Grandad (Again)

I reported some time ago on Jacob’s arrival, with a none too flattering ‘Gollum’ picture.

He’s pictured above, last weekend, with Sue - modelling a bench in Newton Park (don’t ask!) after his first night out in Timperley.

Tonight he gained a sister, Jessica, coming into this world at a weight of 7 pounds, at 20.24.  She will be forever grateful for my failure to place a similar ‘Gollum’ like picture on these pages.

Congratulations, Kate and Simon, and I hope you can largely avoid the world of sleep deprivation this time…

Wednesday 25 September 2013 – An Evening Stroll Around Alderley Edge

Last night we managed a brief outing, starting at the Drum and Monkey in Alderley Edge.  Sue and I were joined by some usual suspects for a very leisurely amble up the Edge and along towards The Wizard, before crossing the B5087 and failing to find the mine entrance near the site of Hagg Cottages.  We couldn’t have gone into the mine, but a visit is planned for the future.

An archaeological dig was carried out on these cottages in 2003.  They were occupied until after the Second World War, and were only demolished in the mid-1950s.  In fact, some of the former residents were frequent visitors to the dig, re-living their childhood memories.  There’s not much chance of anything being rebuilt hereabouts, as there is contamination from sulphuric acid used in the extraction of copper.  The whole area is riddled with mines.  Is it just a matter of time before a nearby footballer’s mansion subsides into one of them?

Having managed to avoid most of the mud on the descent to the cottages, we followed the easy path to the north of the barking dogs of White Barn Farm, before turning right to head along the narrow field path to the B5087. The slippery cobbles of Squirrel’s Jump provided a challenging route for those who wanted to stay upright and unbruised before returning to the Drum and Monkey for a welcome pint of Unicorn.

5 km in rather less than an hour and a half.  Thanks for joining us, folks.

Here’s Alistair’s take on the evening. (Click on this text.)

France – Quiz Night at SWOG

The other night Sue and I had the pleasure of attending one of the first Wednesday evening sessions of the ‘season’ held by Stockport Walking and Outdoor Group (SWOG) at Hazel Grove Civic Centre.

‘Bring along a few photos’ they said. So we did. But there were some timing and technical issues that meant the memory stick stayed firmly in my pocket.

However, given that I’d taken the trouble to pull out a few images of France, and entries on these pages have been rather sparse of late (I haven’t been anywhere other than that SWOG meeting), I thought I’d post them here, and offer a small award for the person who can send me the best answers to the questions:

‘Where were we?’, and ‘What were we photographing?’ That is – what’s in the picture, where was it taken from (not necessarily France), and can you provide any additional information about why we may have been there?

For all I know, the information is embedded somewhere in the pictures and may be what is preventing all my efforts to upload them to the internet in any other way without causing Internet Explorer to crash.

The pictures are numbered 1 to 17, and entries should be sent to me at francetest@topwalks.com by 13 October.

5 January 2014

There were no entries.  So it's just as well that I enjoyed compiling this sequence of pictures.  The answers are:

1. Carcassonne - la Cité (2004)

2. Hendaye - at the starting point of GR10 by the casino at Hendaye Plage (2013)

3. Nice - Bernar Venet Sculpture - Garden Albert - 1988 "Arc of 115°5" (19 metres long)

4. Nice - Place Massena - 7 statues in white resin, 10 metres above ground.  Illuminated at night in different colours.  Sculptor – Jaume Plensa

5. Monte Viso from Colle Guillian (2451 metres) – with France just in view on the far right (19/7/2008)

6. Carcassonne - la Cité, from near the campsite (2004)

7. Forclaz – the Hotel/restaurant at col de la Forclaz, on the Tour de Mont Blanc and the Walkers’ Haute Route from Chamonix to Zermatt

8. La Flégère Refuge, with peaks across the Chamonix valley

9. Mont Blanc and Glacier des Bossons, from Chamonix

10. Chamonix and Mont Blanc from the balcony path between Chalet de la Flégère and Les Chéserys

11. L’Aiguille du Midi – 3842 metres – from Chamonix

12. Ibex on the French/Italian border near Colle ouest de Sabbione (4/7/2008)

13. Mont Blanc massif from Rifugio Bonatti

14. Mer de Glace and Les Drus from just below Lac Blanc

15. Glacier d’Argentière from above the Chéserys lakes

16. Relaxing at a small lake on the path to Lac Blanc from Flégère

17. Panorama from Rifugio Walter Bonatti, with Grandes Jorasses – 4208 metres

B of the Bang – ‘Britain’s Tallest Sculpture’

This posting was stimulated by Wuxing Nick’s comment on the previous posting showing at least 24 images of Manchester landmarks.  He confused the sculpture with a palm tree! (Ha-ha!)

