11 members attended this meet over Easter at the comfortable Muir of Inverie Hut near Braemar which we shared with a party from the Glasgow section of the Red Rope-a convivial bunch.Initial concerns about inadequate numbers of beds were solved by making use of the 2 beds in the “members only” room.Fortunately no members of the owning Cairngorm club attended.
Some members arrived early enough on Friday to do some initial exploration-Steve W & Chris K ascending Morrone ,Braemar’s local peak.Mike D & Hugh D doing a walk from Mar Lodge over to Glen Quoich & back.
Saturday was an excellent day with sunshine ( mostly),snow showers and some wind-but not the forecasted gales.The group split into various parties .Steve W & 4 others did a 16.5 mile round over Lochnagar starting from the Balmoral estate.Sean J and others travelled towards Ballater to ascend the isolated Corbett Morven.The Smiths climbed Morrone while Geoff made it a full mountain day by cycling to Altamour Lodge for an ascent of Beinn Lutharn Mhor and many others !
Back in the hut the group enjoyed a group vegge chile washed down with a plentiful supply of alcohol.
Sunday was less sunny with a mixture of rain & snow showers,but no wind.The group again divided into different parties-many again returning to the Lochnagar area to tackle various Corbets & tops.The Smiths were surprised to find the main summit area had a fair covering of fesh snow which had fallen overnight.
Geoff set off by bike again to tackle Bein Chaorainn & Bein Bhreac.
Mike & Hugh abandoned an attempt on the Stuic ( grade 1 scramble) in quite steady rain and opted instead for the less taxing Carn na Drochaide and Carn na Criche near the Linn of Quoich with a descent of the “Fairy Glen” and a very long return via Glen Slugain .
Another convivial night at the hut followed,which was now less busy after the departure of the majority of the Red Rope party.
On Monday Steve,Mike & Hugh departed for home,but the others stayed on independently for various extra days they had booked independently.
A great meet in an area with so much to offer.
Mike D

Photos by Dave Crowther

From top of Morven, looking NE

Top of Morven (Sean & Jo)

Glen Quoich

East end of Laraig Ghru from Sgor Mor

Photos by Mike Doyle

Chris Kell on Cac Carn Mor

Summit party Meall Choire na Saobhaidhe

The sunny weather made Stanage a joy to be climbing on. We set up base camp near Christmas crack/Garden wall area. Over the day, over 25 people attended, and lots of routes ascended from Diff to HVS. Good to welcome some new faces including one ex member , Chaz, who is planning to re join. New members from the last couple of years have shown excellent improvement in their leading, especially Ben, Gemma, and Julian. Thank you all for a really good day.
Ps We did get up Queersville at the end. I had forgotten just how reachy it is! See you all soon. Linda and David.

11 us set off from Grindleford Station Café. We were very pleased to welcome Paul, joining us for his first Thursday walk and his seven year old Great Grand Daughter. Our ascent of Padley Gorge included an Easter Egg hunt where sufficient were discovered to
supply all. Deemed a great success especially for our young party member. Perhaps this could be a regular feature for future Easter walks?! Coffee break was taken just below Hathersage Moor Fort with a further mini egg hunt. We then climbed up to Higgar Tor before descending to Hathersage church for lunch via Toothill farm.
Our loo stop was courtesy of Outsides facilities, due to the public loos being closed. One of our number felt guilty enough to purchase some cake others expressing the view that previous purchases were more than sufficient to allow loo usage.
Our journey then took us along the river Derwent before crossing the railway line and back to the café where teas and “stickys” were devoured by some. A distance of 7.7 miles covered in fair weather and virtually no mud!
Thanks to all for your company and hope to see Paul again in the not too distant future.
Pete Hammond

What wonderful weather we’ve brought back from Spain! 13 club members enjoyed the climbing at Lawrencefield. After doing sunny routes by the pond, gingerbread slab featured, a few went over to red wall and the roadside quarry area. Paul and Vanda​ got badly snarled up in marathon traffic, so were still climbing when most of us were leaving. Good to see Mary back on rock. Gave Julian his castle t shirt, who proudly wore it all day.!
Reminder, Yarncliffe on Tuesday Evening​, not Wednesday as I was telling people!!!
Linda

