A wet, windy wander

My friend Chris suggests a couple of night's backpacking, away from our home in the Peak District and leaves it me to choose. After some thought I suggest a couple of nights in far eastern Cumbria, setting out from the little town of Sedbergh.

It's late November and a couple of hours up the motorway sees us early-lunching in a Sedbergh cafe. Fortified, we set off uphill, Baugh Fell in our sights. 

We're lucky...it's a dry day and we're soon plodding up the open moor towards the steep incline to Garsdale Pike. We stop for a break and Chris makes a brew.

It's almost four by the time we arrive on the plateau near Tarn Hill Rigg. There are many tarns up here but it's a wild, desolate place.  

               

                 

We've been following a track so far, but here we turn off piste to find a camp. By the time we've settled on a spot we need headtorches to pitch. The ground is very wet and it's tricky to get to a nearby tarn for water. Luckily, our MSR Guardian purifier only needs a shallow supply to function.

What with one thing and another, it's only the second time I've used our Hilleberg Nallo 2, but it's straightforward to erect, being a classic tunnel design. With water filtered I'm settled, in dry clothes, preparing food and drink

It's a night noisy with wind. I'm estimating around 30s with gusts of 40mph.

I have a settled night though, relishing the fact it's been a while since I've been in a tent. This has been a busy year, for all sorts of reasons.

We've around seven miles to cover the next day, so agree on a lazy departure at 10am. Having reached the edge of the plateau of Baugh Fell we set out across pathless moor down a broad spur to Rawthey Gill Foot. 

We've had only the vaguest of phone signals, but Chrissie manages to send me a screenshot of the Met Office weather forecast for Wild Boar Fell, our final destination for the day. It shows constant heavy rain for the whole day and windspeeds in the 40s with gusts as high as 62mph later that day. But, at the moment, it's dry and not especially windy. So, disregarding a safe exit along Wainwright's Pennine Journey route in the valley, we agree to continue and climb the easy slopes up to Holmes Moss Hill, where we break for lunch.

Chris likes brewing coffee for lunch. I'm far too lazy and since I'm slower than him, I leave him to it and begin the steady slog up to Swarth Fell. I find it bloody hard. Takes me almost 45 minutes until we meet up again to rest in the shelter of a wall on the summit. It's getting a little windier now, but it's on our backs as we walk.

 

It's only a couple of miles now, to the summit of Wild Boar Fell. We eventually find the summit shelter and, with the briefest of pauses, Chris spots a worn trod heading vaguely in the direction of Sand Tarn, our planned camp spot. The wind still doesn't feel so bad. At the edge of the plateau we catch sight of Sand Tarn and find we can easily pick our way down the slope towards it.

Having got down there, we set about finding the best place to pitch. Only now do I begin to think it feels quite windy. I find a place, away from the worst exposure beside the tarn. I filter water first then begin to erect the tent. Positioning the tail into the wind I fix the two rear pegging points, using the MSR groundhogs we've used with all our tents for many years now. Setting the two poles, I'm just about to insert the first into the sleeve when the tent rears up into the wind. One of the two pegging points has come loose. I can't see the peg so quickly re-fix it with another. The rest of the erection is straightforward but I can't see the missing peg anywhere. Not sure if it flew out of the ground or the metal ring on the tent just came off it, not being under any tension, leaving it in the ground.

I settle into the routine of organising my kit inside the tent. Once sorted, I make a brew and devour two Eccles cakes. It's now around 4:30 and darkness has fallen. Not until I've eaten an excellent Adventure Foods goulash, followed by semolina and jam, do I begin to notice that the wind seems to be steadily increasing, so before settling down properly for the evening I go out and re-tension all the guy lines. It's only now starting to rain, despite this morning's forecast.

As I watch a Louis Theroux documentary (with Bear Grylls) I realise I can't hear it, with the volume on maximum. So I dig out my earphones. I enjoy the video and only after it's finished do I really begin to focus on how loud the noise in the tent is, and just how much it's buffeting in the wind.

As the evening progresses the wind continues to increase. By 9pm the noise and movement of the tent has become quite alarming. With a good phone signal, I check the latest forecast, to find there are gusts of up to 70mph forecast on Wild Boar Fell, just 50m above us, by 10pm, with steady speeds around 47-48mph. Slightly worrying. Lying on my back, watching the fabric of the inner tent billow wildly is quite unsettling, and I begin to ponder what the outcome of this onslaught might be. I try to sleep but the noise is ridiculous. Earplugs make little difference.