So, being confined to barracks, so to speak, here’s an entry about a Manchester landmark that will soon be lost to the mists of time.

B of the Bang was a competition winning sculpture for the City of Manchester Stadium where the 2002 Commonwealth Games were hosted, now the home of Manchester City Football Club, and known as the Etihad Stadium for sponsorship purposes.

The top picture was taken from what turns out to be a rather dangerous position below the sculpture, whilst the picture at the foot of the posting shows it from the safety of the front of the stadium.  If I’d known its future I’d have taken more pictures.

The tallest sculpture in the UK until the completion of the 60 metre tall Aspire sculpture in Nottingham in 2008, it was taller and leaned at a greater angle than the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  It was inclined at an angle of thirty degrees from the vertical and represented a major challenge in both construction and engineering.  It was commissioned by urban regeneration company New East Manchester Limited to mark the success of the 2002 Commonwealth Games and was designed by Thomas Heatherwick and selected by a panel including experts and local residents.

The name 'B of the Bang' was inspired by Olympic Gold Medal winning sprinter Linford Christie, who said that he started his race on the B of the Bang.

The spikes were hollow and as light as possible, with five supporting legs made from thick heavy steel, although visually identical to the other spikes. At the centre of the sculpture was a complex core from which all of the spikes radiated.
It was made of a special type of steel that would weather to varying degrees over the surface of the sculpture.

The sculpture was commissioned in 2003; construction overran and the official unveiling by Linford Christie was delayed until 12 January 2005. Six days before the launch, the sculpture suffered the first of three visible structural problems as the tip of one of the spikes detached and fell to the ground. Legal action started a year later, resulting in an out-of-court settlement totalling £1.7 million.

In February 2009, Manchester City Council announced that the sculpture would be dismantled and placed in storage, as the "only practical alternative". The council expressed its commitment to working closely with the design team in order to "determine whether there is a robust and affordable strategy for the re-construction of the structure on the site". Despite the promise of storage and potential reassembly, the core and legs of the sculpture were cut apart during removal. The core was sold for scrap in July 2012, while the 180 spikes remain in storage.

Technical Data

B of the Bang originally stood 56 metres (184 ft) tall with 180 hollow tapered steel columns or spikes radiating from a central core. It was angled at 30 degrees and supported by five 25 m (82 ft) long, tapered steel legs which connected to the spikes 22 m (72 ft) above the ground. The sculpture weighed 165 tonnes, with the concrete in the foundations weighing over 1,000 tonnes, including a 400 m² (4,300 sq ft) reinforced concrete slab. The foundations are 20 m (66 ft) deep.

The sculpture was made from the same weathering steel as the 20 metre high Angel of the North sculpture.  This steel gradually develops a tightly adhering oxide layer as it is exposed to the elements. This layer inhibits further corrosion by reducing its permeability to water. As part of the design, the spikes swayed slightly in the wind in order to withstand gusts in excess of 100 mph. At the time of construction a time capsule was placed in one of the spikes of the sculpture, containing children's poems and paintings, due to be opened circa 2300.  The location of the time capsule after dismantling is unknown.

In total the sculpture cost £1.42 million to design and construct - twice the original estimate, as the initial costing had neglected to include installation costs!

The Structural problems and legal action

The tip of one of the 2.1 m (6.9 ft) spikes detached and fell from the sculpture on 6 January 2005, only six days before the official unveiling. After inspection, the event went ahead as planned.

Four months later, in May 2005, a second spike had to be cut off by fire-fighters after it was discovered hanging loose. At that time the sculpture was closed off to the public, and the junction and pathway near the sculpture were temporarily closed. As a result some of the joints were re-welded, with equipment put in place to prevent excessive movement.  This consisted of retrofitting tip weights to 70% of the spikes' weights.

