County climber winter 2007

Northumbrian Mountaineering Club

Quarterly Magazine December 2007

• •

About the Northumbrian Mountaineering Club (NMC) The NMC is a meeting point for climbers, fell walkers and mountaineers of all abilities.

Our activities centre on rock-climbing in the summer and snow and ice climbing in the winter.

Meets are held regularly throughout the year.

The NMC is not, however a commercial organization and does NOT provide instructional courses.

• •

BMC Public Liability Insurance for climbing incidents.

Discounted NMC guide books.

Discounted entry at certain indoor climbing walls.

Access to the extensive NMC library

•

Join the NMC Download a Membership form from: www.thenmc.org.uk Send the signed and completed membership form with a cheque made out to the NMC for the membership fee (see below) to the Membership Secretary at the address shown on the membership form.

NMC Meets The NMC Members’ handbook (available to all members) and the NMC website list the dates and locations of all meets.

Membership Fees •Full £22 •Prospective £10.00

Quarterly Magazine This magazine lists the meets arranged for the next few months.

Non-members: Are always welcome to attend meets.

Note: Winter indoor meets require a minimum of prospective membership (see below) due to venue requirements for third party insurance.

Membership Details Members are Prospective until they fulfill the conditions for Full Membership (see membership form.) Full membership is valid for one year from the end of February. Prospective membership expires at the end of March each year.

Membership gets you: • Copy of the quarterly magazine.

NMC Quarterly Magazine

Contributions to this magazine are always welcome - photos are especially welcome.

Send Contributions to: magazine@thenmc.org.uk

Get this Magazine FASTER If you received this magazine as a paper copy, you may be interested to learn that you can get it a lot faster and in colour as a free download from our website.

To arrange for email notification that the latest issue of the magazine is ready for you to download, contact the membership secretary at: secretary@thenmc.org.uk

September 2007

Committee 2007/2008 President – Peter Bennett Vice Pres. – Malcolm Rowe Secretary – John Dalrymple Treasurer – John Mountain Membership – J. Dalrymple Access - Bill Renshaw Hut co-ord. – Neil Cranston Hut bookings – Derek Cutts Magazine ed. – Peter Flegg Social Sec – Carolyn Horrocks Librarian – Bryn Roberts Guide books – John Earl General: Steve Nagy, Martin Waugh, Richard Pow, Sam Judson & John Dalrymple.

As an affiliate to the BMC, the NMC endorses the following participation statement: The BMC recognises that climbing, hill walking and mountaineering are activities with a danger of personal injury or death.

Participants in these activities should be aware of and accept these risks and be responsible for their own actions and involvement.

Copyright The contents of this magazine are copyright and may not be reproduced without permission of the NMC. The views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or the NMC.

Photos Unless otherwise stated all photos in this issue were taken by the author of the article.

Cover Shot Ross Freeman on ‘A’ Buttress Right Hand, Severe, Simonside Photo by John Dalrymple

page 2 of 24

What’s in this issue?

Weekend meets................................................3 Wednesday evening meets................................4 The Flexible Meet............................................5 This is what I call adventure! ............................6 Lead Climbing Course......................................8 Climbers' World Christmas Specials… ............ 10 In praise of…................................................. 12 NW archipelagos:........................................... 13 How did you start climbing? ........................... 16 Editor’s bit ..................................................... 18 Club Dinner................................................... 18 County Ethics ................................................ 19 Original Mountain Marathon........................... 22

and ice. Scope for ski-ing and boarding and feasible to visit some of the spectacular mountainous areas to the north west in a day. Bookings ASAP. Martin Cooper 0191 252 5707 20 Feb - 27 Feb 08

Costa Blanc—rock climbing in the winter sun, interested??

Contact Cliff Robson.

0191 222 1352

Fri-Sun 7-9 Mar 08

Kincraig—The Milehouse is ca. 5 miles S. of Aviemore, well placed for the N. Cairngorms or Craig Meggie.

An excellent Hut which we have been booking for Winter Meets for many years now.

Malcolm Rowe, 0191 236 6648

15-24 Mar 08

Rjukan, Norway—Ice climbing trip. From roadside single-pitch to full on multipitch mountain routes.

Kin Choi 0191 441 2263

Fri-Sun 28-30 Mar 08

Fort William—14 places booked in the Bank Street Lodge, right in the centre of Fort William—perfect for after climbing socials!!

Cost is a meager £13.50 a night and the kitchen is open any time! (unlike the farce last year.)

In March the Ben should be wall-to-wall ice so sharpen your tools.

I can probably get extra spaces—so don't be boring and wait until the last minute, BOOK NOW! Lots to do whatever the weather, it’s always a riot!

Weekend meets The following list shows all weekend climbing/social meets currently arranged.

You MUST contact the meet leader in advance, as accommodation may be limited or already fully booked.

Note: A deposit may be required to reserve your place on a weekend trip.

Fri-Sun 18-20 Jan 08

Black Rock cottage—located in Glencoe below Buchaille Etive Mor. Convenient for Munro bagging and if lucky for snow and ice routes. Only about 12 places so book early.

Peter Bennett 01670 515 263

Saturday 27 Jan 08

Wainstones, North Yorkshire —rock climbing, just turn up.

Friday 8 Feb 08

Ceilidh—A fun get-together at the Chiilingham Arms, Heaton. A chance to show off your dancing skills. Carolyn Horrocks 07817 833 420

Fri-Sun 2-4 Feb 08

A snow-hole some where high in the Cairngorms — Adrian Heath 07903 377 012

Fri-Sun 15-17 Feb 08

Karn House, Aviemore —Fell & Rock Hut has been booked for 12 lucky people —this is certainly not a 'hut'! It is an excellent base for winter activities in the N. Cairngorms, the most reliable early season venue for snow and ice. Scope for ski-ing and

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

(continued next page)

You never know if you talk to me nicely I might even do some winter skills for free for those who want or need it.

Tim Catterall, 07704 614 814

page 3 of 24

Wednesday evening meets Outdoors

Indoors

Meets start again from late March 2008.

No need to call any one—just turn up with all your own equipment.

Winter Wednesday evening indoor meets are held at the wall at Burnside Community College in Wallsend.

The NMC website has crag location details (www.thenmc.org.uk), also check the website for indoor wall alternatives if the weather is not good. Meet afterwards at the pub shown in italics.

The club has the wall booked exclusively for NMC members and it’s a great venue for us. Bring all your own equipment.

Interested in joining the NMC?—then come along on one these nights and have a chat with the membership sec. (John Dalrymple) The wall is available from 18.00 to 21.00 after which we normally head to the Shiremoor Farm Pub for a beer and chance to catch up on all the gossip.

Rothley – Dyke Neuk

09 April 08

Corby’s – Angler’s Arms

It’s not a bad place for a trip out, nice comfy seats and real coffee if you're taking a rest.

Don't forget we've special dispensation to bring in a can or bottle—just as long as we do carry it out afterwards.

