CYHA NEWS

A most successful weekend was spent at Holmbury St Mary Youth Hostel. Near the North Downs in Surrey, Holmbury was one of the early hostels purpose built for YHA in 1935. It has a rather dated 30's style exterior and the dining/common room has a decorative frieze of what looks like Hitler Youth enjoying the Great Outdoors (of course they are not, they are just of that era). In a weekend of confusing numbers and complicated travel arrangements our group started at 14, swelled with the arrival of Ian "Mr Treats" Dinmore, contracted due to illness only to swell again with the addition of Mairi and Martin (from Guildford Group). I have yet to hear if everyone eventually made it back to their correct addresses!

Apart from all this apparent confusion, the weekend ran like a well-oiled machine. Nigel is to be congratulated not only on the general smooth running, but also for booking perfect Autumn weather and having a mother with such excellent recipes for lamb casserole and apple crumble! Several people also remarked on the fact that you could actually taste Nigel's home-cooked ham in your sandwich.

The stunning weather brought out the very worst in our keen photographers, particularly Dave-look-at-my-digital-camera-Plummer and Gerry-I-must-crawl-through-this-leafy-detritus-to get-the-perfect-angle-Laconca. Even without all the expensive gadgets the views were picture-perfect, however we did hit an all time low posing with our derrieres foremost by the roadsign for "Walking Bottom".

Ali

Polly crawled around the woods collecting burrs (a bit like Rodings) and then spent the rest of the time at the teashop pulling them out with her teeth. OUCH! I learnt of a new horticultural word called "hawaiiantropic" which applies to yellow gorse bushes and means smells like coconut. Someone looking just like Lorna did the washing up on both Saturday and Sunday. There was also something about old hedgerows and getting laid.

Gerry

OK! Who did not have a chocolate biccy at Silent Pool Car Park? I found two still in the packet when I got home.......guilty party will own up or else! Prime suspect is POLLY! Thanks for the weekend

See you all next year.

Ian

For once we could manage to solve all the clues, although some of the plotting was not as accurate as in previous years (the eyesight is not what it was).

By midnight, way past cocoa time, our four speed zimmer frames were fired into action and there was to be no stopping us. The first four controls were quickly spotted by this team-on-a-roll. The fifth (Epping Thicks) was missed out - too far to walk, getting tired, don't like scrabbling through holly bushes and brambles were excuses that were not uttered by this group - instead we went to the tea stop for a rest because it was nearer.

Controls 6,7and 8 were painlessly bagged using navigational skills that would make Ernest Shackleton look like an intrepid explorer. Control 9, in the middle of a thicket on a par with Epping Thicks, was almost our undoing. However, by a combination of bloody-minded determination and not being able to follow a bearing or estimate how far we had scrambled through the holly bushes, we chanced upon a clearing and, behold, the control tent.

Having found nine controls in seven and a half hours we were feeling very pleased with ourselves, only to learn at the finish that another team, (Suffoc), had found all ten in three hours and fifty minutes. But did they have as much fun? I think not.

Andrew Milligan

Result is all down to Andrew's leading and spot-on nav. I introduced Andrew to orienteering (at last year's Rodings) and now he's better than me! More than once the tent appeared dead ahead in the torchlight, or as he counted "49, 50. It should be somewhere....oh, look what's over there". Gareth & Karen got all 10 within 8 hrs. Chris, Tom & Gerry galloped Gerry off his legs and got 10 in 7+hrs. The over 40s team were Andrew, his SUFFOC friend Ciceley, Steve C and muggins. CYHA got 19 checkpoints in 22+ hrs, Sth Middx got 30 in 21+hrs. Shucks!

We were quite successful this year, although we didn't quite manage to get the trophy. 10th, 15th and 20th was only good enough for 2nd place in the YHA group trophy - pity there were only two YHA groups with enough teams to qualify ! Our combined time was only an hour behind South Middlesex YHA.

After six attempts though, Karen finally got all 10 checkpoints. And despite not running any of it at all, we were only about 30 minutes behind Tom and Chris! We (the youngsters) passed Lorna's team (the old farts) two or three times - Karens could recognise Lorna's welly's from quite a distance.

"Nice bit of team building. Look forward to doing it again next year."

"I have been living in Crete for the past year but have enjoyed having the CYHA News re-directed. I shall be returning home after a mad year teaching English to truculent Greek teenagers, being a guide on a tourist train, and working in a craft shop and information centre.

"The countryside here is absolutely magnificent and it is still relatively unspoilt here on the south coast.

"I'm not looking forward to returning to grotty English weather and the stress of social work!"

Three hardened drinkers (me, Tom & Robert) plus one of my non-YHA friends met in the Plough to watch the rugby. It was quite hard to put aside traditional Anglo-French rivalry and want them to beat Australia - who are far too good at sport for their own good.

The Conservatives are a bit thin on the ground but are fortunate to have the formidable Ann Widdicombe who can quite easily take on all three of the Labour front row herself. Unfortunately no one could think of any other Conservatives at all except Mr Hague who will have to be in the junior XV until he grows up a bit as a rugby field is no place for little boys.

After that we went on the pull with our renowned womanising skills and took home a couple of Swedish hikers. At least I think that's what happened.

For the first time in I don't know how many years, Dave and I missed a Committee Meeting. We humbly crave pardon from all the membership for this terrible liberty on our part. Our excuse, pathetic as it is, was that we were hundreds of miles away trapped on the holiday island of Mallorca. We apologise whole-heartedly and further state that:

1. We did not enjoy ourselves.
2. It really wasn't that sunny.
3. The spectacular walks to mountain top refuges really weren't that great.
4. The scenery was flat and rather dull.
5. The delicious sugar-drenched cakes were very ordinary.

Dave, can I uncross my fingers now?

Thanks to Clive for suggesting this excellent London Walk. In spite of the best attempts of the various railway companies, most of us managed to meet up in time for a brilliant walk from Tower Hill. Having been thrilled with tales of Knights and Nuns, be-headings and scandalous goings on we finished off the day with a trip to the Natural History Museum. Unfortunately we just missed Geli whose diverted train messed up our rendezvous.

Many thanks to Aunty Doreen for her brilliant slides from her two Kiwi trips. Spectacular fiord and mountain views, fantastic cliff scenery and curious botanical details (such as all the flowers native to NZ have white flowers).

Good home wanted for Jim's Fiesta Quartz 1.8 diesel as seen on YHA trips. 53,000 miles, full Ford service history. £3,000. Contact Jim.

"We are getting married on Sunday 12 December 1999 at 1030 in the Church of the Holy Spirit, Forest Drive Chelmsford. You are warmly invited to the service. You are also welcome to stay for the bring and share lunch and barn dance at the same venue. Just bring a plate of food and indicate to one of us that you are coming."

Paul Hawkins and Lynn Wagstaff