Remember and revisit – THE FELLSMAN

A 70th anniversary celebration weekend

The KMC has a long and painful tradition of participating in long walks. Years past, as I remember, the rule was go as far as you can without sleeping for more than something like a couple of hours. Again as far as I can remember someone, maybe Alan Barber, told me that the Cheviot to the Old Man of Coniston was about the limit, but that is by the by.

During those elder days the club also had a regular relationship with The Fellsman. For those who don’t know, this is an event organised by the Scouts starting at Ingleton and taking a zig-zag course around the Yorkshire Dales, taking in most of the higher hills except Pen y ghent finishing at Threshfield near Grassington. The distance is about 63 miles, 11,000 ft of up. Millie Black won the ladies, Alan (Hyde) Jones won the men’s a couple of times and others Alan Barber,  Dave Somerfield etc  made some  pretty good times. I went round a few times myself and they are only the ones that I remember.

Much of the route is over private ground and has no paths. My PB was 19 hours, the current winners do it in about 10.5 hours, how they do that I have no idea!! The Fellsman is also reckoned to be a good warm up for a Bob Graham if any have their sights on that.

In the forthcoming 70^th year of the KMC and 52^nd Fellsman I have a strange desire to see how far I might get round that old familiar course;  I have no idea and limited expectations.......

http://www.fellsman.org.uk/

If anyone would like to at least start with me, the event starts  on Saturday 26th April.

Please get in touch with Graham Harkness.