Despite these modifications, B of the Bang remained fenced off, prompting a local newspaper campaign to 'Get It Sorted'. In May 2006 a total of nine spikes were removed from the sculpture and taken away for metallurgical analysis, to discover the stresses being placed on the steel.

It was announced in October 2007 that Manchester City Council were taking legal action against the makers of the sculpture, with the aim of completing the necessary repairs to the sculpture. In November 2008 this culminated in an out-of-court settlement being reached between Manchester City Council, the project's designers Thomas Heatherwick Studio Ltd, and the engineering and construction subcontractors Packman Lucas Ltd, Flint and Neill Partnership and Westbury Structures Ltd. The agreement was to pay the council £1.7m in damages for breach of contract and negligence.

Dismantling

Acting on a report in January 2009, the city council recommended that B of the Bang should be dismantled and placed in storage until funds could be raised for its safe reinstatement. The report recognised the sculpture's aesthetic value for Manchester, and Manchester City Council committed itself to working with the artist to reach a long-term solution. One possibility involved the replacement of the steel spikes with alternatives made from carbon fibre, although the report underlined the necessity for extensive testing.

In January 2009, Antony Gormley, creator of the Angel of the North - to which B of the Bang is often compared - spoke out in support of the sculpture, stating that, "It is a great tribute to Manchester that this ground-breaking work was commissioned. To allow it to disappear would be a loss not just of an inspirational artwork but also of the council's nerve."

Despite Gormley's plea, removal of B of the Bang began in April 2009. More substantial hoarding was erected around the site and demolition firm Connell Brothers Limited began removing the spikes with oxyacetylene cutting equipment.

Although the council had promised to store the complex central core and legs, these too were cut apart during removal, casting doubt on future prospects for the landmark sculpture's return, and in early July 2012 the core was sold as scrap for £17,000.

So now you know.  Next, perhaps, the ‘real’ palm trees of Manchester…

Grounded!

Click the image for a full screen version

Regular viewers may have noticed a break in transmissions over the past week.  I should have been ‘processing’ our Pyrenees pictures before setting off today to Chamonix for a week in the Mont Blanc area.  Sadly that trip has been cancelled due to my inability to walk more than a few paces at a time.

All was well last Saturday, when I managed to jog around the 5 km Parkrun at Wythenshawe well inside 22 minutes.  Annoyingly, if I’d gone flat out I would have got a personal best.  Then, on Saturday evening, a lower back pain developed, slowly and painfully spreading down my left leg.  After two nights with minimal sleep, we spent Monday looking after young Jacob whilst his mum went back to work for a few days before starting maternity leave.  Well, Sue looked after Jacob whilst I writhed in agony on the floor.

A call to my doctor’s surgery triggered an immediate appointment.  I thought I might have sciatica, but the diagnosis was a back muscle strain with referred pain.  A cocktail of drugs was prescribed.  Co-Dydramol, Naproxen and Diazepan.  After 48 hours on this cocktail I was still unable to stand, sit or lie down without significant pain.  It was a bit like constantly having cramp, but being unable do anything to ‘release’ the cramped muscles and reduce the pain.

“We can’t have that” said the doctor, replacing Co-Dydramol with Tramadol, which is apparently a stronger pain killer.  Since then there has been a slow improvement, but complete rest is needed and the Chamonix trip was a non-starter.

This should give me time to make good progress with the Pyrenean pictures, slideshow, etc, though they haven’t been touched during the past week as I’ve been more or less totally incapacitated.  I have however been able to follow Humphrey’s progress across the Pyrenees on his journey from Etsaut to Bagnères-de-Luchon.  He is now back at home in Berwick, after enjoying an interesting trip and chatting to many locals affected by this year’s extreme weather.  Well done, Humphrey, and I very much appreciated your verbal report the other day.

I’ve also enjoyed tracking Markus, the Austrian TGO Challenger, on his own rehabilitation walk after a serious skiing mishap incurred last winter.  He has devised a circular walk from Inverness which he calls the ‘Wester Ross Trail’.  The route takes him to Drumnadrochit > Loch Affric > Strathcarron > Annat > Craig > Kerrysdale > Loch Maree > Poolewe > Fisherfield > Shenavall > Loch Fannich > Loch Meig, before returning to Inverness via Muir of Ord and Charlestown.  It looks an excellent route – about 340 km (210 miles) with 9000 metres ascent over twelve days, similar statistically to a typical TGO Challenge crossing.  He should currently be flogging his way through the Fisherfield Forest to Shenavall in fair weather.  Good luck, Markus.

