I’ve volunteered to organise our first winter mountain weekend of this season on 8 – 10 December. Please respond asap if you would like to join this meet (see below).

This will be an informal meet so it’s up to people attending to organise climbing/walking groups and travel arrangements, but if anyone is looking for partners or needs or can offer a lift then let me know and I will try to put people in touch.

Previously in December we’ve had good weather for winter hill walking, snow/ice climbing, scrambling, even rock climbing – though not necessarily all at the same time….. For those with mountain bikes there are also some good off-road trails in the vicinity, especially at Grizedale Forest.

The venue will be the Fylde Mountaineering Club Hut in Little Langdale. Details and some pictures here. This is the hut we used for our January meet last winter which met with general approval from those present. The facilities are good, it’s a good size for our party, and it’s a short walk from a renowned pub – the Three Shires Inn (which I’ve checked will be open in December!) It’s convenient for Coniston and Langdale and not bad for other Eastern Lakes areas, or even Eskdale if the Wrynose and Hardknott passes are open. And it’s one of the shortest drives to the Lake District from Ipswich.

We have to book exclusive use of the whole hut at £204 for the weekend. It sleeps 16, though is probably best for around 10 – 12. I’ll go ahead and book if I have 8 or more definite takers. There’s a £50 deposit to secure the booking so you will need to get me £5 reasonably quickly once I’ve paid. I’m happy to trust that everyone will do that and on that basis pay the deposit up front.

The overall accommodation cost per head will be between £17 if we have 12 takers as last year rising to £25 if we have 8 takers. That is for the Friday and Saturday nights. We can stay Thursday or Sunday nights as well, at an additional £8 per head per night, but we wouldn’t be guaranteed exclusive use for the extra days.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Regards

Martin