Category: Featured Meets

Carole Smithies writes: Sad to report Edwin Coope, who joined the Club in 1999, passed away on Tuesday the 18th June.  Whilst Edwin joined the Club comparatively late in life, –he was in his fifties, he came with a first-class record as a mountaineer and fell runner.  The year before he joined, he did the Joss Naylor Challenge in under 14 hours, and in all, he completed 21 Lake District Mountain Trails. Edwin’s funeral will take place on Wednesday 3rd July at St. Thomas of Canterbury RC church, Lonsdale Rd., Bolton, BL1 4PN, at 10 -00am.  Please, let me know if you will be at the funeral, so we can let the family know.  Contact details as in the handbook.

6 RC members, 1 AM, 1 guest and 1 CC member enjoyed a week of amazingly good weather, especially given a less than encouraging forecast! We walked, climbed, ran, biked, marshalled pre-65 motorcycles ‘trialing’, rested and socialised! Those who decided not to come missed a great week! A few pictures below capture the week [with captions now added]: Devils Ridge Mamores. Photo Charlie Elliot Adam Gouldsworthy on Pandora Glen Nevis. Photo Andy Tomlinson Rest day visit to Ariundle woods Strontian via the Corran ferry. Photo John Rowlands Tim Taylor surveying Ardverikie Wall. Photo Andy Tomlinson Tim Taylor Ardverikie Wall. Photo Andy Tomlinson Afternoon light on hills beyond Loch-Treig, walk out from Ardverikie Wall. Photo Tim Taylor Adam Gouldsworthy Pitch 2 Secretaries Direct Glen Nevis. Photo Andy Tomlinson Andy Tomlinson and Collette Haig Meall-na-Teanga. Photo Andy Tomlinson Rest day bike ride Lismore ferry. Photo Tim Taylor Communal meal. Photo Andy Tomlinson Sunset over Ardgour from Craigallan. Photo Charlie Elliot

This year’s Gogarth Meet is taking place on 15 & 16 June ‘Phew, what a scorcher!’ was the headline from the 2023 Gogarth Meet, and of course we’ll be hoping for more of the same when we gather this year on Porth Dafarch beach. In any event, it’s the same old formula that has served us well for the last twenty years. Come equipped with a rack & rope; a bike; kayak or pair of binoculars; or just a tube of factor 50 and a bucket and spade – whatever you need to ‘Get Out There!’ and work up a thirst / appetite. Bring your friends and family – the more the merrier! In terms of logistics, plans will be familiar to anyone who’s been along for any of the last twenty years: Camping is pre‐booked at Valley of The Rocks Google Maps – you don’t need to book separately, but on arrival please let them know you are there. They’re offering a special rate for The Rucksack Club and are always very welcoming, so be sure to say Hi and thank you! The Saturday morning rendezvous is the South Stack Café (as usual) Google Maps They’re open at 10[…]

May often has the best of the spring weather, so the Rucksack Club has a burgeoning programme to take full advantage: Meanwhile, here are some shots of Rucksackers “Getting Out There!” from May 2023

The clocks change this weekend which means it’s the start of Wednesday Evening Outdoor Climbing! Wednesday Evening supremo, John Jefferies, has pulled together a great program for these much-loved mid-week meets, and they’re all in the Events Calendar on the website as well as featuring in The Journal / Handbook. To save you a few clicks or rummaging on the bookshelf, the whole thing is here too. You might notice a few TBDs so keep an eye on the WhatsApp group and Facebook for updates, and why not get in touch with John and baggsy a slot?! Meanwhile, back to this Wednesday, and I’m “coordinating” the season opener at Hobby a.k.a. Hobson Moor Quarry – it has to be confessed that my usual pact with the weather gods isn’t currently reflected in the forecast. However, there’s plenty of time for that to change, and in the unlikely event of a washout we’ll switch to Awesome Walls Stockport. Again keep an eye on WA & FB. Meanwhile, as a reminder of what we’ve been missing for the last six months, here’s a few pics from Hobby meets past. See you at Hobby or Stockport 🙂

April is often a great month in the hills, so the Rucksack Club has a succession of meets to take advantage of the opportunities: Our Easter Meet is at our own hut close to Glencoe, from where parties will no doubt venture onto Ben Nevis, the Glencoe hills and all manner of wild terrain such as across Loch Linnhe in Ardgour. The evenings will be warm social gatherings, with some home-grown entertainment in prospect! On Sunday 14th April we will meet for a day walk of 21km over the hills south of Whaley Bridge – to be concluded with post-walk refreshments  at a local pub. We have a climbing meet planned for 20th April, weather permitting. Our objective will be some of the Peak’s least-visited western gritstone edges north of Leek. Then we have a weekend booked at the enchanting Bryn Hafod hut in mid-Wales, just east of Cader Idris. In addition to the chance to enjoy that great hill, there is the opportunity to explore the less-visited Aran hills. Finally, and extending into May, we have a joint meet with the Climbers’ Club at our Scottish hut near Glencoe. This is a ‘return fixture’ to complement our previous joint[…]