The missing trig

 Saturday 26th September 2025

All trigs on OS sheets 97, 98, and 103 have been visited over the years. It is not easy locating them on Memory Map on my Mac, and so it was that I came across one I'd missed on Sheet 97 as I fed my map browsing addiction the other day.

The location is on private land. After only a twenty minute car journey from home I drove up the track to Faraway Farm, Here was the original farmhouse and two modern residences built next door. I went to the farm and was informed that the trig was not on his land, it belonged to the Wild Life Trust. The farmer said he has been up there and gave me directions. He also warned me that it was all very overgrown and I might have a problem finding the trig. I then went to one of the other houses and obtained permission to leave my car on their posh gravel drive.

After a couple of hundred yards the second gate encountered was leaning at an angle away from me and fixed so as to be un-openable. I climbed over with some difficulty. A short walk up the grassy hillside brought me to a wall surroundung the trig's wood. I found a place where a tree had fallen over the wall giving easy access. From thereon the wood was very nearly impenetrable. There were many fallen trees, low growing holly bushes, deep bracken and brambles all the way thwarting navigation by forcing one to take a wandering route to take any advantage of relief in this dense jungle terrain.  I made good use of the compass there and back. There were no views and I only sighted the trig when I'd got to about twenty yards from it. Surprisingly, and I suppose the raison d'être for the trig's location I had a pleasantly framed view through the trees across the Leven estuary to my home and Arnside Knott.

On the return that second difficult gate on the ascent now posed a whole different problem because it was leaning sharply towards me. At my age I am past climbing overhangs, not that I was so accomplished in my climbing days anyway. I just could not get back over that gate, or perhaps I could have done, but my imagination painted a picture of twisting, falling, ripping, or braking, and I let common sense prevail.. I had noticed a stile further back going into the rear garden of the house where I had obtained parking permission. I climbed over and tripped warily through their garden without being noticed and back to my car.

Quite a little adventure and perhaps the toughest trig I have visted on these camapigns.

Faraway Farm. The cottages owning this garden/parking are ff photo to right

The trig is in the middle of the wood on horizon

Distant Arnside Knott across the bay

In context. The route is the little blue squiggle top centre next to Town Head