The last weekend of each month can only mean one thing, it’s DAS Resilience time! Organised by Denbigh Army Surplus Store, it is a brilliant 'race to grid point' competition, where the week prior they advise an OS Map no. covering the area where the location will be. On last Saturday of the month they publish a grid reference, you then have a window of three hours to get to the point – first there is the winner. This would be my third DAS Resilience having discovered the challenge over the summer, however, this time it wouldn't be a day event (the grid ref is normally published at 10am) but instead, a night navigation exercise!
The majority of my early night navigation experience was spent during my time in the Officer Training Corps, where we would tactically trawl across Catterick training area. The main objective here was either trying to locate the enemy and ambush, or try not to be seen by the enemy and, well, hide....sometimes for hours. This is where I first experienced hallucinations, the type you only get when looking into the dark for so long trying to make out just what that shape is, that you begin to see the most ridiculous things. Any other time you would think "this is madness! There is no way that a tank is coming straight towards us" or "I know that I am not really seeing a Native American Indian over near that shrub......it is in fact....just another shrub.... isn't it?”
The majority of my early night navigation experience was spent during my time in the Officer Training Corps, where we would tactically trawl across Catterick training area. The main objective here was either trying to locate the enemy and ambush, or try not to be seen by the enemy and, well, hide....sometimes for hours. This is where I first experienced hallucinations, the type you only get when looking into the dark for so long trying to make out just what that shape is, that you begin to see the most ridiculous things. Any other time you would think "this is madness! There is no way that a tank is coming straight towards us" or "I know that I am not really seeing a Native American Indian over near that shrub......it is in fact....just another shrub.... isn't it?”
The moon out just after sunset
This is what it can be like when out on a night navigation, you see and hear things that you know can’t possibly be there, but your brain suggests otherwise. It was only in later years when I experienced night navigation at a more leisurely approach that I began to truly appreciate how good an experience it can be. Sure, it can be horrifyingly scary if the weather is awful and you are cold, tired and possibly lost, but with a few lessons in how to navigate at night, your skills will enable you to become confident in making decisions and taking precautions when out in the dark.
A quick note: anyone looking to navigate at night I would seriously recommend taking a night navigation skills course as it is different to navigating during the day and is a great skill to have if you get caught out in the dark on the hills. Also, like everything, practice makes perfect, so do a number of night navs in familiar, well tracked terrain, where you have an easy point of exit should things get dicey.
A quick note: anyone looking to navigate at night I would seriously recommend taking a night navigation skills course as it is different to navigating during the day and is a great skill to have if you get caught out in the dark on the hills. Also, like everything, practice makes perfect, so do a number of night navs in familiar, well tracked terrain, where you have an easy point of exit should things get dicey.
The lights of Ruthin as the sun sets
A great thing about being out on the hills in the dark is the atmosphere, it is so quiet and you come across the nocturnal wildlife and it provides the feeling that it is just you and nature existing. On a clear night you see the most unbelievable stars and often shooting stars.
On this particular evening the weather conditions were perfect with clear skies a near full moon, though it was the coldest it had been in a long time, with a chilly wind exposed on the ridge. The OS Map was ‘265 Clwydian Range’ though the grid ref could be anywhere on the map, but I hazard a guess that they would choose a location on the range itself, so headed towards the car park Bwlch Penbarra.
Having no idea where they would be I decided to make my way up towards the Jubilee Tower just before the 7pm when the Grid Reference was to be published via the DAS facebook page.
On this particular evening the weather conditions were perfect with clear skies a near full moon, though it was the coldest it had been in a long time, with a chilly wind exposed on the ridge. The OS Map was ‘265 Clwydian Range’ though the grid ref could be anywhere on the map, but I hazard a guess that they would choose a location on the range itself, so headed towards the car park Bwlch Penbarra.
Having no idea where they would be I decided to make my way up towards the Jubilee Tower just before the 7pm when the Grid Reference was to be published via the DAS facebook page.
The walk up was quiet apart from the sudden rush of feathers as birds flew out of the heather and I didn't really expect to see anyone else on the hill at this point. I was then surprised to see a lone man making his way down the path, so as one does when they find themselves alone on a hill in the dark I jumped over a low stone wall alongside the path and.......hid! Here I lay with baited breath whilst listening as the footsteps approached. "Had he seen me?" I thought, "or have I just escaped a psychopath?!" I’m sure he wasn't actually a crazed man trouncing across moorland looking for unwitting fell runners, though these days you never know!