Alastair Lee—prepare for laughter as the climbing film maker, photographer and performer—is back again. His films have won awards in several countries including at the Kendal Mountain Film Festival.

AGM—committee members provide feedback on their tasks and future issues, and a new committee is elected. It's your club so come along and have your say!

13 Feb 08

Andy Earl—UK bouldering champion will give an illustrated talk.

5 Mar 08

Members’ slide s—bring in a few slides to show of your winter climbing activities.

NMC Quarterly Magazine

02 April 08

Durham Bouldering wall are now offering NMC members a discount—£1.00 off the standard entry fee of £6.50 by presenting your NMC membership card.

These events are held in the upstairs lecture theatre in Burnside School and start at 20.30 after the Wednesday evening climbing.

23 Jan 08

Shaftoe - Highlander

Durham Bouldering Wall Discount

Guest speakers etc

16 Jan 08

26 March 08

Address: Durham Climbing Centre, Unit 2, St Johns Road, Meadowfield Industrial Estate, Durham, DH7 8TZ For the location and further details on the center check out: http://www.durhamclimbingcentre.co.uk/

Membership renewal reminder Your membership expires on 28 Feb 2008, to continue getting the benefits of NMC membership you will need to renew before then.

Renew by sending a cheque to Carolyn Horrocks at 24 Tenth Ave, Heaton, Newcastle NE6 5XU

September 2007

page 4 of 24

The Flexible Meet Neil Cranston

The Hut Working/BBQ Weekend Meet at the Bowderstone Cottage in September was a bit quiet and a somewhat disjointed event, let me explain…

As I have not been getting out much recently on a Wednesday, due to parental duties with baby George, I have not been able to ‘encourage’ attendance (I mean… twist people’s arms.) So I posted an article on the NMC website forum outlining the plan for the weekend, over 100 people viewed the article but strangely no one replied???

At least Peter Bennett emailed and said that he was going over on the Friday to push on with the concreting work round the back of the kitchen, which had been started during the previous working meet. The aim is to reduce/stop water seeping from the earth in through the kitchen wall. On the Friday and Saturday Peter made good progress with this job, working on his own, until eventually running out of materials (rather than actually finishing the job), although he did claim an appointment at home for his son’s birthday that evening and left.

Sue Bevan and William Blyth had a long biking weekend planned, with a slight interval in the middle for the working meet.

So they also got over to the hut on the Friday but their plans to go biking faded with the arrival of the rain! So by the time I got to the hut at 11:00pm Friday night, there were three weary soles, as Sue had cleaned the Hermitage top to bottom and William had been tackling various tasks around the Cottage.

I had brought three others in the car with me: my wife and NMC member Caroline and baby George (now 9 months) and also Maret, my niece from Germany who had been staying with us the previous week, missed her flight home on Friday afternoon and after a mild panic decided to come with us as well.

NMC Quarterly Magazine

On the Saturday morning Sue and William went off on their bikes as the weather forecast was good, they reported back later after cycling 44 miles. Caroline, Maret and George washed all the walls in the Cottage and gave the whole place a damn good clean.

I had planned to fix the broken window behind the bunks—as reported on one of the monthly cleaning inspections. However I ended up fixing two windows as William had split the window in the ladies shower while fitting a new extractor fan… If you want a job doing properly you have to do it your self!!! (Sorry William only joking.)

So the BBQ on Saturday night was reasonably quiet, but nevertheless fun. I had to leave by 10am on Sunday morning so as get Maret to the airport on time for her flight back toGermany. That left just William and Sue, but once again it was raining so they did not get any biking done.

Although I understand the floor has now had another coat of paint.

That’s enough of that of that weekend.

More importantly we have recently had a Fire Risk Assessment carried out by a professional inspector on the Cottage and the Hermitage. Perhaps not surprisingly, both huts failed on a number of points. I think we are going to have to have a couple of working meets over the course of the winter to rectify the highlighted issues—so please keep your eyes and ears open and come over for a weekend to lend a hand with these improvements when we get the dates set.

Remember they are YOUR hut’s too.

At least the working meet showed how flexible we can be and that there is no real set agenda.

September 2007

page 5 of 24

This is what I call adventure!

Kin Choi

Almost two decades ago on the way home from a day’s sea kayaking in Hong Kong, I overheard someone talking about ‘all round’ outdoor skills—this got me thinking and I set myself the goal to become an ‘all-rounder’. Twenty years on and I can now sing a bit better, cook a few more dishes, have developed some artistic talent with photography, am able to spin a girl with grace on the dance floor and can also just manage a few pints!

My all-rounder mind-set applies even to my working life in education, where the concept of life long learning allures me—I just love to learn new things, experience new cultures, new places and make new friends. One lifetime just isn’t long enough.

I managed to persuade a few punters to ditch the Peak and assembled a team for the adventure. I love the idea of climbing beside the sea and excitement fills me when planning the logistics of getting across to the climb. Such planning for some people is a chore but it makes me feel complete—this climb would require extra skills and knowledge not employed on outcrop climbing. It’s nice to climb a route at Stanage—but you wouldn’t hug your buddy, nor take a picture at the top of a route. That’s just plain silly. Tide checked.

Weather forecast ok. Abseil rope, pulleys, all the usual climbing gear, a change of clothes, waterproof bags, camera and finally 3 willing guinea pigs: Tom, David and Tuze.

Even before I started climbing, I thought rock climbing looked such a fascinating sport offering so many varied disciplines in contrasting locations. In 10 years of climbing, I’ve bouldered at small rocky outcrops, climbed long mountain rock routes; climbed short snow and ice routes in the Northern Corries and had multi-day alpine exploits; tranquil sea cliffs in Cornwall to bustling urban outcrops among skyscrapers in Hong Kong.

Climbing has so much variety to offer and even now there is still so many new things left for me to experience—and a new climbing experience is what I had in mind for my birthday this year…

The NMC had a Peak meet set for my birthday weekend in July. I heard there were a fair few people going and it seemed like a good idea with so many people there to celebrate my birthday.

But I had been to the Peak many times and wanted a new challenge and that’s when I got the idea to climb Souter sea stack—a memorable thing to do on my birthday!

NMC Quarterly Magazine

Tüze following up on pitch one

About 9 in the morning of my birthday, we rolled out of Newcastle on a sunny but blustery day. An hour or so later, we arrived at the farm car park. Checked our bearings and we were soon off towards the stack through some fields. The stack didn’t look too tall and sure looked like a cracking September 2007

page 6 of 24

object to climb. The front face didn’t look appealing at all—a well-established residence for sea gulls. After some time spent scouting around, we determined that the back of the stack (seaward face) looked unoccupied.

Wasting no time in order to make good use of the low tide, we scrambled to the back of the stack to find a clean rock face free of birds, although it was covered in parts by sea moss. The tidal platform was big enough for 4 of us to perch on and birthday boy was duly elected to lead. The section of rock we climbed on was good clean greywacke1 —something of an acquired taste—and was also free of moss.