Our week was brightened by an interlude in a Rusholme curry house with Rob and Brenda and their son, Douglas.  It’s many years since I saw these contemporaries from my days at UMIST, and they had never met Sue.  It was great to see them, and my pain seemed to diminish for the duration of that evening.  Thanks for getting in touch, R + B.

Whilst I’m laid up I hope to make occasional random postings, and I do have a date for some of your diaries.  Several of our younger correspondents have requested winter evening walks in addition to the traditional ascent of Shutlingsloe on 17 December.  So, on Friday 8 November, there will be a stroll up to the Pigeon Tower and Rivington Pike Tower from outside Rivington Visitor Centre - the Great House Barn on Rivington Lane at SD 628 138, starting at 7.30 pm.

Our latest ‘programme’ is here.  More details of the walk from Buxton on 6 October will be added soon, and as soon as I’m fit enough, I’ll be sorting out the venue for our Xmas lunch walk on 8 December.  In addition, anyone wishing to be included in our Collett’s booking in the Dolomites from about 12 to 20 July 2014 should contact me by email – martin@topwalks.com.  It’ll cost about £600 on a half board basis, plus travel costs etc.  It’s a brilliant venue, highly recommended, and as I’ll be celebrating my new status as an OAP I may just about be able to commit to a round of drinks!

Sea Life Manchester

Last Sunday we had the pleasure of a family gathering at Sea Life Manchester.  Not many pictures were taken, so they are all here, rather than in a separate album.

There were some scary visitors (above and below).

The tour starts in a darkened room with a chat from a nice turtle lady.  The turtles wander around, reproduce, and then the babies head off to a life in the nearby Manchester Ship Canal, which must be teeming with the little blighters judging by the five minute life cycle portrayed by the busy but nice turtle lady.

There were lots of tanks, with fish that were just too fast for my underwater camera.  (Yes, I took my waterproof camera on this trip!)

There are Black-Tip Reef Sharks and a few lazy White-Tip Reef Sharks, and loads of other stuff that was much faster than this rather ponderous Lionfish.

The jellyfish changed colour to mimic the colour of light shining into their tank.

… they must get exhausted!

Deeper down, on the canal floor, were the remains of the merchant shipping that in by-gone days had foundered in the ship canal’s locks.

Tropical fish were swimming furiously around in big circles.

The Dalmation Fish (aka Barramundi Cod) and the Seahorses were a little more sedate, so thanks to them not every picture was blurred.

After several trips around the many exhibits, punctuated by visits to a conveniently situated play area in the middle of the fishy displays, we emerged into the Gaudy Nymph zone known as Barton Square, whose other attractions include Legoland.

One small boy found time for a short nap on his way to a lunchtime pizza.

Thursday 29 August 2013 – An Evening Stroll from the Harp Inn

It didn’t look quite like this photo taken in March 2011, but the weather was fine and warm for this last ‘daylight’ evening walk of the season.  It was just that I was so pleased that Andrew and Judith had turned up for a walk on which we had expected no company that I forgot to take any photos until it got dark.

This is an area rich with history and wildlife, as described in more detail in my entry from March 2011.

Today, from the benches pictured, a bird of prey could be seen along the shore towards Neston, engaged in a contretemps with a crow.  This brought a number of complete strangers into animated conversation, and as we had brought along both binoculars and Tony Bowerman’s excellent books, it didn’t take long to establish that the bird was a Hen Harrier.  Several people scribbled ‘Tony Bowerman’ on scraps of paper – I hope their searches for his out of print books bear fruit.

I didn’t get a chance to chat much to Judith after this year’s TGO Challenge, on which she only bumped into two other Challengers before entering the ruckus at Montrose, so it was good to catch up.  Her Challenge reports are here – a good read.  Had she been on her own tonight, Judith would perhaps have been shunned, as she was sporting plasters that some may have found suspicious, arising from abortive attempts to extract blood from several appendages.