I waited until the footsteps had faded into the distance and peaked over the wall to see if there were any head torch lights in the distance. It was approaching 7pm so I got out the map and waited for the grid reference to be published. At 7pm I had it and was happy to see that it was in fact on the range and not too far off from where I was! I jumped up, put on my backpack and ran up the track toward the Jubilee Tower, stopping every now and again to listen out for voices. Due to the conditions being so good I didn't need my head torch and decided to leave it off so I could make a tactical approach, hoping not to be seen by other contenders. Unfortunately they must have had the same idea, for once I was on the top at Jubilee Tower there were no tell tale signs on people knocking about. The wind also was pretty wild on top so it was impossible to hear any other noises apart from its howls and my god, it was chilly!
Checking my map once again I made my way in the direction of the grid reference only to discover I was going across heather that was slowing down my process. With a bimble here and a few ‘flat on face’ falls I decided to head east to pick up a path before re-entering the heather again. This unfortunately was to become my folly as though it enabled me to run faster, it also meant that it added time on my approach to destination. As I began the run, skip and jump across the heather again, I noticed a light, which could only belong to a head torch. With a sudden rush of adrenaline I thought ‘that must be the guys from Denbigh Amy Surplus store at the destination. I’ve found it and in good time’ and picked up pace. It was only as I approached that i saw a couple more head torches and heard a group of voices....yup, sure enough I arrived at the destination to discover that I had been beaten by a group of three lads. And by only 4mins!!
Checking my map once again I made my way in the direction of the grid reference only to discover I was going across heather that was slowing down my process. With a bimble here and a few ‘flat on face’ falls I decided to head east to pick up a path before re-entering the heather again. This unfortunately was to become my folly as though it enabled me to run faster, it also meant that it added time on my approach to destination. As I began the run, skip and jump across the heather again, I noticed a light, which could only belong to a head torch. With a sudden rush of adrenaline I thought ‘that must be the guys from Denbigh Amy Surplus store at the destination. I’ve found it and in good time’ and picked up pace. It was only as I approached that i saw a couple more head torches and heard a group of voices....yup, sure enough I arrived at the destination to discover that I had been beaten by a group of three lads. And by only 4mins!!
Oh well, at least I arrived at the destination safe and sound, without getting lost across the moors of the Clwydian Range. After a chat and a quick cup of tea, kindly supplied by DAS, I said my farewells and ran back over to the path, passing the Jubilee Tower and running back down the path toward the car park. It was really cold hanging out on the top, so the run back was a warming welcome and as I headed back an owl came out of nowhere and flew above and beside me before making a 90degree turn toward the woodland.
Once back in the car, with warm clothes on and the heating turned up I thought about the night navigation and how much I enjoyed it, from the skill of map reading in the dark, to the tactical thinking that it brought out in me. So I didn’t win, but for me taking part in these DAS Resilience challenges is not just what it is about. It gets you out on the hills and challenges you to use your skills whilst adding an element of competition, whether it is with the other contenders or just with yourself. The guys who organise it are great and it is always a pleasure to catch up with them and meet other folk. Throw in a bit of adrenaline and excitement whilst waiting for the Grid Reference to be published and you have got an all round awesome challenge that is DAS Resilience!
And my mantra, which is often said at the end of these challenges.....’Next time it will be mine’!
Once back in the car, with warm clothes on and the heating turned up I thought about the night navigation and how much I enjoyed it, from the skill of map reading in the dark, to the tactical thinking that it brought out in me. So I didn’t win, but for me taking part in these DAS Resilience challenges is not just what it is about. It gets you out on the hills and challenges you to use your skills whilst adding an element of competition, whether it is with the other contenders or just with yourself. The guys who organise it are great and it is always a pleasure to catch up with them and meet other folk. Throw in a bit of adrenaline and excitement whilst waiting for the Grid Reference to be published and you have got an all round awesome challenge that is DAS Resilience!
And my mantra, which is often said at the end of these challenges.....’Next time it will be mine’!
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