Present: Lieutenant Dave Bone, Sergeant Bob Kelly, Corporal Colin Maddison. Privates Dave Wylie, Dave Shotton, Kate Harvey and Matt Evans-Smith.

Early Sunday morning was cold –4/-5°C in fact, but it was wonderfully clear and windless so a good day for a patrol was expected. Quite a bit of ice on the last stretch to the top of the hill where the Leader found the company assembled – positively balmy at -1°C. A kit inspection had Colin up on Charges – no Headtorch. Nevertheless at 09:30 sharp the gate onto Open Access land was opened and the KMC patrol unleashed upon the gentle slopes of White Hill. This was good going on grass to start, later turning more moor like with short heather and the odd peat hagg. Good practice at Off Tracking as the views opened out over Yorkshire, the company appreciated the cold conditions at speed over the wet terrain, albeit with a need to keep an eye
out for the less frozen bits.

A cairn like tower was espied in the distance, on the other side of the fence we were following – ah-ah, an objective! Send the scouts forward to find the way through the maze of peat haggs, and bring the rest of the patrol to its foot. Actually a rain gauge tower (the subsequent Stocks reservoir filled the landscape to the East) with a hollow chimney like centre. The KMC will climb anything – Corporal Maddison is hoping for a Green Beret, and a few others were encouraged to try. Meanwhile, chimneying up the centre failed with a need for an extremely severe diet. Back on patrol, the summit and trig’ point was soon attained with a wonderful panorama. Private Wylie remarked that he thought the snow topped hills of the Lakes were close enough for a quick march that day, but was dissuaded - good training it may be but duty calls. The KMC will climb anything – another water tower lay on the summit plateau, so in skirmishing order we set out for a practice assault. Excellent training – it is surrounded by a frozen moat. Attack! With one swift bound or an elegant glide on the lubricated surface the foot of the tower is attained and it succumbs. No burning oil but a little ice awaits the troops storming the battlements.

Appeased, and persuaded on by a promise of elevenses at the nest road crossing, the patrol marches North to check the parish perimeter fence. A broad grassy like area lay before though - seems frozen. The patrol is strung out and vigilance is lowered – a yelp from behind, Private Harvey has been attacked by the Bog Monster – it has her leg in up to the shin. Two of the patrol rush in to assist but the Bog Monster has Corporal Maddison too. Eventually, chastened, they are released and a slightly dishevelled patrol resumes. The fenceline was fast going and the 1st road is soon reached – elevenses or early lunch for some (Privates Shotton and Harvey are not seasoned troops yet, they’re not rationing their supplies). It’s very quiet, no cars pass, just a helicopter (non-military).

On again and a speedy ascent take us to the first Raven’s Castle – we’re now on the Yorkshire side of the border and Private Wylie does a passport check at the border fence. Sergeant Kelly betrays a literary bent - apparently this is the subject of a Gothic Novel. He also has an unusual interest in works in obscure Derbyshire dialect, it hasn’t yet affected his career in the military so we humour him - Keep a sharp lookout. This is classic border ridge walking along, down, round (a crag from which Colin had to be prised - bigger objectives lay ahead) and back up again to the West end of Bowland Knotts. This is great (k)not-ing country, we’ve just passed Knottend Well, and away to the south there is a Cat Knott Well (none of the party have veterinary badges). Some of the patrol need a rest after the quick march ascent, but summit bagger Kelly has seen a trig’ point on the other side of the wall. So of course we all had to visit especially as the Leader knew this was good training ground. The summit is the top of a sizeable buttress of good overhanging gritstone. Corporal Maddison looks pleased, a Beret will be his. Soon he is clinging to the overhang, searching for the top-out hold – even with us pointing out the lovely sharp edge though, he isn’t up for it and slinks up Maddison County gully instead. Sorry, no Beret today. Onwards, following the Lancashire side of the Great Wall of China (sorry, Bowland) as it twists and undulates between the outcrops, one of which forms a barrier that all must climb, followed by yet another to attain the far side of the wall (interesting how often it incorporates huge cubic blocks within it – good cover for artillery fire though), and hence the 2nd road. On again following the border, marked with standing (or embedded in the wall) stones with a big ‘L’ inscribed on them, in search of a good open site for lunch with a good view over any advancing enemy troops. There’s nobody though, not even a Yorkshire sheep. Lunch is taken on the sunny boulders of Knotteranum. The rest of the patrol beckons (and it’s getting a tad chilly as the sunshine is low and hazy now) so on over Rock Cat Knott and rougher terrain. It’s wonderful how some places get their name – what’s that over there? “Top of the Clough” sir!

