Orienteering - Try a half-term tester at Tarn Hows (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Orienteering - Try a half-term tester at Tarn Hows

4:27pm Monday 27th October 2008 in Sport By Gazette Sports

A NEW ‘Trail O’ course was opened at Tarn Hows on Monday.

The new permanent trail orienteering (or ‘Trail O’) course offers a great opportunity for anyone to have a go at orienteering – regardless of physical ability, and at their own pace.

The whole course is completed without leaving the high quality footpath that loops around the lake. The challenge lies in the map interpretation, working out which of the marker posts at each point is the one shown on the map.

Trail O offers a great activity for families to do as they walk, either working together or as a mini-competition.

It is suitable for all, regardless of your existing navigational skills – offering the opportunity to hone your map reading at any level. The Tarn Hows course will add to an existing network of permanent Trail O courses around the country – so further challenges await those who get hooked on the activity.

The Tarn Hows circular walk winds through woodland around the side of the lake, taking in some fantastic views of the Lakeland fells.

While scanning the woods for Trail O marker posts you might also spot some of the wildlife that calls these woodlands home.

This could include red and roe deer, bird life, and even red squirrels. The woodland trees also offer interest in themselves, with a variety of native and exotic species growing side by side.

Tarn Hows is a man-made feature, created around 1865 for recreational pursuits. This new recreational activity gives a modern approach to the recreational uses of this popular beauty spot.

Jessica Worlock, Community Learning Officer for the National Trust in Coniston, said “being suitable for all ages and physical abilities, the new Trail O course provides a fun and challenging activity perfectly complementing the recent improvements to the path around Tarn Hows.”

The Trail O course was officially opened at 11am on Monday by Neil Cameron, Chairman of British Orienteering. You can take up the challenge at any other time by downloading the trail map and instructions from the National Trust website, or, during half term or at weekends in the winter, by picking up a laminated copy from the National Trust landrover at Tarn Hows.

The Trail O course has been made possible by the Tarn Hows and Monk Coniston Project, which is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

For further information please visit the National Trust website www.nationaltrust.org.uk and search for ‘Tarn Hows’. For further information on Trail O see www.trailo.org or www.britishorienteering.org.uk/newto/poc.php.