The rock had more friction and grip than any gritstone or sandstone I’d ever climbed before. It felt like very fine, fresh sandpaper. The route had a run-out technical section near the start, hence, HVS 5a grade. The traverse out near the top was just as delightful as entertaining. Overall the gear was adequate but you wouldn’t want to rely on the old in-situ pegs!

I was the first to summit the little peak (my very own Peak District?) and was greeted by two almost fully-fledged sea gulls. On seeing my face one of them decided to take off. 5 minutes later, I vaguely saw something

white floating lifelessly on the sea in at some distance. It looked like the young bird had committed suicide. May be it was just a shopping bag I saw floating. Was it my fault? It’s a mystery. The other sibling was still sitting next to me when all 4 of us topped out. We used the abseil rope to get back down to some ledges—quite hairy for me being the last down abseiling off a rusting peg and loosely attached nut. Why don’t they put a staple there rather than a rusty peg and nut? They’re all in-situ by now. What’s the difference? Anyway, I’ll leave the crag police to deal with that issue.

I hatched a plan to tyrolean back across to dry land but Tom, being Tom, volunteered to swim in his underpants—he loves swimming. David then attempted the poorly tensioned tyrolean set up by Tom but looked destined to get wet. So Tuze and I found a scramble route to the front of the stack and the 3 of us leisurely hopped back to dry land. What a birthday adventure!

One of Kin’s ‘artistic’ composite panoramas of Souter

1

Dumfries and Galloway sea cliffs offer plenty more of this type of rock to savour.

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 7 of 24

Lead Climbing Course Carole Gibson

Question—how long could I remain a climbing newbie? In some ways being a newbie is a comfortable state of affairs. I had been happily seconding for about 5 years and whenever I had a dodgy moment on the rock face I would utter—sorry, Im a newbie—and somehow this would excuse me from some terrible climbing faux pas that I had just committed.

So, when I got talking to Richard Pow at a Wednesday night meet and he mentioned about a lead climbing course in the Lakes I jumped at the chance. I had also heard really positive comments about the first lead climbing course that Richard had organised earlier in the year. There were 9 of us enrolled on the course and we had been asked to provide details of our previous climbing experience prior to the course so that we could be grouped on ability. I purposefully played down my lead climbing previous experience (which was not difficult) to make sure that I was in the absolute beginners lead climbing group.

I was aware however that I was too reliant on others, and that I was not progressing from one year to the next. I We were asked to meet at the café at the usefully managed to acquire myself a bottom of Shepherds Crag in Borrowdale at climbing boyfriend who taught me some of the basics with regards to lead climbing— particularly the art of placing protection and setting up anchors. My first lead was a moderate somewhere in the Lake District in April 2007, don’t ask me where, I still have the inability to remember crag and route names.

Carole leading Wimpey Way by Richard Pow Yes it was more of a scramble 10am on Sunday 9th September. Myself, than a climb, but it gave me lots of Gill Lawson and Sarah Follmann met bright confidence. Unfortunately the English and early in the Ikea carpark at the metro summer of 2007 then prevented me from centre, left two cars there and travelled developing my new found skills—every together over to the Lakes, singing merrily time I had a chance to climb there seemed to Dolly Parton along the way. The to be persistent drizzle. One trip to Kyloe remainder of our group—Ian Ross, David Out, and an attempt to lead Christmas Tree Webb, Lucy Farfort, Tüze Kuyucu, Heather arête (Diff) in the rain, nearly put me off Robson and John Flitcroft were all already lead climbing for good (sorry Adrian for in the Lakes. Rather than attempting to find lots of swearing, huffing and puffing, and routes on the crowded Shepherds Crag, it all round pathetic-ness). was decided that we should head towards

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 8 of 24

Wodens Face, which is two minutes from the Bowderstone Hut. The two qualified instructors on the course were Tim Hakim and Ali Mitchell, who were ably supported by Richard Pow. We were duly split into three groups and I was placed into a group with Lucy and John and we were initially placed into the safe hands of Ali. Ali started off by talking about lead climbing basics and by answering all of our climbing questions that we had never dared ask anyone else for fear of looking like we did not know what we were doing.

Ali seemed to have faith in us and we all crowded round the base of the aptly named Wimpey Way, a two star Mild Severe. John went up first and made the climb look very easy, much to Lucy and my annoyance. Ali had set up a self belayer thingy ‘magiggy’ (ahem—further research has led me to believe this is called an ascender) and went up alongside John to check his gear placement and provide handy hints. Ali encouraged us to get into the habit of grading our own placements and I found this to be a great tip. Lucy followed, also looking suspiciously like she had done this several times before. Then it was me—no pressure. I was pleased with my progress though and it turned out to be a very pleasant climb on perfect rock. There was loads of protection and I was placing gear all over the place. It was a great confidence boost for all of us.

To be honest, the rest of the climbing instruction was a blur after our early success (and my memory is rubbish). In the afternoon all the groups changed instructors and we were handed over to Tim. It was great having the use of two instructors as they were both able to give us their own climbing hints and tips. We all managed to lead Wodens Face (V Diff) which I think we all agreed seemed trickier than Wimpey Way, regardless of the grading. We then went back to Wimpey Way to end on a high note.

After a full day of climbing we headed towards the café for a debrief. I was to find NMC Quarterly Magazine

out that I was generally doing well and seemed to know my stuff, but that I needed to take just a bit more time placing gear.

Something I will definitely remember for the future. Tim, Ali and Richard then dished out loads more advice on equipment to buy, crags to go to and books to read.

Gill, Sarah and I headed for home but the adventure was still to continue. On reaching the deserted Ikea carpark we were to discover the barriers were down and that Sarah and Gill’s cars were trapped with noone to be seen. After much flapping of arms and hysterical laughter we came across a security guard who directed us to a security hut. We presented as three damsels in distress and the kind security guard left his cosy sanctuary to open the barriers.

To sum up, this was a professionally run course, which took into account our previous experience and relied upon feedback for future improvements.

Personally I gained the confidence that what I had been doing was right all along. I just needed an independent third party to tell me that. In addition to the great instructors, I have to say that there was a great bunch of people on the course. I would be happy to climb with any of them now. I would recommend the course for all the newbies out there!

Congratulations Congratulations to Jeff Breen on completing the Munros. On 17th November Jeff and his faithful lieutenant Trevor ascended Sgurr a’Mhaim in the Mamores, in typical Scottish conditions, a howling gale and lashing rain.

He thereby became the 3997th enthusiast to be registered by the SMC as having achieved this commendable feat. Jeff did his first Munro, The Saddle in the Glenshiel hills, when he was just 14 years old. He is less than impressed by the purist in the club who maintains that the Munros should ‘properly’ be done in alphabetical order. For that, one would need to start on A’Bhuidheanach Bheag and finish on Tom Buidhe!

September 2007

page 9 of 24

The latest in bolting technology from the Instituto di Autoboltolini, Milano, Italy

New from Kazakhstan – a glue special for climbers.