So, the relentless saga of sitting out a serious wind in a tiny tent continues. I start to wonder if I have any options. Without my wind meter I can only make a sensible estimate of the actual windspeed. I think it's at least 50mph and I have enough experience over many years in mountain rescue to know that walking is difficult, if not impossible, in such winds, especially with a backpacking load. So, I reckon packing up and moving to lower ground is not really an option. I have to trust in the tent, which is one of the best lightweight ones available. But I am worried. As a compromise I decide to pack as much of my kit as possible into my rucsac, so, if the worst happens, at least I won't lose lots of kit to the wind. I contemplate fixing a broken pole. I've done this before, but not in these conditions. and wonder if it would be possible. 

The noise makes sleep impossible. I see 11pm and get the latest forecast. The wind is due to ease by about 3am. I begin to think that the tent has withstood these conditions now for at least four hours and hope it can continue to hold for four more. At some point I realise the zip on the inner door is not fully closed. For some reason, I peer through it to see the front door on the fly fully open. There's no damage and I zip it closed, this time remembering there is a small toggle at the base of the zip to lock it closed.

The next thing I remember is waking at 2:45. The wind has eased. The danger has passed. I drift back to sleep to be awoken by my alarm at 6:30.

I enjoy a relaxed breakfast and check Chris is ok. I find that one of the two front guys has come loose, the peg lying on the ground nearby. Otherwise the tent is fine. Despite searching, I never find the peg lost last night.

Our walk back to Sedbergh, mostly along the valley, is uneventful, save for a couple of amusing fords...

...but I'm seriously tired by the time we reach Chris's car. We enjoy a late lunch in the cafe again and drive back home to Derbyshire.

Chrissie and I once spent a night in a Terra Nova Voyager at 12000ft, below the summit of Mt Whitney in the Sierra Nevada, California. We sat through a terrific lightning storm, striking the jagged peaks all around. I've always considered that to be the worst night I've ever spent in a tent. But now, I think it was this night at Sand Tarn.

Could we have done anything different? Yes. I think we could and should have gone down to lower more sheltered ground to pitch. Maybe we'd have been better escaping down the Pennine Journey route at lunchtime, given the forecast.

In any event I've no wish to repeat such an experience. I reckon, henceforth, I won't choose to camp with a forecast of more than 30mph, gusting maybe in the 40s.

Of course, this is easy to say and not quite so easy to do on a long journey. We had one very windy night on our Kungsleden trek in 2019, when we double pegged the rear of our Terra Nova Polarite 3 tunnel tent.

We learn though by experience and I now have a better knowledge of the strength of our Hilleberg Nallo.

Smile, and have fun!

How many dogs do I really need?

Chrissie and I have two beautiful dogs; a red boxer and a chocolate labrador retriever. I also have another dog, who mostly lurks in the dark recesses of my  consciousness. This one's most definitely Black (with a capital B). Most of the time he remains hidden but, over the past few weeks he's been creeping out of his hiding place, nudging me. I'm known as a dog lover, but I can't say I love this one.

Four years ago I wrote this. It's perhaps best to give it a quick read to understand where I'm coming from here. I've had a long battle with depression and, in recent years, I've mostly won. But right now I feel I'm on the losing side. 

For some time now I've begun to notice unhappiness as my default mode. On the face of it I've nowt to be unhappy about. I have a loving wife, two gorgeous soppy dogs, a wonderful daughter and son-in-law and two beautiful grandchildren. But, that's not how depression works. It defies logic. It ignores all the positives in your life and builds any negatives into great, big, hulking monoliths which overshadow everything good. I wake in the morning feeling there's no reason to get up. I list problems in my head. I don't look forward to doing the things I should enjoy. I just can't be bothered, with anything. Life has become a chore. 

I feel low. I want to cry.

Having been here before, I recognise the problem. I know the signs. So, after much thought, I phoned my GP a couple of days ago. And after the briefest of telephone consultations I'm now on anti depressants again, for the first time in around seven years. I have every expectation that this will help realign the stuff that's going wrong in my brain. I can't pretend I really understand how it works but, in the past, it always has. The drug takes a couple of weeks to show its effect though.

It's not just me suffering either. Chrissie has to handle the effect of living with someone who's low and miserable all the time. She knows me so well but it's not easy for her.