“I’ve been declared ‘anaemic’” she announced.

Later the real reason for her motivation to join us became apparent.  She is engaged in a pedometer contest with two work colleagues.

I don’t quite know how, but armed with a flimsy scrap of paper showing the route portrayed below, we did manage to follow the blue line fairly precisely, despite night descending.  One section was along a deserted old railway line.  We were hemmed in by a deep cutting, with verdant late summer undergrowth. Andrew and Sue were discussing grizzly murder scenarios. A blinding light appeared.  Hearts fluttered. 

The sound of “Good evening” as the cyclists sped past relieved any tension.  We got used to these polite encounters and slowly made our way around the 7 km route and back to the friendly pub for a second round of Holt’s Best.

Postscript: Humphrey’s Pyrenean Adventure

Some will recall or be aware that TGO Challenger Humphrey is enjoying a couple of weeks in the Pyrenees.  He doesn’t write a blog and enjoys solitude on such trips.  He is walking GR10 from Etsaut to Luchon and has managed to negotiate the serious snowfields of Hourquette d’Arre which Sue and I avoided.  “Oh Boy!” he reports.  By now he will have passed through Barèges and past the car park that houses huge piles of rubble that used to be the Hotel du Tourmalet.  He has been chatting to lots of locals – “the worst in living memory” – they say, when referring to the devastation caused by the weather during the first week of our own trip. 

The third week of June, 2013, and it's aftermath, will be long remembered in this part of the Pyrenees, in Spain as well as in France.

Hopefully Humphrey will be enjoying views like this one from Col d’Ispeguy in July 2004.

Pyrenean Friends

We returned from the Pyrenees with lots of new friends, resulting from encounters along the way.  Here are four of them – Chantal, Joël, Yolaine and Pierre.  We will see them again, though not as soon as hoped, as Chantal and Joël will be away on holiday themselves when we pass nearby their home in a couple of weeks’ time.

Hello you four, and all the others who enhanced our GR10 experience.

… Keep on trekking!

Hi-Tec Walking Boots – A Review

I’d reviewed a couple of items of Hi-Tec footwear:

Some three season boots – here;

and some trail shoes – here.

Both were extremely comfy, but they only lasted for about 500-600 kilometres hard use.

So after trashing these items I thought it unlikely that Hi-Tec would be prepared to send me anything else.  I was wrong.  I suggested some running shoes, but James Campbell at Hi-Tec was determined to prove a point.

“I’m happy to send you some of our Rainier Event backpacking boots, which really are our top of the range boots and will have no issue with durability.”

They looked pretty impressive when they arrived.

The Rainiers have now been replaced as Hi-Tec’s top of the range offering by the very similar Bernina boots, with HI-TEC’s website proudly proclaiming the following:

Features

• Full Grain leather upper for durability
• Locking hook for adjustability
• Full leather tongue for added protection and durability
• Sympatex membrane technology for protection from the elements whilst offering breathability
• Dual density midsole for all day comfort, stability and durability
• Rugged Vibram outsole for durable traction
• B1 Classification - compatible with flexible C1 crampons
• Italian made and lasted for superior yet versatile fit

The RRP is about £150, but they are currently available for £120 or less.

Here’s what I thought about the Rainiers.

Fit and Finish:

• the EU size 43 were good for my average sort of feet.  Unlike with the previous offerings from Hi-Tec, I found a need to break these boots in gently as the stiffer leather rubbed my ankles.  This gave me encouragement that James’s ‘durability’ claim wasn’t just hot air 
• the construction was fine, though not quite up to the standard of the Scarpa boots I usually wear.  The main problem at the end of the day was that the thin leather fabric inside the heels eventually gave way, resulting in a shoehorn being necessary to put the boots on.  Perhaps this problem has been addressed in the Berninas.  They were good, solid boots though

Features:

• HI-TEC’s stated features for the successor Bernina, with an emphasis on their durability, are listed above
• the boots were completely waterproof, given the leather finish and their Event membrane.  As waterproof as my Scarpa Infinities
• forgetting all the technical jargon, the boots were extremely comfortable for serious backpacking trips

Weight:

• at 1600gm, they are slightly heavier than similarly priced fabric boots, but that’s quite acceptable for a serious pair of mountain boots

Practical Use:

