CYHA News

Mud, Mud Glorious Mud!

Out, out damned spot! Who would have thought Hatfield Broad Oak could have so much mud in it!

Eight miles through sucking mud left me with aches, blisters and a sort of Jackson Pollock effect on my trousers. Still, after an unpromising start, Sunday was a beautiful spring day. A fresh breeze to blow those cobwebs away, hedgerows full of primroses, plus mud-enhanced aerobic exercise - what more could you ask for to welcome in Spring?

Llanddeusant Weekend

In this remote part of the Brecon Beacons day is day and night is definitely night; walking into a hedge before you get to the pub is common and rustling a paper bag in a field full of sheep is as good as a dinner gong for them.

On Saturday morning the weather was good and we set off from the hostel to walk Carreg-Y-Ogof and Bannau Sir Gaer, remembering the days of an earlier trip when red yeti gaiters were the height of fashion and the Ford Capri ruled the road. The hostel is now vastly improved, having had showers and central heating installed, but retains the charm of the past with the range and fittings.

Saturday evening was spent in the local pub where Welsh tradition was honoured with the flat cap and temperature controlled toilets (freezing cold).

Sunday came all too quickly and a brisk walk up Skirrid (or Ysgyryd Fawr) near Abergavenny was enjoyed before the trip home.

Nigel

Our Place in History...

Those of us who have helped with gardening work at Saffron Walden hostel over the last few years may be interested in a quote from a recently published book Saffron Walden, a photographic history. The chapter on Myddylton Place describes the building that is now the Youth Hostel: "There is a large entrance arch ... leading to a charming walled garden; it has recently been planted with the plants that would have been there in Tudor times."

Hostel Closures

You may have heard the news that ten Youth Hostels will be closed at the end of this summer's season as a result of losses sustained during the closure of the countryside due to Foot and Mouth Disease. The hostels are: Aysgarth and Linton in the Yorkshire Dales, Buxton and Elton in the Peak District, Copt Oak (Leicestershire), Dufton (Cumbria), Holmbury St Mary (Surrey), Thurlby (Lincolnshire), Norwich and Windsor.

So, any millionaires reading, now's your chance to save a hostel...

Read Jane's news from her round-the-world trip - Postcard from Oz

See the lastest installment of Gerry's tour of Venezuela.

Venezuela 2002

"Venezuela is a country of striking natural beauty and dramatic contrasts: the snowcapped peaks of the Andes in the west; steamy Amazonian jungles in the south; the hauntingly beautiful Gran Sabana plateau, with its strange flat-topped mountains, in the east; and white-sand beaches fringed with coconut palms lining the Caribbean coast." (Lonely Planet)

Here is my proposal for a CYHA trip to Venezuela

Length of trip: 17 days Dates: Friday 1 November 2002 to Sunday 17 November 2002

(11 days off work, 15 days on holiday, 2 days either end for travelling to/from Caracas)

Climate: November is towards the end of the rainy season so we can expect some rain but it should be warm. Angel Falls and the other waterfalls will be powerful.

The main highlights will be the canoe trip to Angel Falls and a tour of La Gran Sabana in a jeep.

We'll also visit the capital Caracas and the city Ciudad Bolivar where the only bridge across the Orinoco is located.

It won't be a cheap trip because the only way to visit Angel Falls involves a plane ride to Canaima. Plus the 3 day jeep tour of La Gran Sabana is expensive. These two tours account for £300 of the cost. As a comparison, to do this with JLA would cost £1100.

There are other options, for instance the Andes mountains in Merida (alt 5,000m), Paraguana Peninsula (interesting mountain, beaches, salt beds) plus other places that I have not visited and I'm open to suggestions.

Cost: Based on what I spent 18 months ago we'll spend around £700 in Venezuela for food, accommodation, tours and travel. To this we need to add approx £600 for the airfare to Caracas, insurance, vaccinations and anti malarial medication.

So the total cost will be around £1300. To this I'd add say 10% for inflation/exchange rate differences. So we are looking at £1400.

What may reduce the cost is the Venezuelan Bolivar exchange rate: when we were there the rate was 1,000 Bolivares to the pound. Today (13 March) it is some 1,300 Bolivares to the pound but don't count on this as I don't know the inflation in Venezuela.

If you are interested: contact Gerry gerry_l@kodak.com.