Participants: Ian (Mad Axeman) Mason (leader), Dave
(Shooting Stick) Leishman, Unity (Polly) Stack, George (Munro) and Val Wallace,
Steve (Ballcrusher) and Pauline Ward, Eric and Liz Hamilton.
The meet was based at the Fountain Hotel, Hawes.
Weather
brilliant throughout, unlike some of the previous meets that have taken place
in Yorkshire.
Attendance
not brilliant with many of the stalwarts unable to make it for various reasons,
some more plausible than others. Ian
invited his friends and neighbours the Hamiltons to pad the numbers out. Liz
has a long standing connection with METHS in that she typed up the newsletter
for Ian, when he was secretary from the inception for the first ten years
before METHS went modern, with websites, e-mails & so forth, and needs
three people to produce the same result.
Age is
creeping up on us all, and not just creeping in some cases. It was decided to
revisit the famous Yorkshire Three Peaks but not all in one day, but each one
on a separate day. Each walk was a circular of about 6 miles.
Thursday it was Ingleborough 2373’ from Hill Inn. Ian pointed people in
the right direction to ascend Simon Fell:
‘follow that wall to the skyline then traverse the amphitheatre to
Swires Tail then up the Borough.’
His right
ankle is so bad with arthritis that he had to content himself going right on
the three peaks standard track to the base of the steep bit at 1750’.
Friday it
was Whernside, the highest of the three 2418’and now the highest point in
Yorkshire. Once it was Mickle Fell 2573’ but Lancashire always had the last
laugh with Coniston Old Man 2633’. Now one has gone to Durham and the latter to
Cumbria. After four miles the previous day Ian contented himself with escorting
the party to the start of the old previous, very steep ascent of Whernside from
the south east near Winterscales. This is still allowed as a footpath with
stiles in place but is not routed as a way up. Now the three Peaks walk goes
via Blea Moor and this adds an extra 2 miles to the round trip. Ian and the
Wards contented themselves with some train spotting at Blea Moor signal box.
Saturday
was Pen-y-Ghent 2273’. Ian had hoped to
climb this but the previous day had not rested his ankle sufficiently. So he
showed them the start of the ascent over fields from Bracken Bottom and then
sloped off to spend the day with his daughter Kathy, her husband and the
grandchildren at a picnic on the banks of the Wharfe at Deepdale with a gentle
riverside walk.
All in all
it was a great reunion. Those that did the Peaks really enjoyed them, and in
the evenings there was good food and good fellowship in the various pubs that
Hawes has to offer.