Now there is no need to throw that old frayed rope away or that cracked carabiner – a small drop of this glue will add many extra years of life to your old equipment.

Comes in a range of colours: Tartan and Black Cost £2692-99 per tube

New DVD – The Collectors’ edition:

History of Rock-Climbing Are you always putting in bolts on new sports routes?

Then this is for you—no more bloodied fingers or aching wrists thanks to this miracle of the climbing scene.

Each bolt comes complete with a powerful selfhammering mechanism eliminating the need for any other tool. Simply switch on and hey presto – bolt’s in place and you are ready to climb.

Packet of 3: £795 (excluding batteries)

This DVD must not be missed.

Includes a previously unseen interview given to Jonathon Ross by Robert Scott (of the Antarctic.)

Musical interludes by the Spice Girls.

Price: £0.75

Give your friends a real treat this Xmas!

With your own

From Papua New Guinea the

Bored tying the same old knots?

Made from washable latex comes complete with wig. As seen on TV.

Difficulty remembering some of those special knots you need climbing?… then this is the rope for you!

Provide partners and family with hours of fun this yuletide.

A hand-held remote control lets you select from a range of knots. Press the button and the knot is ready in no time.

Set of 6: 15p Cost: £10,582 (batteries extra) Plays the theme tune to the Chris Bonington story

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 10 of 24

Authentic Replica

Hand-crafted from pure Scottish granite with curved rams horn handles. As used by early Christian when crossing the Alps.

Sizes: Single, double or twin rope Price: £22 (post and packing extra)

New from Chechnya this chalk bag is made from 3layer Goretex and insulated with down – not only keeps your chalk warm and dry but folds out to become a full-sized bivvy bag.

As used on the 2004 expedition to the north face of the Drake Stone.

Cost: £197 Not suitable for use in rain or above 150m

Electronic

Do you spend all weekend putting up new routes? Then this is the device for you. Clips on to your harness and measures all arm and leg movements. At the top of the climb the LCD display shows the overall grade.

Price: £22.90 Originally carved in stone, lost for 6 centuries, recently discovered in a cave in Xingjiang, China

Great news for fish loving climbers!

Thanks to this ingenious device from the Maldives (the fish and climbing capital of the world) there’s no longer any need to leave your pet fish at home when you go off climbing.

Suitable for Goldfish and Basking Shark.

Cost: £3099

This ancient esoteric classic is must for all those who want to get the best from their knots.

Price £12.95 Available in Urdu, Quecha or Maltese.

At last the two-in-one

No more packing worries. Now you can go straight from the business conference to the crag without carrying a bag full of clothes! Outside pinstripe worsted, inside leopard skin lycra.

Price: £16-50 (belt extra) Sizes: Medium, Large and John Prescott NMC Quarterly Magazine

Tired of boring long winter nights on freezing Scottish mountain ledges? Then the RGX-2 is the solution for you: fits in the space of a cigarette box and comes complete with WiFi broadband access, MP3 storage space for 50,000 songs, and an X-box games console.

Includes parental override controls.

Price: £249-99

September 2007

page 11 of 24

In praise of‌ - Wednesday Evening Meets Peter Bennett

There was some discussion on the club web site over the summer past with regard to the merits or otherwise of Wednesday evening meets. A few members expressed their preference, whenever the weather appears at all doubtful, for the safe option of going to an indoor wall, rather than risking a long and possibly fruitless drive up the county. It was also my personal observation this year (2007) and last, that the turn out was a very low on several Wednesdays when the weather at the crag was perfectly OK.

therefore particularly magnificent in warm glow of the setting summer sun. You have all been there, climbing on Bowden Doors or Kyloe after 10pm (or later!), with the sun setting over Cheviot, packing the gear in the gloaming, strolling back to the car as the light fades further, beer and banter in the pub, and the drive home with light in the northern sky until after midnight. Well worth a punt at any odds!

So next season I would urge members to take the risk any Wednesday there seems a possibilty of reasonable weather and get out there on the crags. Check out the regional forecast on the web for the most accurate indication of the probable weather at the meet venue.

To a devotee of Wednesday evening meets in the county since circa 1980, this development is rather sad.

Although now retired, I do recall times when, after a hard day at work, it was not easy to find the motivation to struggle through the rush hour traffic and head off to attend a meet, particularly when the weather Sunset at Simonside by John Dalrymple was dubious.

Nowadays with You may be rained off on occasions and the availability of several good climbing end up in the pub early (shame), or walls in the area, the dilemma is sheltering under an overhang. You may get understandably that much more difficult. eaten alive by midges. You may not climb to the same technical grade as you would However, those going for the safe option on a wall. You may stumble into a bog in should consider what they may be missing. the pitch black on the way out. You may arrive home at some ungodly hour.

One of the advantages of living at a However, all that is well worth the risk for latitude of 55 degrees north, is the long the possibility of the physical and spiritual summer evenings. That is particularly the uplift of climbing on our wonderful crags case in the context of climbing in when they are at their most magnificent.

Northumberland since many of our best crags face north or north west and are NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 12 of 24

NW archipelagos: —Norway & Scotland Lewis Preston

This is the first of a two-part article covering the Norwegian sojourn of my summer adventures on the NW island chains of Norway and Scotland.

Lofoten: Chasing the Polar Bear Three times round-the-world Challenger yacht ‘Polar Bear’ (72’ length, single mast) had set off from North Shields across the North Sea and up the west coast of Norway some two to three weeks before I could leave. I took three flights to get to Bodo and then an overnight (in broad daylight) ferry to the southern tip of the Lofoten Island chain.

I descended, cooked supper and at about midnight set off up the other side of the isthmus just as the sun rose from its lowest point, several degrees above the horizon. I climbed Helvetstinden (hell mountain) bathed in a fiery glow. I had the entire landscape to myself and, on return to sea level, skinny-dipped from Buneset Beach a full 1km square, hemmed-in on three sides by vertical rock walls. There was a whale vertebra, half buried in the sand, wider than I am tall. Another disoriented bivvy brought some daylight ‘shut-eye’.

In the following days I enjoyed solo and shared adventures on foot, bus, bicycle and ‘Ninga’ a Kawasaki motorcycle. The latter belonging to Malin, a sporty Swede who needed the Ninga returned north after graduating from the Norwegian Mountaineering School on the day I arrived in Henningsvœr—Lofoten’s climbing mecca. Andreas, another graduate, took me up his favourite route ‘Gandaf’, a perfectly formed VS with holds in all the right

I was invited by a fellow passenger, Inge-Lille, to share her taxi to Å (the last letter of the Norwegian alphabet and the last hamlet in the archipelago.) By 6am I had walked up the hill and found a bivvy spot, but sleep (even after 24 hours without) did not come readily. At the picturesque village of Reine I took a fishing boat up the fjord and crossed solo over the isthmus to the opposite The Cuillin-type ridges stretching north from Buneset Beach (west) side of the places. island. Enjoyable scrambling exploration up The day after the graduation/summer through broken rock walls/ledges/ridges solstice all (un)night party, Malin and I set revealed, once above 1000m, a series of off, she in her car and me on the Ninga. We endless Cuillin-type ridges stretching north. took the dirt road along the east side of the NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 13 of 24

Raftsund, that narrow but mighty seaway between islands that reveals the most photographed cleft in the Trollveggenfjellene, the Trollfjord. We picnicked on a white beach at 11pm then caught the shuttle ferry to Malin’s island for a Swedish sausage supper at 2am before I took another overnight boat trip.

