OWPG
Big Weekend 4 - 7 October | Waveney River Centre | Norfolk
Stan Abbott looks back on the recent Big Weekend and forward to future trips...
I
have an embarrassing secret to share…
despite being a longstanding member of the
Guild, I have not actually been to all that
many AGM weekends.
I was one of the many OWG (as it then
was) foot-soldiers gently pressganged into
membership by the indomitable Roly Smith
back in the early 90s. I began my Guild life
by organising a media trip for members to
Svalbard, and managed to lift my solitary Guild
award for a portfolio of news reports, a category
now long forgotten and, I dare say, rightly so.
I’m unsure whether I made it to the AGM to
collect my award – the inner workings of the
organisation seemed then like something I could
comfortably leave to others, immersed as I was
in the febrile politics of other bodies, like the
Association of National Parks and the campaign
to save the Settle & Carlisle Railway and, indeed,
in the demands of a young family.
Many years later, kids long left home and
several diff erent career lives down the track,
an email from Dennis Kelsall, the then AGM
weekend organiser, piqued my interest. He was
proposing a weekend on Jersey, with the chance
to stay in a yurt at the zoo, meet Gerald Durrell’s
widow and participate in a host of exciting
activities. Hefty support from the tourism
authority and Flybe meant that this looked like a
great weekend at minimal outlay.
The weekend wholly lived up to its promise
and the memory of arriving by fast RIB at the
ephemeral tidal islets of Les Écréhous, just of
the French coast, is one that will always live with
me. That weekend became the benchmark for me
and it remains a pinnacle of AGM achievement
that will be diffi cult to surpass, although
the Isle of Wight was also very good.
Anyway, this is all a rather long way
of saying that I was guilty for too long of
not participating in the Guild’s headline
event. The AGM weekend is the prime
opportunity for members to get together
to share experiences, tell stories and
harvest the mutual support that our little
organisation off ers. So, when Dennis,
sadly, felt it was time to stand down, I
struggled to keep my hand by my side
as a new AGM weekend organiser was
sought.
I don’t think I’ll ever match Dennis’s
supreme achievements, but – having
originally said I’d give it just two years
– I now confess to quite enjoying the role. The
secret is to get ahead of the game: suitable
venues get booked up a long way in advance
and we got our excellent Exmoor venue only
because of a cancellation. With that in mind,
I got straight on with organising this year’s
weekend on the Broads, and that’s also why
arrangements for next year’s Big Weekend, as it
has been ‘rebranded’, are already well in hand.
The Broads weekend took us to new territory
and for many of those there, it was actually a
fi rst visit to this fascinating cultural landscape.
On our little boat ramble, we were privileged to
see several rare marsh harriers and a kingfi sher,
while others spotted the rather less indigenous
Chinese water deer. I’d dare to venture that the
collective experience, notwithstanding some
pretty Biblical weather, was positive enough
to persuade members that our organisation
is indeed worth of our ongoing support and
nurture.
Next year’s Malham location will provide an
excellent opportunity for members to participate
in a really wide range of activities, including
a walk and ride trip on the Settle & Carlisle
Railway, which is once again taking centre stage
in my own working life. I’m also hoping for a
bit of not too testing caving, alongside off -road
cycling and maybe a bit of rock climbing, and
wild swimming.
Subject to tidal conditions – which I have
yet to research – it may be possible to take the
train to Arnside for an adventure on the sands of
Morecambe Bay.
But to cut to the chase – there’ll be plenty
to do for Guild members and for their partners,
who are always entitled to enjoy the
full range of activities on off er.
Looking ahead to 2021, I’m
currently working on a venue that
would be very exciting indeed - if I can
pull it off .
From all this you’ll gather that
I’m not about to throw in the towel and
quit Big Weekend organisation, though
enthusiastic apprentices are always
welcome. In that regard, many thanks
to Allan Hartley, who popped his hand
up in the Broads, and will now provide
valuable on-the-ground support at
Malham.
< Stan skippering on the Norfolk Broads
winter 2019 | Outdoor focus 7