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Wasdale Destruction Diary Online...

Wasdale resident Guy Newbold is documenting the impact of controversial Three Peaks charity challenges on the remote and beautiful Lakeland valley and it makes for ugly reading...


Posted: 6 May 2003
by Jon

Fourteen minibuses in a quiet cul de sac of the Wasdale valley in the Lakes, six of them parked in a space reserved for Mountain Rescue vehicles...

Up top - Scafell Crag, wild and serene..,

Residents woken by cheers, doors slamming and minibus engines in the small hours of the morning. Piles of litter discarded at the side of the road ...

It can mean only one thing, Three Peaks Challenge season has started again.

Now OUTDOORSmagic member Guy Newbold who lives and works in Wasdale at the base of Scafell Pike has started an online diary aimed at highlighting the impact of charity challengers on both local residents and the environment.

Down below, discarded rubbish from Bank Holiday
Monday's Three Peak challengers
(pic: Guy Newbold)

He's documenting from a local's point of view exactly what the arrival of buses full of walkers in the small hours of the morning actually means for Wasdale in the hope that it will prompt individuals and organisations into reconsidering the mass charity attempts on the Ben Nevis / Scafell Pike / Snowdon challenge.

Last year in a hard-hitting article, Guy described how remote Wasdale was being overwhelmed by challengers who arrive in the middle of the night, wake locals and visitors alike, cause concentrated erosion damage to paths, leave a legacy of litter and discarded toilet paper then depart with a cacophany of roaring minibus engines.

'Wasdale is taking a beating, and is not always a pretty or pleasant place to be,' he said, before calling for charities to take a long hard look at what they're doing. Sadly, if the May Day Bank Holiday weekend is anything to go by, his calls, so far have gone unheeded.

Take a look at the first entries in Guy's Three Peaks Challenge Diary here, but be warned, it's depressing stuff...


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OK so in the past many people have been accused of over stating the effect the 3 peak challenges have to the areas they use.

Well in an attempt to highlight the actual impact and reality of these events, I will be keeping a diary online on my web site , supported by photos where needed to show the effects in Wasdale.

Hopefully this will get some of the organising charities to rethink their involvment, who knows.

The diary will be updated daily (although most events are weekend based not all are)and can be found at

www.felltreks.co.uk

Posted: 05/05/2003 at 17:40

Go for it Guy. Best of luck to you.

How about letting the print magazines know what you are doing?

But try to keep an objective state of mind...otherwise you'll just get yourself REALLY depressed.

Posted: 05/05/2003 at 18:06

Trail did something about the three peaks challenge, in that they took part in the 4 peaks (inc. the Irish one), but they did mention that it wasn't good for the areas they go to. It's not like it aids tourism in the slgihtest.

Posted: 05/05/2003 at 18:26

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