The Hurtigruten cruise ship ‘MV Finnmarken’ took me up a complex passage of inter-island fjords towards Tromsø. After a couple of hours (unsleep) on a sofa I made breakfast by the aft-deck pool and sunbathed in the jacuzzi. The captain introduced ‘Neptune’ who baptized the entire passenger-list with ice down your shirt (if you were wearing one) and a shot of warm-up liqueur. Shortly after this initiation for the earlier crossing of the Arctic circle, the MV Finnmarken steamed into the port of Tromsø.

Lewis with the whale bone

consisting of 3 hours on deck, in full protective suits, harnesses clipped to safety cables running the full 72’ of the PB, then 3 hours ‘mother watch’ (cooking, washing up, assisting on deck if needed) followed by 3 hours snatched sleep in triple level hammocks swayed by the ocean swell.

I enjoyed the sail south (from 70 °N) down the east coast of the Lyngen peninsular with shear rock walls broken by glaciers hanging only meters above sea level.

On board the Bear When Polar Bear (PB) left Tromsø I was happy to have finally got on board. It was a steep learning curve for the latest crew member—on our second ‘night’ we tacked round the north cape of the Lyngen peninsular in a Force 7. Watches were a continuous cycle of 3 different shifts

Tom Weir’s description in ‘Camps and Climbs of Arctic Norway’ that had captivated me 25 years previously now unfolded as PB navigated into the inlet of Lyngseidet. Weir’s goal to the south was highest point Jiehkkevarri (1833m) which took his team several attempts, this seemed more impossible than ever once I got a local map and surveyed the expanse and confusion of glaciertorn territory.

From Lewis’ sketch book

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

I was content with a solo attempt into the Kjostindane group but even this ‘modest’ 1500m range offered ridges of crumbling page 14 of 24

balanced rock and wildly cantilevered snow cornices. I was forced twice to descend steep ice gullies to cross-glaciated basins when upward progress became impossible.

On a final attempt I succeeded up an easier south ridge onto the summit of Fastdalstinden. I then faced a challenging ‘blind’ descent off the heavily corniced north ridge to reach an unlocked hut, where the rest of the crew had walked up a valley to overnight in. It was midnight (and of course still daylight) by the time we had a steaming supper in front of the warmth of the log-burning stove.

A couple of days later David Wilson arrived from Fort William and we teamed

up to attempt Tafeltinden at the head of the 6km long Strupbreen and Koppangsbreen glaciers. David had climbed in Lyngen before, and with several first-ascent bagging trips to Greenland is a fellow of the Scottish Arctic Club. Even this experience was not enough to ‘bag’ Tafeltinden. We retreated in thick mist back down the Koppangsbreen. David’s quick reactions and rope work were put to the test, however, as a crevasse attempted to swallow me up. We were tired after negotiating the descent of the waterfall cliffs, dwarf-birch, boulder mine-fields and the swollen river meeting the fjord. David resorted to calling Fort William on his mobile to get his wife to contact the PB crew to sort out a taxi to save us an all night road trudge back to where the yacht was moored.

The return sail was calmer and during the ‘off’ watches David painted and I sketched the combination of PB’s man-made magnificenc e and the staggering interface of rock, ice and ocean.

Tromsø came all too soon.

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 15 of 24

How did you start climbing?

Ben Gilbert

It’s a question everyone gets asked.

Either by fellow climbers awkwardly trying to make conversation or by non-climbers trying to work out what all the fuss is about.

How did I get started?—I was watching Mission Impossible 2 one Saturday night, and saw Tom Cruise swinging around in Utah and thought, ‘that looks fun’, booked a taster session at Sunderland Wall and have never looked back. Well that gets a few laughs, but it’s the genuine reason I first tried climbing.

I’m just going to say it now—straight out: Climbing is the best thing in the world.

End of story. Nothing compares to it.

Forget sliced bread, football, girls and even pink furry handcuffs, it’s just the best.

Since I started climbing I’ve made lasting friends, seen places I would never have seen, done things I would have never done, and pretty much redefined my entire life.

On the other hand, sometimes I wonder whether it was such a wise move. It’s almost like climbing isn’t my hobby anymore, it’s no longer a healthy past time that I can stop whenever I feel like it. It’s become like an addiction; it’s my lifestyle and I plan everything I do around climbing.

If I can’t climb, you’ll know about it.

Climbing Magazines, climbing books, climbing web sites, climbing movies… it’s all I do and it’s all I want to do. The first time I brought my girlfriend home, I asked if she minded if we watched a climbing DVD—she thought I was joking, but I wasn’t. She has never climbed, but she knows about all the different grades, knows the name of the route I most want to climb, knows that Johnny Dawes is the greatest, and that people who don’t climb trad are rather soft.

men meant to think about something else every 6 seconds? Well not me, my minds too busy going through moves, planning my next trip out, writing articles like this to use up some more time until I next go climbing.

The world away from the crag just seems so pathetic. At work, when they’re fretting about nothing and give me some mind numbingly mundane and boring task to do, I think ‘do you genuinely think I care about this in the slightest? Or are you just taking the mick?’ The world outside of climbing really is trivial by comparison. Climbing is my way to forget about these aspects of life, and is pretty much the only time when I’m totally happy. It is the only thing which brings me genuine enjoyment, the only thing I love to do and could never stop doing. (Unless of course my hands, fingers or feet fell off, then I’d be pretty screwed.)

But why?

On paper, climbing seems such a pointless activity. Climb up a rock and walk down again. But everyone reading this knows that’s not the case. What goes on between saying ‘OK, climbing’ and topping out is something else. Something I have yet to encounter outside of climbing, something I doubt exists for me outside of climbing.

What drives some climbers to climb hard, bold routes? Most climbers I know are keen to push their grade, to climb that little bit harder. But why? Climbing is climbing isn’t it, no matter what the grade?

Well, to some extent yes, and to some extend no. I don’t like easy or straightforward climbs. I prefer routes that make you try hard, make you think about the moves and make you work for the tick.

I don’t know if that’s an ego thing, but this is the type of climbing I like. I like moves and routes which have flow, movements which are more like a dance than an easy ladder of holds.

Why do you keep climbing?

What drives you to climb?

I find it impossible to pin it down exactly. What it is that drives me to wake up and climb from dawn to dusk.

Climbing’s all I think about—aren’t real

If it’s for fame or fortune, think again.