Right now, I'm trying hard to fill my time. I have absolutely no doubt that the pandemic has a part to play in how I feel and I'm pleased to say that I'll be going over to see my Dad in Wetherby on Monday, and, since this coincides with the re-opening of restaurants, I have a booking for lunch in one of his favourite eateries. I've not seen him for months. Next Saturday, Abi, Dave and the children are coming for dinner, INSIDE! Again, the first time in months. It will be so lovely to have them all here.

As before, I write this in an effort to break the stigma of the concept of depression and anxiety. They are valid illnesses and can be as disabling as a broken leg, maybe even more so, being so difficult to understand. 

Ironically, its the end of mental health awareness week right now. So, if you too meet with the Black Dog, I wish you the strength to better understand what's happening to you. Go easy on yourself and talk about it to someone. Similarly, if you know anyone who suffers, treat them with kindness and compassion and do your best to understand.

I've added pics of the things in my life that still can make me smile.

Love and peace to you all.

Wild camping in High Peak

I don't bother much with blogging these days but, with recent developments, I felt compelled to take to the keyboard. We're just back from a motorhome trip up north and, whilst we were away, some new legislation came to light, via Twitter.

Before I go further, if you're in any way interested in wild camping, it's perhaps best that you read this. Having read the page, which is short, click on the link to "Wildfires PSPO" and read that carefully. Again, it's only short.

You'll se that this order is primarily written in response to recent wildfires on the moors up here in the north of England. There was one on Kinder just last week. In an effort to avoid this happening again High peak Borough Council have put this order in place, referring in particular to the misuse of barbecues, fireworks and Chinese lanterns. Most of us would agree that this is laudable. There's no need to use such things out in the countryside, and, during the pandemic, there have been lots of instances of their inappropriate use, leading to some appalling fires. However, whoever drafted this law has taken it further and included in the prohibition, "Using any article or object which causes a naked flame and thereby poses a risk of fire without the prior written consent of the Borough Council." This description clearly covers the use of ANY kind of camping stove and even a match or lighter. This, in turn, effectively makes it illegal to cook using a stove whilst wild camping.

Remember, wild camping in the Peak District is not actually illegal. Rather it is a matter of civil trespass between the individual camper and the landowner. It is not an offence in itself. I shouldn't need to remind regular wild campers that, if one is asked to move on by an agent of the landowner, one should do so.

So, in short, for the three years commencing the 16th April 2021, it would certainly appear that using a stove in the hills of the High Peak area, has become illegal.

In light of the above I'd like to make a number of comments.

1. The area defined is, basically, open areas within the boundary of High Peak Borough Council (HPBC), NOT the whole of the Peak District National Park. For your information, here is a map showing the boundary of HPBC. I apologise for the quality of this image, it was the best I could find. But you may notice that the northern and north eastern edges mirror the boundary of Derbyshire. where it adjoins West and South Yorkshire respectively. So, at the moment, there are areas of the Peak District Park which aren't affected. Unfortunately, or fortunately (depending on your standpoint) Chrissie and I live in HPBC!

2. It is an offence, in the area covered, to be in possession of a barbecue, fireworks or a lantern using a naked flame, but, importantly NOT a stove. So, there'd be no problem passing through this area with your normal backpacking kit. It is an offence to use the stove though.

3. In my opinion, wild campers are not the intended target of this legislation, but we are hit by, if you will, the collateral damage. There have been instances reported recently of landowners' agents, seeking out wild campers and asking them to move. To my knowledge this has happened on Bamford Edge and, I believe, Stanage Edge. I believe Bamford Edge to be privately owned (I may be wrong) rather than National Trust. These areas are very close to roads, which makes them very easy targets for both campers and landowners' agents. In contrast, folk who are well out of the way, are unlikely to be bothered by anyone. It may well be that, once the foolish people using barbecues, fireworks etc have got the message, then life will calm down again. I'm not actually aware of any instance of a true wild camper starting a fire and I don't believe any agency has the resources to completely police and eradicate wild camping. However, there have been reports of people accessing moors via popular roadheads (eg by the reservoir gates from Hayfield) carrying backpacking kit being challenged by rangers, reminding them that wild camping is "not allowed". 

Finally, some general thoughts.

Given the spirit of this legislation, it's entirely possible it may also be applied by other council areas. Indeed, it wouldn't surprise me.

As regular wild campers, we have all played a part, perhaps, in influencing others to try the activity. There are huge numbers nowadays, whose main focus is to go out, purely for the sake of camping for the night, rather than as part of a linear or circular, multi-day journey, which was, arguably, the original purpose of wild camping. Many seek to find places as close as possible to a roadhead, bringing its own problems, as referred to in point 3 above and, often, leading to the overuse of some locations.

