.jpg)
|
|
|
After returning to the car from Pendle Hill G/SP-005 on Sunday 5th March 2006, we headed for Boulsworth Hill (Lad Law) G/SP-008. Wanting to avoid the usual bridleway drag from the reservoir, it was quite hard work picking the driving route through Barrowford, Colne and Nelson until we finally located the minor road to Hebden Bridge. We reached the summit of this road, identified the sought-after 4WD track on the left on the small pull-in on the right. As we set off up the track, a 4WD was coming down it, despite the "No Vehicles" notice on the barrier. Even though this does not appear as a right-of-way on OS maps, it signed as such at the start of the track. After about a mile, the track ends in a large turning area, despite the fact the it certainly isn't driveable (even in a 4x4) to that point. From here, a vague path shoots off to the left, across a couple of boggy cloughs including a stream to be forded, and up to the now nearby summit plateau of Boulsworth Hill G/SP-008. Just over the stile, Jimmy spotted a "Mailbox" under a large boulder, apparently part of a "Boulsworth Series", but not an official geocache. We signed the logbook and proceeded to the summit trig. Here the wind was fierce, and my hands quickly got cold. Jimmy and Liam sheltered for dear life behind a couple of boulders. I made a scheduled 2m contact with Richard G3CWI, who was also being blown about at Walker Barn. We decided to abandon 10GHz plans for the day.
This suited me well, and Jimmy, Liam and myself relocated to a couple of very large boulders on the edge of the summit plateau that we could sit under for almost total shelter, and a comfortable activation point. First up however, was the Baxters Cock-A-Leekie soup from the flask, which went down very well with all three of us. There weren't many people about on the bands by this time, just after 4pm, but four stations in West and South Yorkshire each worked both of us to secure the points. I also worked Terry 2E0FMB/M, but I couldn't find Mike G4BLH who had also called in. The return walk was great fun in a sudden but heavy snow shower which threatened to become a blizzard a couple of times. However, it only lasted 25 minutes to my relief, although the security of the gravel track to follow back was a real reassurance should it have lasted longer and intensified. We made the descent in 45 minutes and realised we wouldn't be going the other route ever again!Many thanks to the following stations, all worked on 2m FM with 1 watt:
|
|
|