Take a look at other top sports and their elite. Rich beyond what they could ever need, photographed in the media and

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 16 of 24

known by all—a 5 star luxury lifestyle.

Now for contrast, look at the top climbers.

Most professional climbers have less money than a 10 year old with a paper round, and no-one outside the climbing scene would recognise them. There are a few exceptions, Leo Houlding and Chris Sharma make quite a bit of dosh doing what they love. But they are not representative of the majority.

I also believe that personal pride plays a large part in climbing. As a (younger!) child, I was never keen on or very good at ‘regular’ pastimes like football or cricket; I just had no interest in them. Climbing is different; I have the desire to do it and I want to be good. But the beauty of climbing is that it’s so personal, and there are so many ways you can be good at different aspects and at different levels. Being good to a world standard is regularly on sighting E9 or harder, clipping the chains of F9a+ and not dropping to the pad on a V15. But being good to a personal standard could be as simple as getting to the top of a route, grade not important. Just enjoying the company of friends and enjoying the day out. Everyone knows what’s hard for them, so when you succeed on something at your personal limit, feel you have had to push your limit or climbed something you never thought was possible, that’s the greatest feeling. Topping out on my first E1 probably beats anything I have ever done.

Those moments where you punch the air and shout ‘get in!’ at the top of your voice, the feeling of achievement is what makes the hard work worth it.

Now I know people reading this will have climbed that same E1 before and totally breezed it—good for them. But I had to dig a little deeper for my first E1 than I did say, for my first HVS, or even my first E2! You see, for me there have always only been 2 grades which I see as ‘benchmark’ grades, when I started out they both seemed almost mythical numbers which take a great deal extra to climb, both mentally and physically. These magic numbers being E1 and E8. Now I’m not saying that any other grade isn’t important or isn’t hard, but for NMC Quarterly Magazine

me these were the 2 main benchmarks. E1 was the biggest benchmark in my climbing, it signifies that you’re ready for the harder routes, willing to put the effort in and ready for the step up. Topping out, I felt like I had really achieved something, and that I had proved to myself I could do it. It sounds daft, but when I first set out, I would never have thought I could climb an E1, but I have now. For me, E1 is a very special number.

There will be people reading this who aren’t ready for the E1 tick yet, maybe you’ve just started climbing and yet to make your first lead outside; maybe you’re still working on getting your gear placements perfect or maybe you just don’t care about it. If that’s the case brilliant, keep it fun and keep having fun climbing what you want! But if you do want it, keep climbing and convince yourself you can do it, chances are you can. If you believe you can do it – then you will. No one else is going to stop you.

That’s my view and it’s possibly quite different to other peoples, but that’s why climbing is so good! You can have your own reasons, your own ambitions, your own goals and it’s up to you to achieve them. No one else can help you get there or stop you getting there; it’s all up to you!

Hence I don’t believe climbing should be considered as a sport. How can something so inherently personal become competitive?

But there are still people who pursue competition climbing. In the same way there are climbers who climb only trad, or only sport or just go bouldering (you know, those people who wear silly hats and mess about on rocks less than waist height), it seems to have become an aspect in its own right.

I imagine you’re wondering where this is going... or sick of reading my sometimes incoherent dribble? (let me know and I’ll discard your comments accordingly.)

Annoyingly I have no real idea why I wrote this or what point it serves, but I think that it has finally helped me define the reasons behind my climbing and how I weight up September 2007

page 17 of 24

the risks involved. I think it basically boils down to one thing; desire. The desire has to be there, on that route for you to climb it.

Without the desire to do it, you won’t, it’s as simple as that. You have to want it, really want it, more than anything else, commit yourself to it, and then you have a chance.

General and Membership secretary tasks.

Steve is continuing with his backroom role running our very professional looking website.

Club Dinner, Oct 13th 2007 Peter Bennett

But forget everything you’ve read for now, forget why, when, where and how often—because as long as you’re having fun climbing, what does it matter?

Editor’s bit Peter Flegg

Where would the club be without John Dalrymple? He always seems to provide most of the photos used in every issue of this magazine and has now stepped in to fill the void on the NMC committee created by Steve Orrell who has resigned for personal reasons.

Steve Orrell has been working particularly hard for the club over the past year running the club’s website (probably a full-time job on it’s own) and also doing the

After the hiccup with the originally scheduled June date, the club dinner finally took place on October 13th at the Borrowdale Hotel, when 27 members enjoyed a convivial evening of conspicuous consumption. The revelries continued late into the night. A hard core of some half dozen members were heard leaving the hotel and staggering off towards the hut at about 1-30am, their voices echoing into the distance along the valley. It is reported that on arrival at the hut they roused those who had retired earlier, and that the party finally concluded on top of the Bowderstone, sometime after 3am. Luckily, nobody fell off !

The weather over the weekend was generally favourable, rather damp on Saturday, but sunny, warm and dry on Sunday, when Borrowdale was in its autumnal glory.

Tim and Neil braved the rain on Saturday to climb on Shepherds.

Other less hardy souls went walking in and around the valley or shopping in Keswick.

Hangovers notwithstanding, the superb conditions on Sunday saw many of the revellers in action on a sunny Shepherds Crag.

Club dinner—or a couple of dodgy second-hand car salesmen?

NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 18 of 24

County Ethics

week and never had the time to seriously get into red pointing.

—as upheld by me for over 30 years Bob Smith

Recently an email was sent to Steve Crowe concerning events that had happened in the County some 30 years ago that related to myself and possibly those I climbed with at that time.

I am getting pissed off with wanabees, could-have-beens, might-have-beens, or any other prat that never made the grade, doubting or questioning what was or was not done or how he could have done this or that. The bottom line is that I was way better than the arses asking the questions.

So now I feel compelled to let these people know a bit more about myself and the last 35 years of top level climbing in and out of the County and across Europe.

I have heard some people claiming they ‘must have done every thing and there was only mopping up left to be done’—and that came after spending only a few weeks or months on a couple of crags? That was 25 years ago! Well isn’t that strange considering new problems are being found at a constant rate and of grades covering the whole spectrum? Come, come, they can’t all have been done 25 years ago can they?

Firstly I have never claimed to be the best climber in Britain, that fell to Ron Fawcett and a small band of great climbers; most of them taking time out of work or university. As for every one else, well I think I was in the top ten or so and for onsighting of high technical routes I was definitely at the top end. Some 30 years or so ago I was on-sighting E5/6 with technical grades well into 6c. This can be validated by other top end climbers knocking about then, such as Jerry Peel, Pete Willance, Dougie Hall, John Earl, Alec Burns and lots more. At that time my general attitude was always the same: If you think you’re that good Smith, then you will succeed, if not, well enough said.

Remember I have also taken the odd seventy foot screeeemer!

Frequently asked questions: •

As time moved on things progressed and I moved towards sports climbing where I have on-sighted several 7c+s. My ethics and attitude in the past were well known: YOU are only as good as you can on-sight; the rest is shite unless you keep it in perspective. That does not mean I never had to red point below this grade, I can assure you I did, but on a good day 7c+ was on.

