Club Origins Continued...
By mid-November the Hut was ready for its official opening meet, the attendance of which was swollen perhaps by the (unfounded) rumour that Sir John Hunt was perform the opening ceremony. All that happened was that the weather, which had been fine all summer and autumn, reverted to its Welsh habits. Torrential rain, hail, sleet, carried on a force seven gale battered us as we trotted across the moor to the Sportsmans Arms for a celebratory drink.
Meanwhile, during that glorious summer, club activities continued. A party visited the Alps where one member experienced his first and only impromptu descent into a crevasse. The Tranearth meets were well established as the most popular event in our calendar. Standards of climbing were rising steadily. The same could not be said of the catering, as we were still in the tinned stew era. But these were happy months for the club - prospects for our own hut at last, warm sunny days on almost all meets which ranged from Helsby to Yorkshire via Snowdonia and the Lakes. In September the indoor meets re-commenced at a new venue, the Mitre Hotel in Dale Street. They were still of an informal nature and at least one member enjoyed a menu of slides and beer.
New Year 1960 saw our second Annual Dinner, again at the Crown Hotel, but with a difference since we had a hut to return to afterwards. It was clear that this would be our last dinner at the Crown since our attendance was outgrowing the accommodation. Nonetheless, the meal and atmosphere were excellent. The President again said a few words but this was the last completely informal Club Dinner.
An E.G.M. was held on Jan. 29th for the purpose of approving an amendment to the rules which clearly defined the management of the Club. This was carried after the rejection of a suggestion that the President was purely a figurehead and therefore should be in office for longer than the proposed two years. Margaret Wilson and Jim Horn retired from committee and were replaced by Ray Harold and Jim Heppell. Neil Hayes was elected to the new position of Hut Warden. A list of hut rules was proposed and adopted. In a discussion on the actual organisation of meets it became clear that two factions were forming - those who favoured a certain amount of organisation and those who wanted the absolute minimum.
A committee meeting on Feb 28th is worth noting as a new hut sub-committee was appointed comprising Neil, Ray and Mike Oldaker to explore the possibilities of a new hut in Snowdonia. Also a new office was made, that of Liaison Officer for transport, to which Mike was elected. Co-ordination of transport on meets, hiring mini-buses if necessary, and providing transport for other weekends were his main duties. There is nothing in our records to suggest that this office has ceased to exist and the writer feels that Mike would still be pleased to oblige, be it a weekend at Cae'r Fran or a full scale Himalayan expedition!
Meets were now falling into the pattern similar to today, five in the Lakes, eighteen in Snowdonia, and a day meet in Yorkshire of Derbyshire. A cordial relationship with the Lancashire Caving and Climbing Club continued to develop through their invitation to our members to use their hut, Tranearth, at any time by prior arrangement. This still exists and is likely to be ratified in the near future by full reciprocal rights between our clubs.
"the rule regarding the disturbance of cattle in adjacent buildings may have been broken..."
At the A.G.M. on July 1st 1960 by popular opinion, Fred Smith was elected for a second term of office through a loophole in the constitution discovered by our legal expert Jim Heppell. Hilda Fenner was elected Secretary and four committee members retired, replaced by Pam Pogue, John Craig, Albert Sheppard and Jeff Lloyd. It was interesting to note that contrary to expectation in some quarters twelve months earlier N.Y.M. had had a successful year and was in use almost every weekend. Affiliation to the BMC was approved. Finally it was announced that the Hut Sub Committee had found a possible hut above Llanberis, known as Cae'r Fran, but that further negotiations were required. In fact these were to proceed for the next twelve months. The remainder of the year was fairly uneventful, apart from a meet at N.Y.M. which coincided with Bonfire night, a veil shall be drawn over the proceedings except to say that the rule regarding the disturbance of cattle in adjacent buildings may have been broken.
Cae'r Fran. Circa 1962 (photo: Fred Smith)
The Annual Dinner 1961 was held at the White Lion, Cerrig y Drudion, when thirty-eight members and guests attended. Because of dense fog blanketing Merseyside four failed to arrive and two more fell off their motorbike on the icy roads. Those that made it had a memorable day on the Snowdon Horseshoe in deep crisp snow and bright sunshine. The Chester M.C., Ceunant Club and Lancashire C. & C.C. honoured us by sending official representatives, and there were two unofficial guests from the Wayfarers Club. Although more formal than previous dinners it was a thoroughly enjoyable occasion.
Indoor meets acquired a more formal air by the introduction of guest speakers. One of the most successful that winter was a lecture by Albert Ravenscroft on his expedition to the Peruvian Andes. The winter Indoor Mountaineering Classes were now being run by Brian Grahl because of Fred's departure to Staffordshire. They continued to provide a steady influx of new members to the Club although by now the rule of Graduate Membership was in force. The Club continued to support the class on practical weekends by providing additional instructors to take charge of the ropes.
