Collected Musings of a Hill Wanderer

While penning yesterday's missive regarding the forthcoming availability of OSi mapping data from Mapyx, I had little idea of what was in the pipeline from Anquet. Until now, Anquet's established offering in the digital mapping arena was restricted to areas on Great Britain. Unless I missed something, not even Northern Ireland got a look in while Scotland's islands and even the Isle of Man were very well covered. However, an email from them this morning suggests that will be changing.

Apparently, Anquet is also planning to make OSi 1:50000 digital mapping available as part of a move to include more countries in its portfolio. Quite what is driving this expansion is open to question but it is an exciting development whether they are moving into new territorial markets or they are banking on British outdoors lovers fancying a spot of overseas explorations who would like the planning of such escapades to be easier. Whatever the reasoning, they seem to be starting with Éire so let's hope that Northern Ireland isn't forgotten in the rush.

Seeing two mainstays of the British digital mapping market featuring Irish data has to make you wonder what other players like Memory Map or Tracklogs have in hand. After all, if this is due to a push on the part of the OSi, there may be more to come. Thinking about it now, having Mapyx and Anquet selling OSi 1:50000 Discovery data does follow on from its availability on Geolives since the start of the year. That development may have signalled a break from digital mapping being provided on a country by country basis and that's no bad thing at all. In fact, things have got a bit more exciting now that it has happened, an unthinkable occurrence in times when paper maps were all that we had.

There was a time when the only way of acquiring digital mapping for Éire was to purchase a Trail Master DVD from the OSi. Earlier this year, that changed with its inclusion in Geolives along with France, Switzerland, Belgium and Holland but it seems that things recently moved on from there again. An email from Mapyx yesterday announced the forthcoming addition of Irish 1:50000 Discovery series data to the current Quo portfolio of U.K. and Slovenian mapping. For me, it would be a very good thing to have British and Irish mapping in the same place and accessible using the same software so it has to be a step forward. After all, it makes Irish mapping data available to British walkers along with its British counterpart so there should be less of an excuse for not planning an excursion over there and I would be very surprised if the Irish tourism industry didn't appreciate the custom.

Saying all of that, Geolives still has one advantage over Mapyx: having a web based platform for carrying out the same tasks that would be done using desktop software means that it isn't tied to Windows like Mapyx and its ilk. This is its Web Editor and it has to be a boon for Mac and Linux users but there's the PC Editor too for those wanting to work offline on a Windows machine. As if all that weren't enough, the former has its place on smartphones (iPhone, anyone?) too.

If I didn't have some mapping information from Geolives already, I'd be waiting patiently for Mapyx to do the promised deed. However, having Geolives data not only means that I am in no hurry but also that, while I'd be seeing how things work in reality, I have no attention of re-purchasing data that I already have in my possession. One part of the world that seems to be missing from all of this is Northern Ireland and, with walking areas like the Mourne Mountains, that has to be an omission that needs addressing but nothing appears to be happening right now.

My day out among the limestone pavements and outcrops near Ingleton had me taking a bus ride through a part of the world where I hadn't been before. Unusually for me, the journey there and away again took me around by Lancaster with a bus ride up the Lune valley to Ingleton itself. Even under grey skies, the potential of the area with its pretty villages (Hornby looked interesting with its castle by the River Wenning) was apparent. Unsurprisingly, there is a trail through all of this and it's called the Lune Valley Ramble and its not the only one either. Its 16-17 miles from Kirkby Lonsdale to Lancaster would make for a long day of walking but riverside hiking isn't as strenuous as trotting over hill and dale and a regular bus service (Stagecoach Lancaster 81A/81B) allows for some some truncation if needed. You might need to find a quieter day for this type of thing though but winter is ahead of us so that may make places less peopled. The combination of easy gradients and proximity has as much appeal on a warm day in Yorkshire as it does in Cumbria or Staffordshire and a few walks have taken me past fleshpots in these counties since the start of the year. Saying that, a quick look along the route of the LVR confirms that the types of gathering spots that allows occasional daunderers to congregate are absent so things may never feel as busy as the those lower reaches of Wharfedale on that faultless day at the end of September though that of course does change around Lancaster, an interesting city to explore in its own right and one at which I only have taken fleeting stolen looks. If the LVR ever was found to be busy, then there are other options like the Lunesdale Walk, which should keep you occupied for a few days by the looks of things.

While on the subject of missed walking opportunities in Lancashire, it would be remiss of me if I didn't mention the Forest of Bowland that bounds on the above and the AONB's website has plenty of ideas for active enjoyment of the places, either on foot or on a bike, that I passed while plying the way between Lancaster and Ingleton a few weeks back. In this context, the word "forest" refers to hunting grounds rather than woodland and it is very apt usage given recent history. Until the advent of the countryside rights of way act that established tracts of access land, there were few rights of way through these hills and the establishment of that precious enhanced access involved overcoming any objections from the Duke of Westminster. Since that's changed, there really should be no excuse for my not paying this hilly area surrounded by disparate conurbations like Lancaster, Clitheroe and Settle a visit. Of these, Clitheroe seems the easiest point of approach without a car with bus services B10 and B11 conveying you from its train station. There may be other ways into these uplands but a spot of further research is in order to find out what they might be. That should put paid to any sense of there being hills not at all that far away from me that are not so accessible. They may be quieter too so that should be good enough reason to play the connoisseur and pay them a call.

