned coastal walk. Once we'd packed up the bus and cleaned the bunkhouse, we headed off to the pretty coastal village of Sandsend. We parked the bus by the wall in front of the sea, then headed along the path inland through the woodland to the castle, which made the perfect setting for a bit of exploration and our lunch stop.

From the castle we headed through the woods (sometimes somewhat off the beaten track) and down to the river. Chris & Steesh decided to cross the river on the grassy rocks, but everyone else headed back across the bridge. The river-crossing had not been avoided however, as the path reached a ford and there was no alternative but to wade. Eventually everyone was across, and we hit the fields, and one of the muddiest paths of the year so far! It was a shame this path was after the ford, otherwise we could have washed our boots!

The trail took us across pretty fields, through a farm with some menacing cows, and on to the cliff path. It was a surprise to see the sea when we did, as the farmland just seemed to stop at the cliff edge. The view was breathtaking, and we stopped for a break overlooking the Heritage Coast. The track lead us back along the cliff edge, past the old loam mines to Sandsend. The lack of fish and chip shop was disappointing, but we made up for it with an ice-cream instead.

What should have been a short trip back to Leeds was made much longer by the failing clutch on the minibus. Unable to reliably change gear, we were forced to drive all the way back in 3rd gear, lengthening the trip somewhat, and meaning that we could not drop people home. We eventually disposed of the minibus, picked up our cars and headed to the Thai cafe. Unfortunately Jino's was full, so it was back to good old Nazams. The virtual 100% turnout for the curry was a reflection of what a great weekend we all had - hopefully next time there will be more than 13 people to enjoy it!

Hebden Bridge day walk - 18th March 2007

Eirik kindly volunteered to lead this walk to one of the walking club's more frequented locations. After a long night out for Paddy's night, however, take up was slow and if sources tell me correctly, only 3 people turned up for the walk...well, 4 actually, but Tim unfortunately missed the bus and arrived just after the train had left.

Who the 3 people were and where they walked exactly, I don't know, but if you were there and want to tell your side of events. please let me know!

Lynne

Paddy's night - 17th March 2007

Does anyone who was out for Paddy's night remember enough to send a blog...?

Brecon Beacons Weekend - 2nd-5th March 2007

Friday
The 4pm departure slipped to 5pm as we waited for the final person to arrive, but we were soon on the road, racing down the M62 toward Wales - or trying to...the bus was fitted with a speed limiter and would not go above 58mph...it was a long journey!

As we headed through Wales on the windy roads, the rain started, and we were all relieved when we finally got to the bunkhouse some time after 10pm. A couple of games of cards later and we were all ready for bed...apart from Mark, Will and subsequently Finley, who decided that the benches in the t.v. lounge would be more comfortable...(?)

Saturday
Saturday we were (almost) all up bright and early for a good day's walking. The weather seemed undecided, with the forecast not exactly great. We headed to the hills for a stunning walk along a ridge with 360 degree views across the national park. The landscape was beautiful, and despite the wind and occasional shower it was a great walk.

We stopped for lunch just before the descent to the tarn, then headed down and across the fields (and the odd river) to a disused railway line through the valley. Beci, Ben, Steesh & Vince then disappeared off to find a geo-cache, whilst everyone else headed back to the bunkhouse for a shower. Whilst Lynne & Cathy cooked dinner, the rest of the group retired to the local pub for a couple of beers, out of the way of the 19 greeks who we were sharing the bunkhouse with. After fighting for kitchen space, and the wait for people to return from the pub, we were soon all fed and watered and it was once again back to the pub with the giant pig for free chips.

Half the group headed on to another pub, whilst the rest of the group returned to the bunkhouse for a few beers in the tv room. It was another fairly late one, but as bad weather was forecast for Sunday, nobody was too concerned and Beci conceded a later-than-usual wake-up call and departure time of 11am...

Sunday
We woke to the sound of the forecasted downpour on the bunkhouse roof. It was a slow start as one by one the group got out of bed, looked at the weather and groaned! However, taking a vote most people were up for a walk, so we headed off to the reservoir and a picturesque forest trail, which we hoped would be slightly sheltered.

The day got off to a bad start, as Lynne forgot exactly how long a 15-seater miniubs is, and damaged the bumper of one of the Greek cars in the car park...oops! The Greeks weren't too happy, but the minibus sustained no damage at all, and we were soon back on our way.

The drive to the walk was along narrow country lanes, and the sheer volume of rain had caused many of the roads to be flooded with the vivid orange water from the minerals in the local soil. As we parked by the reservoir, the rain showed no sign of abating. We kitted up and headed across the dam into the forest. The forest was not so much of a pretty trail, than a forestry commision managed tree farm. The paths bared no resemblance to the map, and what paths there were were extremely muddy or roped off. We slid around in the mud and rain for an hour or so before calling it off as a bad job and heading to the pub to dry off. An hour in the warm pub and couple of games of darts were just what we needed before the long drive home. We took the theoretically quicker motorway route back to Leeds, but the restricted speed of the bus meant it still took 5 1/2 hours, but we eventually arrived back in Leeds and the comfort of our own homes. It was a long drive, but everybody seemed to have a good time, and the beauty of the Brecon Beacons made it all worth while.