Participants: Ian (Mad Axeman) Mason (leader), Dave
(Shooting Stick) Leishman, Unity (Polly) Stack, Brian (Air Malawi's Last Hope)
and Jane Sayers, David (Harriruo) and Judy Harrison. Only 7 people in all.
The meet was based at the Fountain Hotel, Hawes.
Wednesday,
Thursday and most of Friday were fine, if somewhat chilly.
Ian is not
able to walk too far these days but on the Thursday was able to start
the party off on the 10-mile ridge walk taking in Gregareth, Great Coum and
Crag Hill. In the event the party was
only able to do Gregareth, 7 miles – tempus fugit – but what they did they
enjoyed and the views were impressive.
On Friday
we were in Wharfedale for the Three Pubs Walk:
White Lion, Cray; George,
Hubberholme, where lunch was partaken;
and the Buck at Buckden. Good timing
saw us into the Buck just as rain started.
How it poured, sleet on Fleet Moss driving back and snow on the tops
over 2250 ft next morning!
Only Polly
and Shooting-Stick remained on the Saturday to brave the wind and rain,
continuous through the morning in an annoying rather than bloody-dreadful way,
and, with the cloud down over the tops, took a dale-bottom route from Hawes
down Wensleydale on the north side of the Ure River via minor road and disused
railway to Yorebridge, the river thundering round the piers, just north of
Bainbridge, and thence to Askrigg for a pub lunch at ye olde King's Arms – 'ye
olde' in the right sense as well:
nothing fake there! As the rain
eased off to glimpses of sun they returned to Hawes on the south side via the
Roman road half-way up onto the fells to the turn-off to Buttersett and thence
through fields to Gayle, by which time Polly had a gammy ankle but made light
of it. A round walk of some 10 miles,
with sightings of curlew, lapwing, oyster-catcher, possibly ring ouzel, pipits
and other LBJs. A grand day out in a
landscape from which rain cannot detract.
The evenings were convivial and spent in
different pubs and eateries. To sum it
up, although the party was small, all participants enjoyed meeting up again and
the activities both outdoors and indoors.
The poor
attendance at the Hawes meet does ask one if the Yorkshire meet should be
continued in future years, and to an extent strikes at the foundation of METHS
itself, its future and its very existance.
From the
meet leader's point of view Hawes is an excellent venue both for it having a
large number of amenities all in one spot and for it being central for
exploring the hills making up the Mid-Pennines.
As for the
Fountain Hotel, the meet leader considers it very good value from a bed &
breakfast standpoint. METHS has enjoyed
preferential rates and treatment from the hotel, but can hardly expect to do so
if only small numbers stay at the hotel.
No booking has at this point been made for next year. A decision will be taken on hearing from
members and being able to gauge the consensus of opinion.