Up until now, my only exploration of Lancashire's countryside on foot was among the South Pennines near Burnley and pondering alluring locations like the Lune Valley or the Forest of Bowland may result in something happening. For now, I'll retain them as ideas and that has to be better than passing through while going to the delights of Cumbria or Scotland; only skirting them on the way to Yorkshire is an equal oversight and an ironic one given the happenings of history. With the ever shorter days of winter coming upon us, having somewhere new to explore that isn't so far away only can be a good thing.

As I start to write these words relating an outing among hills of the western Yorkshire Dales, we are in the grip of a mild end to October when there is occasional dampness and rather a lot of cloud filling the sky for much of the time. Of course, that mildness can end all of a sudden like it has done in some previous years with down jackets being quickly grabbed from where they have been for the summer. That realisation reminds me that the outer of my North Face Nuptse needs a clean but there's time for that yet.

Returning to that trot from over a week ago, I arrived in Ingleton at a decent hour when its library was still open so there was ample time for a day of walking. There were cloudy skies overhead like what those over Cheshire so far this week but I am not deterred so easily when my mind is set on a task so I ventured forth underneath the village's disused railway viaduct to seek out the horse manure soiled single track piece of road that is Oddie's Lane. The lane was quiet with only the occasional walker or Land Rover about as I ascended the gradient from the river banks of the Doe and the Twiss. It wasn't to be a day when there were enough people about to get in each other's way though we did bunch together from time to time. Most go to Ingleton for the Waterfalls Walk anyway my horizons were extended beyond that.

Staying with tarmac as long as I did might have seemed a peculiar choice when travel over softer ground was available but the OS don't seem to show the Waterfalls Walk so well and I might have ended up feeling corralled anyway. As it happened, I was to leave the tarmac for part of its route near Beezleys. A well made path was sufficient to compensate for a certain lack of signage on the roadside and Twisleton Hall was passed without a blunder. The path turned into a track that I was to leave for a bridleway taking me up the slopes of Twisleton Scar End. There were others with the same idea as myself but there was no mob so we all got along as we picked our way through the limestone pavement.

In time, we all scattered such that each had a piece to themselves so there was an opportunity to have some quality carefree time when the following of rights of way on access land could become something that fell by the wayside. All the while, I knew where I was on Scales Moor so there was no flirtation with mortal danger. At times, I was to revel in the sights of limestone pavement with Ingleborough beyond it. Being lit by the sun was a hit and miss affair with Gragareth having more luck than where I was wandering. That piece of "off piste" travel was well apparent when I joined the track down to Chapel-le-Dale and it shortened the walk a little too, taking time pressures even further out of the equation.

Chapel-le-Dale is but a small place and I was across the Low Sleights Road (B6255) in no time at all to shorten the distance to the summit of Ingleborough. My course was to have its moment of problem solving when I worked out the way around Souther Scales after a little lunch. It may have been over three years since I last trod in these parts but my memory was still up to the task of informing me that I was taking a different course from last time, at least at the start before I made out the trail that had taken me to those heady heights before.

Knowing that the way ahead was have steeper moments than that around Souther Scales meant that I opted for a steady gait through the Southerscales Scars and over any duckboards. A short break was taken at Humphrey Bottom before tackling the steep slopes that lay between me and Ingleborough's summit. The path is well pitched though some may find the way in which it has been done a little unnerving. Having gone the way before, it didn't phase me though I was conscious that other folk were after me and making good progress. The top of the steep section came in its own good time and I grabbed a chance for a little breather before scaling the final approach to Ingleborough's flat top. Others going my way needed longer to recover and more again sailed on regardless so Ingleborough attracts all sorts by the sounds of things.

With the sun staying well hidden on me, the summit of Ingleborough wasn't to be a place where I was going to linger. Still, I could see where I had been on the way from Ingleton and Whernside was an unmissable whaleback along with the distant humps of the Howgill Fells. Ingleton wasn't too far away and the next bus to Lancaster wasn't until 18:50 so I could afford to take my time. Not being in a mad rush (never a good idea on hills) meant that there was no angst on the initial part of the descent to reach a decent track. Looking ahead of me took my eyes out towards Morecambe Bay and the Irish Sea, both seemingly blest by the sun as might have been the lower reaches of the Lune Valley too. Cloud may have been over me but Scales Moor seemed to be starting to catch the sun. The prospect of low evening sun dropping beneath the cloud to liven the landscape began to intrigue me and the signs of that pleasant possibility steadily grew.