Furthest away point at the Resting Stone now. The patrol doesn’t want to rest, they can sense the end of the patrol and approaching darkness so, diverging from the true border, we head south along the edge of Gisburn Forest. I had given advance warning of this – the great bog, so I picked a line to cross it at a narrow point to attain dry, higher ground. Confidence, speed and a gliding gait with light thoughts are what are required – some of the patrol balk at the quaking field of moss, but I point out if they hop on the right foot they’ll get no wetter. Now things get interesting and test the mettle of the troops – we enter the forest on what is optimistically marked as a path but hasn’t had any traffic, and the forest was felled here. It hasn’t improved – the undergrowth between the brash is deeper than the last time I was here a few years ago. You will likely fail to imagine what the going (walking isn’t the right word) was like – so it was a relief to find the forest track and the mountain bike trails. Still some interest over the many new and old wooden bridges, some sloping at jaunty, entertaining angles, but all still covered deep in hoar
frost. A junction of the ways – there is a footpath sign into nowhere, but there’s nearly mutiny in the ranks as I plunge off the track and plough up the bank – into another felled forest! Just the other side of this, then it’s fields and tracks onwards troops! More purgatory, worse than the last dose before we can drop into a gully, cross a stream and pull out the other side into newly planted trees. At this point we lost the life and sole of the party - Colin emerges from the gully holding out the detached sole of his old pair of boots! Oh well, it is indeed fields from now on, though the Corporal has a definite problem with traction on the grass, and on the verglassed tarmac of the farm track beyond. We’re now back on the road through Gisburn Forest – and stay on it as the hoped for short cut down the side of the forest looks too difficult so we settle for an additional mile or so of fast pace along the road. The light is fading rapidly as we enter the picnic site car park aiming for the reservoir circular walk to the head of the reservoir and beyond. We can just make out new signs advising of a bridge ahead that has been severely damaged by floods and the circular walk is closed! Forwards Men, we can make it, you can do anything – besides, the only alternative around the foot of the reservoir is a lot longer!

The bridge itself has a closed sign on it – but boldly going where everyone has gone before, the Lieutenant and Sergeant test the bridge - there’s no visible reason not to cross. Looking back from the other side, we can see the further end’s foundations of the stone arch have been washed away and it is hanging there unsupported – OK men, one at a time and break step, not the bridge… Onwards to New House, regroup and zig-zag down to a very good modern bridge. Sergeant Kelly is staring myopically around and complains he can’t see a thing. “Well put your Night Vision goggles on Sergeant!” We are on the home stretch now up through the fields – I allow an advance party to strike out ahead now that directions are easy to give (“follow this to a track, turn right then at the road turn left”). Meanwhile, I collect the tail end Charlie – it really is dark now, the stragglers can barely be picked out a few metres away. Almost there, and now it’s just a pull up the road to the top of the hill and the cars. Finally, it is all over and not a shot fired in anger. It’s been a good day for a patrol, completed at 17:00. The stars are coming out through holes in the cloud and it’s freezing again – there’s a threat of snow in the evening so time to get moving. My thanks to those who reported for duty, I expect the full Battalion to turn out next time.

I am looking for a volunteer platoon of the local KMC Militia to make a Sunday patrol of the Lancashire border on the Eastern side of the Bowland Forest (this being the ‘army’, everyone will ‘volunteer’). The approximate area is around the head of Stocks Reservoir and the Gisburn Forest. On the way round you will practice your knots, with Bowland Knotts and Knotteranum. Approach is for Slaidburn, taking the narrow road North of the village centre towards Cross of Greet and High Bentham. It is not suitable for heavy tanks.

The company will assemble for inspection at 9:20am (a military precision 09:30 hours start required), at a layby on the righthand side of the road just past the cattle grid at GR SD708568 (more parking before grid and further on down the road). Equipment will be: Maps: Landrangers 103 + 98 or OL41, a Headtorch, stout well polished boots for wet grass & moorland, a hearty ration pack, a sense of adventure and weapons of choice. A Red Rose is optional. Bearers of a White Rose will be shot for treason by Sergeant Bob.

Our route immediately enters Open access land via the nearby access point, and hence negotiates a fence or two on our way up to White Hill, 544m, at 674587. We then follow a border (a parish one) down to the road again at Cross of Greet (ruins). Up the grass and rush hillside to Great Harlow where we follow the Lancashire Border East, keeping an eye out for infiltrating sheep. We take no prisoners! And no rape and pillage either… It gets a bit more rocky at Bowland Knotts but shelter is possible here. Cross the road to continue East to the Resting Stone (if you can identify it) at the top-right corner of Gisburn Forest where we turn right, negotiate a bog and enter the forest half a mile south. Here the Mountain Bike mounted Cavalry have their training ground. Route finding can now be fun, we’ll take whatever heads the right way, probably by Halsteads farm, and eventually ending at the far left corner of the Forest where we can follow the reservoir circular walk via New House and back uphill to the transport.

Distance circa 15miles or 11.5 directly across the moor from Bowland Knotts.