Author: Andy Tomlinson

Joint RC/CC Meet 10-16 July 2023, Bosigran, Cornwall It’s time to think about summer! I am running a joint RC/CC Meet at the Count House [with Rob Seymour as the CC host] for the week of 10-16 July. The RC has 17 beds set aside for members to book and, to date, I have 10 RC members booked, so the bunk spaces are starting to fill up. There is, however, a reasonable amount of space for both tents and vans. I have had a request from a member to bring 3 guests too, but have asked that, at this stage, we wait to see what the demand is from RC members. The Count House is superbly situated, being about a 10 minute walk to Bosigran, with many other excellent Cornish crags within walking distance or a short drive away. There is also excellent walking, biking, sea kayaking or just lazing around enjoying the sea air! The plan is to have a BBQ, which the CC is kindly hosting, at the weekend. As it’s two weeks after the Gogarth Meet, you’ll have your sea-cliff legs [and head!] well in tune! Come and join us for all, or part of, the week[…]

Last weekend [18-20 November] the 2022 Annual Dinner was held at the Cumbria Grand Hotel, Grange-over-Sands once again. As last year the hotel staff worked very hard and looked after us extremely well.  After dinner on Friday evening Jeremy Windsor gave a highly entertaining and educational talk around the subject of “It’s nothing serious…a tale of injuries and illnesses in the mountains”. For the second year running, Saturday was a lovely day and 22 members and guests joined me for a walk over Black Combe via White Combe, followed by a well-earned pub stop in Broughton on the way back!  Other members biked, walked, climbed, visited the Kendal Mountain Festival or enjoyed Grange itself. Guest speaker Finlay Wild kicked off the Annual Dinner celebrations in the evening with a talk entitled “Light, fast and loving it” giving the 107 members and guests present an insight into what is required to be one of the best mountain endurance athletes in the world. After dinner it was time to retire to the bar and catch up with friends. Sunday started clear and bright and 25 [generally more senior!] members and guests joined a leisurely stroll from the hotel to the top of[…]

For many years, Iain Cameron and his team of enthusiastic volunteers have carefully documented snow accumulations on the Scottish hills. Where once this might have been seen as a rather specialist hobby, it has in recent years fascinated a much larger audience who are seeking to understand the practical impact of the current climate emergency. In this webinar, Iain will talk to us about environmental change in Scotland and his new book, “The Vanishing Ice”. This talk is part of the British Mountain Medicine Society [BMMS]/UClan Winter Webinar Series, organised by Jeremy Windsor [who spoke on Friday evening at the Annual Dinner last weekend] and has been linked to our Indoor series too, so all RC members are able to join in for no cost. I think it will be of interest to a significant number of Club members. If you would like to watch, please use this link to their site and book a place by scrolling down to the appropriate link.

120th Anniversary Celebration: Dom put together a tremendous evening for us to celebrate another significant milestone achieved by the Club…and what better way to celebrate than with our first ‘live’ meeting at Heatons Sports Centre since 2019, including a Zoom link for those unable to attend in person. The evening started with a canter through the first 100 years of the Club courtesy of John Beatty, which was a very personal and insightful review by one of the senior member’s of the Club delivered in his usual eloquent style. After a break, there were short presentations by current members outlining activities undertaken over the past 20 years. Fittingly, the whole evening was videoed and is now available to view via this link. A very big thank you to all involved but particularly Dom and John for the significant contributions they both made. Andy

We are returning to the Cumbria Grand once again after a very successful weekend last year. As well as the options for walking, climbing and biking, this year the Dinner coincides with the Kendal Mountain Festival, giving even more options! I am very pleased to say that Finlay Wild has agreed to be our principal guest and he will speak on “Fast, light and loving it” on Saturday evening prior to the dinner [as last year], whilst on Friday evening Jeremy Windsor is going to speak on “It’s nothing serious…a tale of injuries and illnesses in the mountains” after a buffet dinner. The rates are as per last year, that is at a bed-and-breakfast rate of £55 per person sharing a standard double room (there is a £10 supplement for a single room if available) and £10 extra per person for a superior room. Please quote the Rucksack Club when booking (phone 015395  32331). More information can be found at https://strathmorehotels-cumbriagrand.com. I will provide more details about the walks on Saturday and Sunday in October’s Meetstaff and on the website. So, get a room booked, send me your Booking Form [click here for Form] for Friday and Saturday evenings, and[…]

After a recent short climbing trip to Cornwall with Parminder I decided it was time to arrange a Meet there. The obvious thing to do was to arrange a joint Meet with the CC based out of their hut at Bosigran, the Count House.  Thanks to fellow RC members who are members of the CC this has been arranged very quickly with the following on the CC website: “The Count House at Bosigran is the perfect base for rock-climbing and other activities in Cornwall. Joint meets with our kindred clubs are always well-attended and enjoyable, this one with our friends the Rucksack Club should be no different. An opportunity for all sorts of climbing and non-climbing activities on the fantastic sea cliffs of Cornwall with pasties, cream teas and BBQs guaranteed.” The CC Post went live 24hrs ago and there are a number of bookings already! There is camping and van space too, but if you would like a bed in the Count House you’d better get it booked as spaces are limited and, as a joint Meet it looks as if it will be very popular. Would anyone who would like to secure a space please contact me by[…]