The Chiltern Kanter, organised by the Beds, Bucks and Northants group of the LDWA, is map reading event - so instead of a route, you have a list of grid references, to plot on a map to make your own route around them. At each of the grid references (32 on the 26 mile route) there is a question to answer, about something at that location, to show that you have been there. So it's a bit like a giant treasure hunt, but with no treasure (but the treasure is the experience).
My favourite questions were:
Grid ref 9685 1687 "who donated the gate in 2011?" - The Dunstable Bogtrotters
Grid ref 9411 0756 "sign on wooden fence, what do you have to do?" - Smile!
Grid ref 9232 0958 "what grows on trees?" - Happiness!
I have done this event before, in 2017, and I really enjoyed it, so was looking forward to going back. My preparation was perhaps a bit substandard - only getting back from holidays last night, I didn't start plotting the route until 8pm, which in hindsight, was a bit last minute. At this point, I realised I had marked up the 2017 route on the map in bright pink highlighter pen, and had left post it notes of all the old grid references all over it as well. I marked up the new route in purple highlighter, but the bright pink was a bit distracting when trying to concentrate on today's route today! If I was technical, or even organised, I would have worked out how to plot the route on the GPS as well, but that is still beyond me.
Drove up with Andrew, to Pitstone Memorial Hall, the start. Due to some logistical misalignments, we didn't quite manage to run with Alan as planned, but it was great to catch up afterwards!
The route was really nice, through some lovely scenery. Actually, through even more lovely scenery than planned, as I really wasn't on top form today and made some stupid navigational mistakes, but on the plus side, we got an extra 2.3 miles of nice running for free!
It was really sociable, and saw so many people on the way round. Met my Mum, Dad and Auntie Nicky at CP 1 for a nice catch up! Lovely as well to catch up with Jan and Rob, Rachel, Bryan, Dave and Merrian, Sharky, Jean, and Alan.
Thanks Andrew for putting up with me for the whole time, and providing emergency jelly beans when I had a wobble, and not being mad when I was looking for the wrong railway bridge on the map and not thinking we were where we actually were for quite some time.
We went past the place of "Cow Roast", which was a name I thought was a bit insensitive to cows, especially with it being around about Sunday lunch time. I looked it up, and it's nothing to do with roast dinners, but is a corruption of "Cow Rest", as it is a hamlet on the route of an old drovers route in to London, with pens and grazing for the cattle to rest.
I didn't actually see any cows, so they were either all resting or all roasting, but there were llamas and alpacas, which is always a plus.
Another great event by Beds, Bucks and Northants LDWA! Lovely route, 3 excellent checkpoints, hot meal at the finish, a beautiful certificate, and a warm welcome!
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