Wharncliffe

Toilets will be situated near to the Arena.

There will also be one near the East start and three at the West start, one of which is specifically for Elites and Helpers.

Starts

There are two Starts, both approximately 25 minutes walk for an average M/W65 in opposite directions from the Arena.

Start	Courses	Route	Details
West Start	1 to 15, 22 to 23	1.5km, 40m climb	On exit from the Arena a high wooden style has to be used to get over a 1.5m wall. Please use carefully. The route onto the Chase has a short section of path, and then continues over tussocky grass and broken ground.
East Start	16 to 21, 24 to 26	1.6km, 15m climb	The route to the East Start follows footpaths through fields and woodland

Finish

This will be in the Arena and is the same for all courses. Courses will close at 16:00.

Courses 1 to 3: Maps will be collected until 13:30. Using or looking at any orienteering map or other map of the competition area during the competition day before running renders you liable to disqualification on these courses.

Map

Wharncliffe was last used for a National event in 2022. Courses from this event can be seen on the SYO Routegadget.

The map is to ISOM 2017-2 IOF Specification, unless otherwise stated. Map are A3, Scale 1:7,500 for Courses 16 to 21 & 24 to 26, 1:10,000 for Courses 7, 9 to 15, 22 & 23, and 1:15,000 for Courses 1 to 6 & 8. Contour interval 5m. Survey and cartography by Dave Peel (Peel Land Surveys) for JK25.

Wharncliffe is a complex area containing numerous and often complex rock features. To ensure the map is as clear as possible, this detail has been simplified: in very rocky areas, only expect the most significant rock to appear so the map is clear to read at 1:15,000. 

Where the boulder field symbol (209) has been used the going is very slow and requires care.

In a further effort to aid map clarity, the numerous MTB trails are represented by the ride symbol (508) instead of the path (506) or indistinct path (507) symbols. They are often muddy, braided or indistinct and new trails can emerge at very short notice, possibly since the map was produced.

Another effort to improve the map clarity is in the use of the green variant of symbol 416 distinct vegetation boundary instead of the usual black dots, given the amount of rock detail in much of the area.

Black circles (530) represent shooting butts.

There are a couple of very small fenced enclosures on the open area (1m x 1m) which are not mapped.

Terrain Notes

Wharncliffe is an outstanding and formidable area for orienteering. It includes a wide range of terrain types, including a forested plateau, an open moorland and a rocky escarpment cratered with mine workings and capped by a gritstone edge, the magnificent Wharncliffe Crags. The neighbouring Wheata Woods offer a great contrast to Wharncliffe, with an abundance of thickets and a complex path network created by walkers and bikers, which provides plenty of opportunities for complex route choice.

Wharncliffe has hosted the British Orienteering Championships and other major events and will provide a fitting venue for a challenging but memorable JK Long. 

The western scarp slope of Wharncliffe is strewn with boulders, many overgrown with vegetation making the gaps between boulders difficult to see. It is hence very slow going (and potentially hazardous), particularly for the more elderly or less agile competitors. Therefore, for safety reasons, the courses for those over 65 (and the youngest juniors) have been planned to avoid the most physically challenging parts of the area. The TD4 courses (M/W14 and Light Green) do, however, use the western scarp slope as the Planners feel that M/W14's will want the challenge of this part of the area. This does mean that the Light Green colour-coded course is not recommended for those over the age of 65. Those affected may want to consider entering the short course for their age group.

Course Details

Course	Classes	Start	Distance (km)	Climb (m)	Controls	Map Scale	Tech Diff
1	M21E1	West	14.4	440	33	1:15,000	5
2	M21E2	West	13.8	440	33	1:15,000	5
3	W21E1	West	11.5	380	27	1:15,000	5
4	M21L W21E2	West	11.8	360	29	1:15,000	5
5	M18E M20E	West	10	310	27	1:15,000	5
6	M35L M40L W21L	West	9.8	295	27	1:15,000	5
7	M45L M50L	West	8.8	240	23	1:10,000	5
8	W18E W20E	West	8	210	21	1:15,000	5
9	M55L W35L W40L	West	7.9	245	20	1:10,000	5
10	M60L M20L M21S	West	7.1	250	20	1:10,000	5
11	M16A M18L M35S M40S W45L	West	6.6	250	21	1:10,000	5
12	W50L	West	6.2	185	16	1:10,000	5
13	M45S M50S W55L W21S	West	5.9	170	17	1:10,000	5
14	W60L W20L	West	5.4	145	18	1:10,000	5
15	M55S M60S M21V W16A W18L W35S W40S	West	5.5	160	18	1:10,000	5
16	M65L	East	6.5	185	18	1:7,500	5
17	M70L	East	5.5	150	15	1:7,500	5
18	M75L M18S M20S W65L W45S W50S	East	4.5	145	14	1:7,500	5
19	M80L M65S M70S W70L W20S W55S W60S W21V	East	4.2	120	11	1:7,500	5
20	M85 M75S M80S W75L W80L W18S W65S W70S	East	2.9	95	9	1:7,500	5
21	M90 M95 W85 W90 W95 W75S W80S	East	1.9	45	7	1:7,500	5
22	M14A M16B	West	4.8	140	14	1:10,000	4
23	W14A W16B Light Green	West	4.1	100	11	1:10,000	4
24	M12A M14B W12A W14B Orange	East	3.7	95	10	1:7,500	3
25	M10A M12B W10A W12B Yellow	East	2.9	75	11	1:7,500	2
26	M10B W10B White	East	2.6	55	14	1:7,500	1

Drinks Point

There will be 2 drinks stations on Courses 1 to 3. Many other courses will pass the drinks point, and can be used if really needed. There will be no drinks provided at the Starts. Competitors may bring a plastic bottle to the start to be crushed and placed in rubbish bags for disposal.

Safety Directions

Generally, head East until hitting Woodhead Road, then follow back to the Arena. All competitors must report to the Finish.

Safety

The area is heavily used by the public for dog walking, running, horse riding, and especially mountain biking. Courses have been planned to avoid the main mountain bike tracks, but still be aware that you may cross these tracks, and that bikes may be going fast.

There are the usual hazards with steep and narrow muddy footpaths, rough vegetation, tree roots etc. Please take care.

Prizegiving

The overall JK Prizegiving (Middle and Long combined) and WRE Flower Ceremony will be held at about 15:30, or as soon as possible after this.

Acknowledgements