Bear in mind that I also worked five days a

NMC Quarterly Magazine

On the bouldering front I have never claimed to be a great boulderer but bear in mind that I have bouldered with some of the worlds finest: Pete Kirton, Dave Cuthbertson, Dougie Hall, Jerry Moffat, Pete Wallace, Andy Brown and Andy Earl to mention a few. Believe me after a day out with this calibre of climber you know your place in the pecking order. Having said that, I never went home disappointed with my performance or with my tail between my legs. I also didn’t neglect my duty to the County by scurrying off to another part of the crag or, as I have witnessed many times, changing crags altogether in case one got one’s arse kicked.

Top roping routes?—Let me state my ethics as they have been for 30 odd years: First option—Do it on-sight, ground up whether it’s clean or dirty. If you get 20 or 30 feet up go for it, take the risk, as they say DO or DIE! Fortunately I never died but I did take some monster dumps and some ugly dismounts, too often from too great a height, 30 feet or more. Maybe that’s why I now have an artificial hip and maybe that’s why I don’t do new routes any more, well not as many.

Second option—Clean it off and try again, no practicing or top-roping.

With the same results as always you’re on top with a wry smile, or on the deck with a face like a Budgies arse.

Third option—Get someone else

September 2007

page 19 of 24

interested in the route. A bit of competition always spurred me on to do even more risky and dodgy stuff. On occasion the odd person might even find a more practical, technical or smoother way through the crux moves.

It was always a good (sneaky) idea if possible to throw this unsuspecting chap a few red herrings making it very unlikely he would steal the first ascent.

Red herrings came in many guises: ‘I haven’t had chance to clean the top off yet’, ‘the last time I tried this it was a bit loose up there’, or ‘the crux is right at the top that’s were I came a cropper last time.’

Do you get my drift laddie?

Obviously it was never all as cut and dried as that, things never are.

• What about runners, gear etc? — Gear placement on new routes was obvious: you placed it on the lead. As for whether I knew what size nuts to take, it was very obvious. Look for where it will go, clean out the slot, crack, flake or what ever it is, take your best guess and then take the sizes either side of that and thingies ya uncle. NO pre-placing of gear. County ethics remember?

• What was my ethic on loose rock?—Well in brief, I left about four really good lines in the County all of which had large flakes or blocks on them. I personally thought they could be climbed as they stood, so I left them alone. I left them for some new younger gun to do. Subsequently they were done by others at a later date.

Truth is I probably never had the balls to do them. Who’s kidding who here Bob? • Bouldering?—How many boulder problems have I done? Hundreds and thousands is the answer. Well obviously the thousands include fun and game variations which are fine with your close friends and mates but in my opinion don’t deserve guide book space, but that’s only my opinion!

As for the hundreds, well yes I have NMC Quarterly Magazine

•

•

•

•

done hundreds of independent problems.

Why not give them names or report them?—I do report them and give some of them names but only the independent lines. I have no time for in-betweeneys, filler inners, or eliminates but I do like and enjoy these problems. But for me, as I said they are not guide book material. Unfortunately due to the shortage of rock, what was done years ago and not reported has now become prime rock which I quite understand. Let the lads enjoy themselves; it’s not for me to press home my ethics on anyone. Things have changed and are still changing, some good some not so good. What the hell as long as the rock isn’t damaged who gives a Frig?

What about me always saying, ‘Well that was done years ago’?—The truth is it probably was!

Only kidding, what’s the matter with you people, no room for a joke or two hee hee? The true fact of the matter is I and the people I have bouldered with for years climbed at a high standard, around 6c, and in some cases moving into the 7a area. People like Pete Kirton, Dave (Cubby) Cuthbertson, John Earl, Tommy (the arse burner) Smith, Alec Burns, Paul Stewart, Steve Blake and many others. Hard things were done, but not every thing. As for myself, if I have any doubt or reason to think some one may have done a problem before me I just let it go and dwell on it no more. This has happened in the past, so what? It will happen again in the future, so what?

How many new routes have I done?—By this I mean first ascents which I led, well the number is over 300, and still counting.

Have I ever top roped any?—YES, but only a few. ‘Barbarian’ at Bowden Doors was my first. But take into account that it was cleaned and had been tried before I did it. This is what happened: As the story goes, a bunch

September 2007

page 20 of 24

of us and a few Scots were climbing and generally mucking about on Bowden Doors. As we worked our way along the crag doing this and some of that, we arrived at what was to become the ‘Barbarian’. We noticed the line had been very neatly cleaned and as we knew the lads from the Lakes had been working something on the Doors, we assumed this was it. So I or someone else said ‘Lets drop a rope down it and see if it will go’ so I top-roped it first and then soloed it. I still regret it, but that’s life and that’s that. Have I done any more? Yes, come on Bob lets spit it all out! Well I also top roped ‘Death or Glory’ at Berryhill but again there is a story. I think most climbers in the county who could, did top-rope it and that’s the way it stood for donkey’s years. The reason it stood so long was the fact it was generally deemed to be too loose to warrant a lead or solo. One day I plucked up the balls and did it, and as they, say that’s that. Any more?

Well yes. ‘On the Rocks’ at Back Bowden. The story or excuse behind this one goes as follows. You have to remember ethics were on the change, and to compete with the new and changing times and tactics I joined in as you must! The tale goes like this: The line had been worked, cleaned and top roped by some one from outside the County and the rumour was he was coming back to lead it in a day or two.

Well, what’s a man to do? As one of the Keepers of the County I did what was necessary. I used their tactics and beat them at their own game.

• Have I top-roped other peoples routes?—the fact of the matter is once again, yes, a few. One such story goes a bit like this. Myself and a couple of very good mates had heard a whisper about the big slab at Back of Bowden being climbed by a Peaky in the new and frontier busting climbing shoes, Slippers! One of the lads had got his hand on a pair of the new fangled cheating boots, so we thought a good place to give them a whirl was Back of NMC Quarterly Magazine

Bowden and what better test piece could there be but ‘Peak tech reeks’. A top rope was set up and off I went. The slippers worked a treat. After doing the route, once again I wasn’t happy about what I had just done, so as a kind of punishment I never put up a route on the slab. Or was I so scared that I never went near it again? Whatever the case may be, I went out and bought some Slippers and wore Slips for the next fifteen years. You are a cheating sod Smith!

• Have I top-roped things I had already done?—Yes, on one occasion I was top-roping some of my routes at the Back of Bowden, showing my brother where the routes went and at the same time seeking out new possibilities, (but NOT top-roping them), when some skulking Sméagol type thing came out of the shadows and cast it’s dry envious eye over me. At the time I took no heed as it quickly scurried back into the undergrowth from whence it came from.

As the years have passed, so my ethics have remained as pure as I could keep them in a constantly changing climbing world.

