This youth hostel is an excellent Scandinavian-style building, very comfortable dorms, large ‘lounge’ and with an excellent catering staff. The majority of Glenmorons met up on Friday evening. Some had arrived the previous evening and walked on Striding Edge and Helvellyn during Friday while one Furth of Scotland member, Ian MacNab, walked in Langdale and two others, Margaret and Roger Noble, on the Pennine Way.

Saturday saw an early start to the hills with the main objectives being Helvellyn (950m /

3,118 ft) by various routes, and High Street (828m /2,718 ft). Groups and routes were:

Group 1 - Garrey White, Rosemary Masterton, John Anderson, Mary Cunningham, John McPartlin, Ian MacNab: From hostel via Angle Tarn, The Knott, High Street, Stony Cove Pike, Hartsop Dodd with return to Patterdale.

Group 2 - Connie and Harrold Thomson: Hartsop, The Knott, High Street – with Connie returning via Angle Tarn to Patterdale and Harrold catching up with Group 1 and returning with them to Hartsop.

Group 3 - Alice Mitchell, Dave Broadfoot, Hugh Bourhill, Dave Reynolds, Colin Farrow, Chris Huxham: Via Striding Edge to Helvellyn, Dollywaggon Pike, Grisedale Tarn and on to Fairfield, Hart Crag, St Sunday Crag and return to Patterdale.

Group 4 - Gill Cook, Arthur Whittaker, Mary Cox, John Donnelly: St Sunday Crag, Fairfield, Grisedale Tarn, Helvellyn and Striding Edge returning to Patterdale.

Group 5 - Brian McDaid, Rosemary Keighley, Phyllis and James Smith: Helvellyn via Striding Edge, Dollywagon Pike, Grisedale Tarn and Beck to Patterdale.

Group 6 - Margaret and Roger Noble – Helvellyn via Striding Edge, Dollywagon Pike, Grisedale Tarn and Beck to Patterdale.

The early morning cloud lifted and gave a fine ridge walk (along with fifty million others!) along Striding Edge to Helvellyn. The views were outstanding all round until rain hit mid afternoon. Fortunately, the youth hostel has an excellent drying room. A very social hostel meal was partaken by 26 of the group and an enjoyable evening followed with chat, news’n’views and scrabble, and some were even seen watching football on TV! The skies cleared and astronomy lessons were given by the Thomsons to the uninitiated!

Sunday - An hour change of the clock and everyone was up and away early. Most members made for Blencathra - aka Saddleback (868m /2,847 ft) while Chris, Dave Crowther and girls made for Rheged (was it the chocolate making again?). Four other members decided on alternative therapy! Groups and Routes were:

Groups 1 and 2 who headed for Blencathra via Sharp Edge - Garrey White, Rosemary Masterton, John McPartlin, Mary Cunningham, John Anderson, Hugh Bourhill, John Donnelly, Dave Reynolds, Mary Cox, Alice Mitchell, Gill Cook, Arthur Whittaker, Colin Farrow and Ian MacNab

Group 3 - Connie and Harrold Thomson: Grisedale Beck to Ruthwaite Lodge and return

Group 4 - Margaret and Roger Noble: Cauldale Moor from Brotherswater, Pasture Bottom, Stony Cove Pike (763m /2,502 ft) with return via Rough Edge

Extracts from members’ views of the Blencathra route:

"The party all went along Sharp edge. The front party who had set off half an hour before was visible on the edge for some time from below and certainly audible. When we caught up near the last steep scramble we could hear them in the chimney. Some of the group, John Donnelly and Garrey in particular, began hurling insults, such as "Hurry up and get off the hill you party of pensioners"! There was a great view from the summit although it had misted over by the descent. The footpath down was extremely muddy. There was a digger building a new path with the name McClarty on the side. Very apt." -Alice Mitchell

"At the top, after a bite, all turned tail and returned down Scales Fell whereas Ian and I continued along the summit plateau and descended towards Threlkeld before returning along the foot of the mountain. We encountered an interesting mauvais pas dropping into one of the gills. It would have been straightforward going up, but in descent with very polished rock and slightly damp boots was interesting. We nicknamed it the Farrow-MacNab mauvais pas." – Colin Farrow"

The views from the central top of Stony Cove Pike gave all-round sightings of all the big tops in the Lake District and even Ingleborough in Yorkshire.

As Furth Members, Roger and I enjoyed meeting up with present active members and look forward to the 50^th celebrations at Aviemore and Loch Lomond next year. Thanks for a memorable weekend with excellent weather, walking, company and food.