Stickler plus a bit

The idea was to meet up in Shillingstone and do the Stickler route in reverse plus a bit because we all wanted to do more than the 10 mile. What is the definition of a bit? It turned out that a bit was another 9 miles.

We started up Hambledon Hill and had beautiful view down the River Stour. The conditions were freezing and the ground was rock hard with frost. Next was Hod Hill and down to Stourpaine.

We left the Stickler route at the top of Norton Lane and headed through Turnworth. Doubling back on ourselves from Oke Breacon we ran through Blandford Forest and back down to Durweston. Rather than run along the road we decided to cross over and run along the old railway track.

As is obvious to anyone who can read a map this was not a good move but to 4 tired runners the gap where the railway bridge was before Dr Beeching came as a bit of a surprise.



So we headed back towards Hod Hill and eventually Shillingstone. 19 miles in about 4 hours. Home for a fry up.

Steeperton Tor

Last Saturday I made a quick dash down to Dartmoor before all the snow melted. It is probably still there now, I have not checked. I decided to go to Belstone as it is just off the A30 so hoped that it would be not too snowbound. The village looked beautiful under inches of snow.

I made my way up the valley and out on to Taw Marsh. Although it was late in the day there were a few people about, mostly on heading down the valley as I went out.

When I got to the end of the valley I decided to go straight up Steeperton Tor and crashed about in the snow past my knees. Should have remember my gaiters really.

I headed back along Oke Tor and Belstone Common before dropping and down to Belstone.


Click here for the route.

Snow at last

I have at last started building up some mile for the Grizzly. Last week 23 miles and the plan for this week is 26. We have been very lucky in South Dorset I suppose and have had very little snow until yesterday. I am a bit envious seeing other bloggers getting out walking and running in the snow. Today I could not run at lunchtime because the paths were too icy, which was a bit frustrating. Tonight I read that other people have found the solution. Tea and Cake is inspiring even when not running/biking/mountain marathoning (not sure that is a verb).

I am now ready for tomorrow.

Plans for 2010

After a very good 2009 an inactive Christmas holiday (in terms of of outdoor adventures) has got me thinking about plans for 2010.

Well already in the calendar are The Grizzly, The Stickler and supporting a friend doing the Devizes to Westminster canoe race.

What I would like to do more of this year are solo backpacking trips to North Wales and the Black Mountains, and hopefully the Across Wales walk.

My son is keen to do another Dartmoor trip and so am I. But this evening he was asking about the trips my Dad and I did on Offas dyke when I was his age. He thought it would be a good idea if we finished it. Dad and I got from Chepstow to Knighton, walking for a 2 or 3 days each Easter holiday.

I think Scotland is off the cards this year, even though when I am looking at books and websites and begin to plan my dream trip that is where I always end up.

Happy New Year

A Lifetime of Mountains - a short review

I have been up to very little on the outdoor front over the last few weeks. It is only 12 weeks until the Grizzly so I had better step things up soon.

I have been reading A Lifetime of Mountains a wonderful collection of pictures of the Lake District from 1951 to 2004 when A. Harry Giffin was the Country Diarist for The Guardian.

The columns cover his experiences climbing and walking, stories of rural life and the natural history of the Lakes. The book is edited by Martin Wainwright who ties together various parts of Harry's life and writing. What I enjoyed was the way the short and precise columns carry you on to the hills. Harry was a founder member of the Coniston Tigers from a time when you could tell who else was out on the hill from the nail pattern left by their boots.

Quick kit check

A couple of peices of kit worked really well on the Wessex ridgeway trip.

I was originally intending to take my OMM Running Light sack but it was just too small. Instead I took the OMM Villain recently bought from Baz. It was a bit too big for the job but still worked really well. I stripped most things off it and swapped the Platformat back for a cut down bit of foam mat. Very comfortable all day even when running. One of the best things are the pockets on the hip belt. Why have I never had a sack with these before? Genius.

The other saviour on the day was my Montrail Streak shoes. Before the day I had only been out in them 3 or 4 times, so it was a bit of a gamble trying to do over 30 miles a day with them. They are a great shoe with good cushioning and enough grip for muddy hills and tracks. They are not as agile as my Inov8 Flyrocs nor have as much grip but I think my feet were grateful for the extra cushioning by the end. The uppers are very free flowing is probably the best phrase, on a windy day you can feel the breeze round your toes. So probably not a shoe for mid winter. For a better review have a look here at backpackbrewers site



As I have recently worn out 2 pairs of old wool/nylon socks the next thing to look out for is socks suitable for light backpacking/walking/running.

Wessex Ridgeway

For both of us the lane out of Shillingstone seemed familiar and yet out of place. Without the crowds of runners and the adrenalin of a race the hills felt steep and we noticed more. We had detoured from the route of the Wessex Ridgeway slightly to take in 2 of the hills of The Stickler again.

We had been dropped in Tollard Royal just before dawn and walked through Ashmore Woods as the sun had come up.



Reaching 11 miles in about 3 hours we were feeling optimistic. Despite the bad weather forecast the sky was clearing and we had great views over north Dorset. As we reached Alton Pancras (25 miles) we were both beginning to tire and the earlier optimism was beginning to drain.



When we reached Sydling St Nicholas cold and sore we made our first mistake, carrying on.

We bashed on down the road in the dark towards Rampisham masts. By now the rain was coming down hard and we were very cold and tired. With very little shelter on the ridge and as tired as I have ever felt we did the sensible thing and phone for a lift home.

The achievement was to complete 42 miles in one day but the mistake was not to stop while we still had clear skies and energy left to sort ourselves out and warm up. The weather forecast was never good and we learned some valuable lessons. I would like to attempt another walk/run bivvy trip, maybe in the spring.