What I have stated above are the basics of ‘County Ethics’, if you want to discuss any of the issues raised you are welcome to contact me on: 0191 284 4282 bobsmith@wildlifefromwood.com

Membership renewal reminder Your membership expires on 28 Feb 2008, to continue getting the benefits of NMC membership you will need to renew before then.

Renew by sending a cheque to Carolyn Horrocks at 24 Tenth Ave, Heaton, Newcastle NE6 5XU

September 2007

page 21 of 24

Original Mountain Marathon 40th Anniversary The Original Mountain Marathon (OMM2 ) has laid claim in 2007 to its 40th anniversary with an excellent event held over the Lowther Hills in Southern Scotland. Once again, and for the 8th time, the ill matched duo of Colin Matheson and Charlie Fisher headed off for yet another adventure.

line just in time. Despite the early morning mist we could see the hills were steep— very steep in fact. Charlie and I prefer to compete in the Medium Score event, and every year I shorten the piece of string which we use to outline our preferred route choice. High value controls are a long way away, so finding the right balance of distance vs. time (six hours) is crucial. At about the two hour point we set off on a long track run for only 15 points, but had concerns about bagging another 15 points over the nearby hill.

In 2006, following my achilles tendon rupture, running for a bus would have been impossible so completing the OMM again seemed a pretty distant possibility.

Excellent physiotherapy at the Wansbeck General, and possibly a stubborn will to succeed, saw me progress from virtually zero mobility to completing over 100 rock climbs this year! Now it was time for the true test that around 2500 competitors sign up for every year.

Despite mist and some rain the weather was better than on many other occasions, but at about the four hour point I started to suffer and was constantly dropping behind a super fit Charlie. He even grabbed my rucksack and carried it up one hill (despite my minimal protests) but two controls further on we realised we were going to have to make the long descent to the campsite to avoid picking up time penalties.

Colin Matheson

Charlie, my long suffering mountain marathon and climbing partner, was meanwhile training hard, deep in the Black Forest, utilising baby Rosa on his training runs to simulate the weight of a fully packed rucksack.

My training suffered a severe setback with the onset of flu three weeks before the event, and combined with an exhausting few weeks starting a new job I was anything but ready for 11 hours of running and 19 hours in a small wet tent.

The Lowther Hills seemed within reach with an early drive from Newcastle, so alarms were set for 4.30am for an 8.30am start. Despite fog in Longtown, coffee on the M74 and a 1km round trip to Register (SportIdent) we were on the start 2

Formerly known as the KIMM.

NMC Quarterly Magazine

From this point on, first the wind and then the rain started in earnest, and the usual campsite socialising and banter soon came to a halt. This year I carried an extra 150g of gas so over the next 10 hours we worked through tea, soup, couscous, noodles, coffee, custard and drinking chocolate. This sequence meant that eating out of a single mug without washing out wasn’t too gross.

September 2007

page 22 of 24

was no let up on the jogging. We (or rather I) staggered into the finish with two minutes to spare. It turned out the 5km was actually more than 7km so that was a big effort carrying a rucksack coming after the previous 17km and 800m climb.

I stumbled into the download and refreshment tent in a bit of a daze, but finally recovered enough to head across to the results screen. We were 44th out of 264! Charlie couldn’t believe it but somehow I knew we would be up there.

The final results confirmed that Gold Standard was 459+ points—and our total was 460!!

Colin at a control point

The weather was sounding quite wild outside and a further three hours later (3am) there seemed to be a lot of activity. As my elbow emerged from the sleeping bag and touched the ground I realised it was sopping wet. Examination by head-torch confirmed our worst fears—we were afloat.

Fortunately the tent was well pegged down so the river was actually flowing through the tent. Charlie’s Thermarest was floating but unfortunately my Karrimat (and sleeping bag) had become fully submerged.

Oh well—only another six hours till we had to pack up!

Bowderstone hut The NMC has its own hut at the Bowderstone in the Lake District.

Members pay just £4 per night to stay, nonmembers pay £6 per night.

Hut bookings

Miraculously the sun started to shine, but worryingly we could see a trail of runners climbing straight up the 1000 foot hill above the campsite. On Day 1 we had covered 25 km and climbed 1200m (achieving 76th place), and usually on Day 2 I seem to go a bit better. Charlie reckoned that though we still had a big climb there were rewards to be had well to the east of our current position, somewhere beyond a large radar dome. The first three hours were relatively pleasant (not sure that’s quite the right word) but then fatigue really set in, with a long rough descent through tussock grass, a turned ankle and a 700 foot climb back up another hill. I knew that once we had descended to the road there was a relatively straight track route home.

With one hour to go a quick glance at the map told me we had only 5km left to cover. Charlie seemed keen for us to cover this at a bit of a blistering pace, and there NMC Quarterly Magazine

You can make bookings to stay at the hut with the hut booking secretary: Derek Cutts on 0191 268 8625 Use the club website (www.thenmc.org.uk) to check whether the hut is available on the day(s) you want to visit.

Hut key If you are visiting the hut make sure that at least one member of your party has a copy of the hut key. Derek Cutts (see above) will provide a copy of the hut key to any member on payment of a £10 deposit.

Directions to the hut Again, use the club website to find out how to get to the hut and for an explanation of parking arrangements.

Signing in Don’t forget every body must Sign in the guest book on arrival. This is a safety requirement—in the event of an emergency the fire brigade, could determine whether all guests are safe and sound.

September 2007

page 23 of 24

Indoor climbing: •

Sunderland wall offers a £1 discount to NMC members off the standard entry price.

NMC Website The NMC has a very informative website www.thenmc.org.uk The website includes various discussion forums, a photoarchive for members climbing photos, online guides for most Northumberland crags and you can also buy from a large range of climbing books available.

NMC Guidebooks

while stocks Last!!!

NMC members pay a discounted price for any guidebook published by the NMC.

Contact Martin Cooper on 0191 252 5707

Currently available are the following guides: • Northumberland Climbing Guide Definitive Guide to climbing in Northumberland. £12.50 to members (RRP £18.95) • Northumberland Bouldering Guide £8.00 to members (RRP £11.95) For the above 2 guides add £1.50 P&P if required.

Contact John Earl on 0191 236 5922

• Climbing In North East England A guide to the best climbing in South Tyneside, County Durham, East Pennines and North York Moors £17.95 (incl. P&P) Contact Steve Crowe on 0191 584 3361

T-shirts and Fleeces Various styles of T-shirt with printed NMC designs and fleece tops with embroidered logo are available.

Order direct on the website (www.thenmc.org.uk) or contact Steve Orrell on 07792 518 934.

• No Nobler County A history of the NMC and climbing in Northumberland.

Now ONLY £2.00 Hurry

Have you got a good climbing/mountain-scenery photo to use in this space in future issues? Please send any submissions to me at magazine@thenmc.org.uk

Bryn Roberts on Mulhacen, 3479m in the Sierra Nevada, Spain’s highest point NMC Quarterly Magazine

September 2007

page 24 of 24