By the A.G.M. 1961 membership stood at forty plus four graduates; it was evident that the policy of slow steady growth was paying dividends since the friendly atmosphere of the club persisted. At the meeting the President announced that Cae'r Fran was a write-off as it had been impossible to obtain agreement with the owner over a lease. However N.Y.M. was still more than fulfilling its purpose but efforts continued to find a hut more accessible to Snowdonia. Despite expenditure on the hut the balance at the end of the financial year stood at £57. 15. 8d
The Committee meeting at the end of September was an important one. It considered a letter from the owners of N.Y.M. suggesting we may soon have to leave as the property was needed for a farm bailiff. Fortunately we had recently inspected some properties; of these Tan-y-Bwlch appeared the most suitable, although only a little nearer the main climbing areas than N.Y.M. It was situated in a pleasant valley near Dolwyddelan and close to a crag for the V.S. man. Perhaps if we had taken it the term "Doll-ard" might have crept into our vocabulary.
It was agreed that although in poor condition the property had potential and a tender of £30 per annum was made to the Forestry Commission. A circular describing the house and its position had been sent out by the President and it generated a considerable amount of discussion.
"This was possibly revenge for someone using his teapot as a shaving mug... "
Meets continued to be held at N.Y.M. where the shepherd who stored his tackle in one room was obviously aware of our impending departure, since he gradually spread his equipment into other rooms. It was not unusual to find cans of sheep dip in the kitchen and gadgets for the removal of warble fly maggots from cattle in the Common Room. This was possibly revenge for someone using his teapot as a shaving mug. It was also evident that a more active atmosphere was beginning to prevail through the climbing of Ray Harold, Alan Stuart, John Baker and others who were leading many fine routes. Indoor meets moved to our present venue at the Guide shop in Richmond St., and a reasonably well organised programme of lectures by Club members and guest speakers carried out.
Our last Dinner at the White Lion was held in January 1962. This was our most successful Dinner. It was well attended and all seemed to enjoy the speeches that followed a good meal.
In February occurred the greatest coincidence in the history of the Club. It was to be a turning point in our career. The same day that the President received a letter from the Forestry Commission accepting our tender for Tan-y-Bwlch, Jack Drummond had a telephone call from Mr. McKinnon asking if we were still interested in Cae'r Fran as he now had permission to let it to us. The cat was then really amongst the pigeons! Both places had obvious drawbacks. Cae'r Fran had an ideal position but the proposed lease was most insecure and would prohibit any major development or large investment of funds. Furthermore the annual rent was 25% higher than T-y-B and we would be liable to rates on the property. The building, whilst larger that many huts in the Pass was only one third the size of N.Y.M. and doubts were expressed as to whether there would be sufficient accommodation .
In the three weeks before the Special General Meeting of March 2nd a series of fast and furious committee meetings were held, when practically all the pros and cons of both properties were thrashed out. There was so much to do and so little time left before our departure from N.Y.M.. The Committee, led by the President carried out a fantastic amount of detailed work on Cae'r Fran: visits to see Mr. McKinnon, applications to the Local Council for rates relief, a fund raising draw, negotiations for a three year lease, Town and Country Planning applications, a schedule of tasks on working meets, a programme for removal from N.Y.M. to Cae'r Fran, etc. etc. The S.G.M. endorsed the committee's actions and a collection was made for Sophie Jenney who had the misfortune to slip on wet turf outside Cae'r Fran and break a leg.
The weekend of April 28th was the last meet at Nant y Merddyn to remove all the equipment. The party had first to re-build the road to permit the passage of a furniture van to Cae'r Fran . At 3.30pm on the Sunday N.Y.M. was left in peace for the last time and I suppose there must have been some who felt a degree of nostalgia. N.Y.M., despite it's location, had served us well. We had the quiet beauty of the fields sloping from the hut through woodland to a small river containing edible trout, (which contrasted well with the harsh moorland rising on the other side of the valley); evenings at the Red Lion in Llantsannan, and the familiar twisting road which led across the moor to the mountains. I wonder how many have since driven along that road to see if the old hut is still there? Most of all, our departure marked the end of an era, which saw the conception and birth of an idea which continues to grow steadily. The club owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to the members of those years, in particular to Fred Smith and Jack Drummond without whose inspiration, ability and planning, the idea would never have become fact.
Cae'r Fran. Demolishing the outhouse fot the toilet block extension.
left to right. Dave Salter, Mike Oldacre, Chris Shannon, Dave Clark (?), Albert Sheppard.
(photo: Fred Smith)
Cae'r Fran: Raising the roof and installing the kitchen window. Alan Mullock and Trevor Cottrell holding the frame. (photo: Fred Smith)
This story has been a long one, too long perhaps. In it are mentioned many names but many more have been left out and it must not for one moment be thought that those who are not mentioned have taken no part in the development of the Club, for what is the club but the sum of it's members.
There is still a lot to be told. We shall undoubtedly continue to advance. We hope, amongst other things, to have the opportunity to purchase Cae'r Fran, so we may develop it further and extend it if necessary, towards our objective of having the finest club hut in North Wales. We already have, we believe, the finest spirit of any mountaineering club in the area and we are determined that this essential character of the Club shall remain unchanged.
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