Chrissie and I have a real passion for longer backpacking adventures, but we do keep our camping skills honed by short, one or two night trips on our local patch.

Over the years we have found ourselves sharing camp spots, previously known only to us and it's startling how quickly this information spreads. I can think of one place, which I found in my local wandering a few years ago, where a recent visit revealed the remains of fire ring. When I first went there, I saw no evidence at all of it ever being used before. As a result of all the above, we've now decided to stop sharing information about camp spots, preferring instead to encourage others to find their own. Find places less frequented and you'll probably be unaffected by any of the above.

So far, I've avoided commenting on the legislation on social media. We already tread a precarious path as wild campers in the Peak District, so have no real weight to argue against this order. I did consider carefully before writing this, but I don't really think it will make our status as wild campers any worse. I still believe there aren't the resources to stop it completely. Folk reading this in Scotland, the Lake District and Dartmoor should remind them selves how lucky they are. Note that this order stays in place for three years but the legislation allows for it to be extended indefinitely. I'd long hoped I might live to see Scottish-type access here in England but, right now, I feel doubtful.

In conclusion, I'm publishing this because I don't think enough people are currently aware of the situation, so please feel free to share it. It's quite important to know where you stand with the law, if challenged. I was surprised when I first read it only a couple of days ago, especially when I noticed it came into effect around two weeks previously, with no local publicity that I'm aware of. My own take is, I won't be out camping in the affected area for a while, maybe until the end of the summer. I prefer to see how it goes for now.

I'd be interested to hear any constructive comments.

Take care all, and keep safe.

SOLD! Terra Nova Southern Cross 2 tent

NOW SOLD! 

We have a tent for sale. It has a bit of a back story.

We bought a Southern Cross 2 a few years ago, as a replacement for a previous Terra Nova model which was no longer available. It had been out for a year or so and won at least one award for its innovative design. It's fairly unusual in that it has two crossed poles, the transverse one in a sleeve and the other, supporting the tent with hooks. It has two doors and two porches, so great for keeping wet kit out of the way. It's a good, strong, two person, four season tent which we used in all conditions, including heavy snow, with no problems. We've mostly used it, backpacking, as a one person plus dog tent, but I've found it great for cycle touring, giving plenty of room to bring all my bike luggage inside the inner.

Back in 2018, prior to my 5 week cycle tour across France, I had an accident with a very powerful torch, which I'd been sent for review, burning a hole in the groundsheet. I won't go into details, other than to say that the torch manufacturer  agreed to replace the tent for us at no cost. Before that happened I repaired the hole and took it with me on my French adventure, using it for over 30 consecutive nights without a hitch.

We bought the replacement when I returned, in July 2018. This new tent is the one for sale. It hasn't actually had a lot of use, partly because, in 2019, Chrissie and I had a long journey through Scandinavia, where we used our bigger, 3 person, Terra Nova tent. I hardly need to mention how little we did in 2020! I did use it for a week long cycle tour of the Caledonia Way in the spring of 2019, in rotten weather, without a problem. 

These pics are from my Caledonia Way cycle tour. The Southern Cross is the larger, paler tent.

However, Chrissie did use it one night last November, pre lockdown. It rained very heavily, with 40mph wind gusts, and the tent flysheet leaked from the transverse pole sleeve, so much so that Chrissie decamped and came home (she was very local, thankfully). We contacted Terra Nova about the problem. They asked us to send the flysheet to them and, having checked it, they re-taped it all, free of charge. We have the "receipt" for this, which can go with the tent, to the purchaser.

As I write, Chrissie slept in the tent last night, in our garden, in snow, and for added certainty we've just given it a hammering with our hose pipe, focusing on the seams, to make sure it is indeed watertight. It is.

Over the past 12 months we've been swapping our tent collection to Hillebergs, including buying two, two person tents, an Anjan 2 and a Nallo 2, which is the only reason we're selling the Southern Cross 2. We also have a Southern Cross 1, for solo use, such is our confidence with these tents.

So, in short, it's a lightly used, good quality tent and we're asking £450 for it, including postage and packing. If you go on the Terra Nova website, you'll see that their rrp is £700, and they're also not expecting any more in until late February/early March. There's been a real demand for decent backpacking tents recently, so you'd be struggling to find a new Southern Cross 2, for sale anywhere. This is also true of Hillebergs incidentally.