As I continued on downhill, I wondered at those who were coming against me at that hour of day and where they may have been going. Were they could have been on a similar circuit to me but with cars parked in Chapel-le-Dale instead or was Ribblehead train station in their sights? Horton-in-Ribblesdale or Clapham would be other potential destinations but they were further away. Wherever they were headed, there seemed to be a sense of purpose to all their endeavours and I am not one to intrude so I passed the time of day and left them be.

When I got as far as Fell Lane, the sun finally did drop below its cloudy obstruction to show the surrounding countryside at its best. It might have been better for my DSLR not to run out of power at this stage but a backup film SLR was there to do the honours so there was no drama. If I didn't possess the time to make what I could of what lay around me, it would have been more annoying and that's the advantage of leaving a little slack and not filing every second of it. Of course, the daylight eventually did give out but I was walking through the heart of Ingleborough as the sun disappeared below the horizon. A satisfying day was ending well and it's telling that it might have been utterly fantastic if skies were clearer. Neverthless, there were plenty of sights captivated my attention, even under cloud cover, and that really is telling. The prospect of a spot of sun might even tempt me back and there's no better way to leave anywhere than that.

Travel arrangements:

Return train journey from Macclesfield to Lancaster and return bus journey on Stagecoach Lancaster service 80 from Lancaster to Ingleton and back.

Outings beget photos and photos can beget ideas for more outings. In recent weeks, I have been sprucing up the Yorkshire Dales photo collection that I have on display for all to see on the web. Many of these were taken on negative film so new scans of old prints were attempted in order to make more of the results. Back then, I did things with my SLR that I would try to avoid now. Included among these would be a determined attempt at picture making in the middle of a hazy summer day. That's not to say that such conditions would stall play but I'd be more judicious about what I'd record. Whether it is down to the advent of digital capture or not, it does feel like I have developed more of feeling of how a scene before me will come out in a photo. The reason for my suspecting the effect of technological progress is that I may spend longer looking at my photos now than was the case when I exclusively used film. The fact that I am in total control over the entire process in the digital world may have a bearing because making prints from negatives or transparencies involves a certain amount of interpretation on the part of the printer, even if we are not talking about fine art monochrome images. In time, I may get to adding more new images but my attention has gone forth to a spot of under the bonnet work on my slide show machinery followed by giving my Isle of Skye photo collection (still under way) the same sort of attention lavished on that for the Yorkshire Dales.

For a few years, I have not been devoting so much attention to the Yorkshire Dales but that may be finding itself seeing some recompense. Last month saw me out in the midst of the gentle surroundings of lower Wharfedale while last weekend saw me out in wilder countryside. A circuit from Ingleton saw me both thrilled by limestone pavements, even under duller skies, and immersed in spacious open country. That's never to say that there was no one else about but we each could have our own corner for a little while and chilling out was well possible on the moors around Twisleton; there was none of the feelings of being in a cavalcade that entered my mind between Burnsall and Howgill in September. It was a little busier on the way up Ingleborough from Chapel-le-Dale but dropping off in the Ingleton direction wasn't long losing any semblance of crowding though there was little sign of anywhere being overrun. Bunching together became a reality on the steep approach to Ingleborough but that's always the way so it's never any real trouble so long as you don't rush things and keep an awareness of whoever is about you; we all can share a bit of countryside anyway. The day provided the sort of experience that draws me back time and again and it helps that there is more to explore too. Getting a sunny day to make photos reminiscent of those by a certain Granville Harris would be a bonus.

Photographically, it was a day of digital and film capture. Perhaps perversely, the sun found breaks in the clouds at precisely the moment when my DSLR ran out of electrical juice; being ever ready with a charged battery might have been a help but I only can own up to my own fecklessness. Then, it was over to the world of film to capture the wondrous lighting as I tramped the final miles towards the end of my hike. The instantaneous nature of digital capture may have been missed but a spot of patience is all that's needed to see how well the results of my endeavours worked out for me and to use a lab that I know to do the business for me. If I had no back up camera, I would have been kicking myself so this is no problem. In fact, the incident probably justifies my continuing to bring both a DSLR and an FSLR on walking trips, even if there is a weight penalty.

Like the film photos, the full account of Saturday's walk should follow and I need to look at those digital images and charge up that camera. A spare battery might be a sensible purchase but any excuse for a spot of film photography never can be bad. My recent exploits with old photos in Photoshop Elements using exposure correcting tools like levels, curves, hue/saturation tweaking and shadow/highlight adjustments have shown me that new life can be added to an old photo (hopefully) without overdoing things. Of course, there has to be some potential for decent results to be obtained and you always want to avoid some abomination in keeping with the punch drunk efforts using filters in the 1980's. Having a good sense of what is natural and what isn't has to help but there's a very fine line between having the right amount of colour saturation and contrast and ending up with a day-glow semi-fluorescent effort; I aim to stay on the right side of that line.