The High Atlas - After 50 Years
1963-2013
Neil Dumbleton (FS 60-64).
April 23rd, 2013, witnessed a gathering in St Bees to mark the 50th anniversary of the school's first expedition to the High Atlas Mountains in Morocco in March-April, 1963. Of the seven boys who squeezed into the expedition's rented Bedford van that Easter holiday, one, David Pecker, had sadly died some years ago, and another, Richard Langhorne, was prevented by illness from joining this reunion. But the remaining five, plus our wives (Langley and Adi Brown, John (Dan) and Julia Colver, Neil and Barbara Dumbleton, Mike and Gill Jamison, and Richard and Pam Woodhead), needed little persuasion to return to St Bees for an evening of reminiscences. Of the three school staff members involved, Gordon Dyke and Alan Francis had also died, but e-mails from Australia brought good wishes and some surprisingly vivid recollections from Ronald Johnson. Each of the venues used, the Abbey Farm B&B, the bar of the Manor House hotel, and Lulu's Bistro in the old station house, proved to be perfect for the event.
Unsurprisingly perhaps, memories and impressions after half a century proved to be entirely favourable. Everyone looked back on those three weeks as arguably the most memorable single event of their school years. Back in 1963, of course, Morocco seemed very far away. A climbing expedition to the Atlas then appeared as unlikely as one to the Andes today. A certain spirit of adventure and a readiness to explore were probably essential prerequisites for everyone who signed up; but we all returned with those personal attributes reinforced for life. St Bees probably passes on a love of the hills to most of its students, but for at least some of the Atlas veterans that has since become an addiction. Many of the recollections voiced were of coping with the unexpected (bartering with the Berbers), adversity (wet bivouacs by the side of the road), deprivation (food) and difficulty (the climbing itself), and of the lasting lessons of friendship and team-work in dealing with them. Re-reading the school's report on the expedition, it is clear that we took too much of its smooth running for granted. Most of the planning, financing, equipping and provisioning passed by either invisibly or uneventfully, and, as a result, was largely unappreciated at the time. In contrast, the unplanned and the unexpected, most notably the initial overloading of the Bedford van and one enforced bivouac in the mountains, provoked feverish interest and excitement. On one matter there was total agreement: we had been so fortunate to have experienced this adventure in an era before the invention of health and safety! Referring to the uncertainties and potential dangers involved, not to mention the absence of any risk assessment, Ronald Johnson expressed amazement that our parents had given permission for their sons to take part! The school deserves considerable credit for having the courage to carry through this pioneering event, and for repeating it in subsequent years.
The reunion's exchange of memories was greatly assisted by archival evidence, most notably the school's CCF report on the expedition, compiled by the staff and boys soon after our return, forwarded from Australia by Ronald Johnson. A separate report, dealing with equipment, supplies and logistics, was provided by Langley Brown. In addition, Langley supplied a viewer to enable us to re-live key features of the expedition recorded on Richard Woodhead's 35 mm. slides. Further evidence from a distant photographic past came in the form of a handful of black-and-white photographs supplied by Neil Dumbleton. The reunion also benefited from a DVD supplied by Clare Green, the daughter of Alan Francis, showing, what was originally 8 mm film of the school's 1971 expedition to the Atlas.
Finally, participants at this 50th anniversary gathering would like to thank a number of key people at St Bees who contributed to the success of the event. These include David (Fred) Lord (OSB Secretary and Treasurer), Nigel Halfpenny (Bursar) and Anthony Wills (OSB President) and his wife, Joanna, who added greatly to the occasion by bringing their wit, wisdom and memories to the Manor House bar. Above all, our thanks are due to Pam Rumney in the OSB office for her invaluable help and advice on matters of accommodation and hospitality, for her research through the school's archives, and for guiding us on a tour of the school on the following morning. It couldn't have been better, Pam!The High Atlas Mountain Trip 1963 - Summit
The High Atlas Mountain Trip - Reunion 2013
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The St Beghian Society, St Bees School,
St Bees, Cumbria, CA27 0DS.
Tel: (01946) 828093 Email: osb@st-bees-school.co.uk
Web: www.st-beghian-society.co.uk