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The Weald Walkers Wander is the walking rally with a difference, organised by Croydon YHA Group (COPSE).

All you need is to be streetwise about the countryside, solve the clues, navigate off road and find the checkpoints. Each checkpoint will involve a short challenge to make it a good fun day out for all. Points are awarded and the name of the team with the most will be engraved on the coveted trophy. In addition everyone who finishes will receive a certificate.

Wear trainers or boots and dress for the weather. Drinks will be provided free at the all checkpoints but you might need some munchies for the way. Hot drinks will be provided at the finish.

Each team must have the latest Ordnance Survey map sheet 147 Explorer series 1:25 000 scale, a compass and a pen to take part.

Everyone is welcome - young, not so young, families and individuals. However, you must enter in teams of between 2 and 5 people and at least one person in each team must be 16+.

Teams will leave at 3 minute intervals between 09.00 and 10.00. The event is not a race but there is an overall time limit of 7 hours. The route is about 10 miles mostly on footpaths which may be muddy. Anyone who retires before the finish must notify the emergency call centre to avoid a search and rescue party being initiated.

The start/finish is at the Scout Hall, Station Road, Edenbridge, Kent, TN8 5HP (see map above). Grid Reference 443465. Park in surrounding roads. This is a very popular event and entry is limited. Advance booking is therefore advisable to avoid disappointment. You may enter on the day on the day subject to space.

More details can be found on the COPSE website.

According to a post on a Rough Stuff Fellowship blog, YHA have agreed to sell Dolgoch YH to the Elenydd Trust for £125,000. The trouble is (as of January this year) the Trust have only raised £30,000. The Trust’s website doesn’t have anything to say about this yet, but does tell you how you (or your group) can donate funds to the cause.

According to a YHA press release:

YHA is gunning to capture a share of the capital’s fast-expanding ‘flashpacker’ market when YHA London Earl’s Court is officially re-launched today.

The busy cosmopolitan Youth Hostel was severely damaged by fire in April last year but has now been completely repaired and upgraded.

What’s a flashpacker, you ask? I didn’t know either, but according to Flashpacker Diaries…

They are individuals who are perhaps a little older than the post-Uni, pre-life 21 year old backpacker, who have a larger budget but less time. Flashpacking is for those people who prefer a little quality and have the means to pay for it.

The Evening Standard describe them more succinctly as “thirty-something backpackers who do the budget hotel thing but jet around on internal flights or helicopters because they can’t be bothered with 20 hour bus trips”. In short, they’re the opposite, in every respect, to “young people of limited means”.

Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily. They’ll still be offering regular “backpacker” accommodation as well, and there’s plenty of (relatively) dirt cheap accommodation to be found in the capital for the not-too-fussy. It could be good news for groups too, many of whose members are older and richer than your average backpacker. Let’s just hope YHA don’t go all out after this new market segment only to be squeezed out by cheap hotel chains entering the sector.

Llangollen Youth Hostel is to close in August 2007, instead of October 2008 as was announced last year. It has been sold to the University of Central Lancashire to operate as a centre for outdoor studies. It’s not clear whether those studies will be exclusively conducted by UCLan students, or whether the facility will continue to be made available to school parties and other educational groups. What is clear is that YHA groups and individuals won’t be able to stay there.

Llangollen is an attractive town with several attractions to appeal to the new family friendly YHA, it’s a shame they couldn’t make a go of the hostel. Taken with the closure of Cynwyd a couple of years ago and Chester too, there’s a big area of the North Welsh border that will no longer be served by any YHA hostels. Hopefully that gap will be plugged soon.

A 25 mile mountain marathon in the Brecon Beacons National park, organised jointly by Brecon Mountain rescue Team and Newport Outdoor group.

The BMR takes the high road from Crickhowell. Passing Llanbedr, you climb 8 miles of whale back ridge - so very characteristic of the Black Mountains - to reach Waun Fach, the highest point in the range. From here, it is down hill to Pengenffordd, with cold drinks when you arrive. Mynydd Troed is a 1000 ft climb, followed by Mynydd Llangorse, dropping again to lower altitudes and more drinks at Pentre. You have done 20 miles by now and you’re about to hit the wall - 1800 ft of it - before you top Pen Allt- Mawr, breeze along the ridge to Pen Cerrig-Catch and down, down all the way back to Crickhowell.

Visit the NOG website for further details.

As we all know, the YHA’s charitable objective begins “To help all, especially young people of limited means…”. An extensive reorganisation of the Association’s governance is under way to bring it more into line with these beneficiaries, but what are they doing to help them where it counts - in the wallet?

Back in the olden days it was simple: if you were a student, unemployed, disabled or a pensioner you paid the under 18’s rate for your overnights as set out in the handbook. Now it’s a lot more complicated.

Continue reading…

27 representatives of 16 affiliated groups assembled at YHA’s Matlock head office for the conference on 17th March. The low take-up of places for this event resulted in a much restricted programme in comparison to previous years, but there was still much business for those assembled to get through.

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The email address that you should use when contacting YHA central office on group-related matters has been changed. It used to be localgroups@yha.org.uk, which perhaps doesn’t reflect the non-geographical members of the group fraternity.

It’s now affiliatedgroups@yha.org.uk - update your address books now!