• between March 2011 and September 2012 I wore these boots for the equivalent of a total of about four months’ continuous hard use, including a TGO Challenge, a five week trip to the Alps, and a further two week trip to the Ecrins in France.  Only when the heel fabric wore through in the Ecrins did they cause me any trouble, but the need for a shoehorn (an improvised insole) was a minor inconvenience, though they were retired after that trip, having covered about 1900 kilometres by then
• in contrast to the other Hi-Tec products I’ve tested, the waterproofing qualities were excellent and the durability quite acceptable  
• the excellent ankle support made these boots very suitable for walking for long periods on steep ground with a heavy backpack

Here’s what the boots looked like on 16 September 2012, after about 1900km (1190 miles) of use, as referred to above.

As you can see, apart from the damage inside the heel that is evident in the top picture, and the poor condition of the leather that is partly attributable to limited maintenance on long trips, the boots are essentially intact and would have continued in use but for that heel problem.

Alternatives:

• there are lots of alternatives to these three-season boots.  My own favourites are the Scarpa Infinity boots, but these have now been discontinued, as have the Rainiers.  Hopefully the Hi-Tec Berninas are at least as good and they should therefore be suitable for serious hillwalking and backpacking.  As with previous Hi-Tec products, I was fortunate in that the boots posted to me fitted perfectly, but I would always commend users to try on boots and shoes before buying them – different products suit different feet

Conclusion:

• once they had been broken in by way of a couple of weeks’ worth of mountain days out, these boots provided me with comfortable mountain footwear for a good 18 months.  They remained waterproof more or less to the end, and were only let down by insufficiently durable fabric inside the heel
• whilst the heel problem slightly diminished my enthusiasm, I can agree with James that he has finally provided me with a ‘durable’ product.  Well done!  I wonder what the Berninas are really like, James?

Thursday 22 August 2013 – Return to Deepest Cheshire

In my absence overseas, young Notchy took it upon himself to organise a couple of ‘Deepest Cheshire’ evening strolls, the second of which took place last night.

Notchy’s marketing agent ensured a good turnout, albeit JJ’s failure to attend due to ‘Dad Duty’.

The Egerton Arms, just outside Chelford, is a good place to start such jaunts, with a friendly landlord and good beer.  It dates back to the 16th century, and the current owners do have a vaguely local connection, in that Jeremy’s granddad was Glynne Jones from North Wales who produced the first ever hay bale machine called ‘The Jones Baler’, the bright red icon of farming equipment that every farmer grew up with after the war, presumably attached to one of Alan R’s  smart grey tractors.

I like the bit of history in which the old coach house was sold off in the late 1890’s by the Egerton family to a private buyer who urgently needed to replace the old candle and gas lamps with electricity and thus he took down the fifteen or so black chandeliers. On doing so he found that they were made of solid gold, which made him an overnight millionaire, so he sold the pub on to a brewery.

Notchy did find quite a few paths, as well as these quiet lanes where I took the chance to collect a few snaps.  He’s shown below, explaining the ups and downs of high level backpacking to an itinerant gardener. Lagging behind, Bridget and Sue were preparing to sort out Richard, who seemed to have got tangled up in his own legs.

The motley group welcomed a newcomer tonight, Sandra, a Dunham Massey volunteer gardener like Bridget, who chose a good evening to come along – it was warm and summery, ideal for a chatty amble.  We’ll yearn for evenings like this in the months to come.

Anyway, Sue, Jenny, Richard, Bridget, Andrew, Sandra, Mary, and out of shot Graham managed to survive Notchy’s 8 km course, despite 50 metres of ascent and the occasional nettle – not to mention a severe deterioration of visibility, and refreshment from above, towards the end of the walk, and by around 9.30 pm we were all back at the pub and tucking into much needed rehydration fluid.

A very nice route, and a good turnout – well done to the organisers.

There’s another evening walk next Thursday (29 August), starting at The Harp (SJ 290 760) at 7.30 pm for a 7-10 km wander around the Wirral. All are welcome.  There’s also a day walk in the Peak District on Sunday 6 October, starting in or near Buxton.  More details can or will be found on our web site here.

Some readers would certainly also enjoy some of Stockport Walking and Outdoors Group’s upcoming Wednesday evening talks – details are here.