In the absence of Geoff, who injured his calf muscle on Saturday,2 of us drove out to the Woodhead reservoir despite the poor forecast.
It was full waterproofs from the outset with gusting wind and rain.Reaching the start of the Clough we followed the stream to the entry pitch which was undercut with a raging waterfall pouring down it-not inviting!Deciding to avoid this ,we flogged up the steep hillside missing “the faint path” leading past the waterfall to the continuation of the scramble.Once above the steep side we reached level ground where we were greeted by strong wind and driving rain.At this point,having largely decided not to tackle the exit pitch and waterfall ( given the conditions and the warnings in the guide book /and by Geoff yesterday) we elected not to find the way back into the Clough only to exit again further up.
Rather than continue over to Bleaklow Head into the wind and driving rain we decided to follow the edge of the escarpment north eastwards with the wind behind us and descend a steady ridge we could see in the distance down to the eastern end of the Woodhead reservoir and return along the Longendale Trail.
In the event we found a land rover track unmarked on the map too convenient to ignore which provided a quick and easy descent back to the cars past “The Lodge” and its barking dogs.
Not the best of days on which to tackle this exciting Clough,but we resolved to return on a better day.
Mike

CLIMBING COMPETITION REPORT: despite a moderate turnout, great fun was had in the 50th anniversary climbing competition. The comp was split into several routes, including traverses/jamming cracks, chimneys, aretes and buttresses. Speed climbing also played a part. Liquid prizes were awarded as follows:
RESULTS:
Traverse: only Mr Doyle completed the whole circuit, so won easily.
Jamming crack: Dr Boyd was the only one to reach the target hold, [without handjamming once!!]
Speed climb up the buttress: unbelieveably, the event organiser in a time of 2mins,04 seconds!!
Prizes also awarded to top judge, Mary & most enthusiastic spectator Charles.
The CD entitled ”Got to keep on walking” was awarded to one who shall be nameless, who hadn’t climbed for quite a while!!
Thanks to all participants and spectators.
Paul Gibson

Five of us were about to set off from Birchin Clough car park when a familiar vehicle roared in… delayed by the Guardian crossword, apparently. So 7 set off down by the stream below the A57, up to the Snake Inn and then down into the woods again. Here the meet leader ascertained that one black peaty mess was indeed a boot and 2/3rds of a gaiter deep, the rest of the party choosing a more sensible route.
By the time we got to Fairbrook clough we needed to remove jackets in the heat, and the lower reaches of Fairbrook were as pretty as ever in the sunlight. At the base of the steeper upper section most of the party elected to scramble the gully, the verdant green coating meaning that caving rules applied (use of any part of the body permissible in order to gain upward movement).
A cool breeze awaited us at the top, though a coffee stop was welcome. The path to the Naze was good, but along the Edge several members had intimate encounters with the black stuff, which was deep in places. Lunch was taken in the last of the sun at a prominent outcrop with stunning views, then a short walk brought us to the steps of the Pennine Way down to the Snake Path. The latter is paved at the start, but soon reverts to original character so again slipsliding and boghopping skills were required. A brief light shower provided all the precipitation for the day, and had gone in time for the walk back beside the stream to the cars.
Just under 9 miles, probably, a nice mixed walk of 5 and a half hours.
Dave

A party of 7 gathered at Crowden car park and under threatening clouds unanimously decided it was waterproofs on from the outset. We followed the Pennine Way through the lower reaches of Crowden Great Brook before leaving the valley to climb steeply towards Laddow Rocks. The streams were swollen after much recent rain, but this did not deter one member from indulging in a spell of wild water swimming. He quickly regained drier ground.
Once on the edge path we were greeted by a fresh wind and sleet, but the visibility was good and afforded views of the valley ahead and Black Hill under low cloud. We found shelter for a brief refreshment stop and before long we joined the paved path which led us easily to the summit of Black Hill (582m).
We paused briefly for a summit photograph then headed south over Tooleyshaw Moss following the indistinct path, as the snow began to fall heavily. As we emerged from the gloom, we glimpsed Torside Reservoir in the distance, and we continued our descent to join the path down Crowden Little Brook which brought us to our starting point.
A good walk of just over 9 miles, with plenty of fresh air, and a reminder that winter is still with us.
Thanks for your company,
Sean.

Black Hill, 5 March 2017