Please don't  insult us with a silly offer. We're happy to keep the tent as a spare if it doesn't sell. You can never have too many tents.

Contact us via Twitter at either @GeoffCrowther1 or @chrissiepebbles. Chrissie is on Facebook at Chrissie Todd Crowther, as well.

If you're not in the market for this tent, we'd be grateful for any shares of this advertisement. 

Cheers all!

A year of minimalist adventures, 2020

What can I say about 2020? Not much that you haven't already thought yourself. But, I have kept reminding myself, and Chrissie, how lucky we are. We're retired. We live in a beautiful area. So no real financial worries and, really, plenty of time and space to get out. But it's still got to me.

Nevertheless, I do seem to have squeezed a few adventures in.

We saw January in with James and Dale with a van trip to Troutbeck Head, involving walking, mountain biking and a visit from our pal Pete Dixon.

In February, Noah had a long-awaited overnight stay with us, while Mum and Dad shot into the local maternity unit and returned with a little brother, Ewan.

In a brief respite from grandparenting, Islay and I dashed up a favourite hill for a camp...

...and at the end of the month Chris and I met up with James for a long day's mountain biking down in the White Peak.

In February, blissfully unaware of what was ahead, Chris and I jetted off to Gran Canaria for a week of backpacking. On the second night we were hit by a wild calima; a ferocious sandstorm from Africa, which destroyed Chris's tent. We spent the rest of the week as somewhat uncomfortable tourists, by the ocean.

In March, more and more news emerged of a virus from China. Noah began getting used to life as a big brother and Chrissie and I set out north in the van. In Barnard Castle, we watched more information emerging on social media and began feeling slightly guilty for travelling away from home. After just a couple of nights we returned home...and the first lockdown began.

April saw us in a world of Skype calls with daughter, son in law and grandchildren. We were thankful for good weather, and life in a village on the edge of the Peak District hills. We never missed a day out with the dogs.

May brought the possibility of garden meets. But Noah was felt to be too young and boisterous to understand. So he stayed home with Daddy while Abi visited with Ewan. In the latter part of the month, I sneaked out for a camp with Islay. This was around the time, accommodation opened and overnight stays were again permitted. All a bit irrelevant to solo backpacking though. 

Chrissie had been suffering with Lyme disease for some time. The GP's antibiotics didn't help. So in June she was referred to Sheffield's Hallamshire Hospital and given a three week course of intravenous antibiotics, which I was trained to administer, at home, each day. It did work, thankfully.

On one night, Islay and I slept in the van, on the drive, just for fun.

In early July, Dale and I took a two night trip around Kinder and later in the month I drove up to the Lakes for another two nighter with David Williams and John Sanderson. For the Lakes trip I used the Hilleberg Ajan 2 which we'd recently bought.

August saw the first and last visit (for now) from Abi, Dave and the children. Then we finally got away in the van for a trip to North Yorkshire, where we met up with James and Corrina. From there we drove over to Barnard Castle (which we've known for much longer than the t*** Cummings) where we enjoyed fish and chips on a stroll into the town.

In mid September Dale and I had another two nighter in the Peak District heat. We bought another Hilleberg; an Ajan 3, to use for the two of us and with dogs (we've yet to try this out) then Chrissie, Dale and I went up to Bellingham, near Kielder for a week of walking and mountain biking. Once Dale left, we crossed into the Scottish borders for a week or so of fun. Chrissie rented a mountain bike and was hooked!

Home again in October, Chrissie bought a mountain bike and we began exploring local trails together. At the end of the month we spent a couple of days at Teversal, when Dale joined us for solo rides, staying well within, then current, rules, whatever they were.

                

                 

November brought Noah's third birthday, which we couldn't join him for, but we managed a playground visit before the next lockdown hit.

Which, finally brings us to December. So far this month we've had snow, which came and went very quickly. And Chris persuaded me to have a local camp while he tried out his new Hilleberg Enan.

As I write we've just had a Hilleberg Nallo 2 delivered. Yes, I know, it's the third Hilleberg we've bought this year. Blame boredom. I may well be out again next week for a trial camp, so keep your eyes peeled for an update to the year.

As Christmas approaches, if anyone knows the current rules, please let me know. Me? Confused? Look, I had a tooth out yesterday. It may have affected my brain...

Love and hugs to you all and I truly wish you the best for Christmas, and a much, much better year in 2021.