Competition: This is a score event of 60/45 minutes depending on your age category. Click on the courses tab above to see more details. The results of this event will be used to determine the NE Score Champions for 2025. The event is open to anyone but to qualify as North East Score Champion/ runner up, you must be a member of a club affiliated to the NEOA.
Please Note: the clocks go back one hour during the night before our event so remember to factor this into your travel time!
Travel/Parking: Parking will be in the Waldridge Fell Country Park Ellen Street car park W3W ///junior.surely.apron. Travel by car: best approach is from the A167, turning onto Waldridge Lane (from South) and then onto Waldridge Road or turning onto Waldridge Road (from North). The car park will be signed from Waldridge Road. In the event that the parking becomes full, please follow marshalls’ directions to additional parking on the fell. All car parks are free and open to the general public and are particularly popular with dog walkers; please drive carefully.
Travel by train: There is a regular train service from Newcastle and from the south to Durham from where you can get a bus to Waldridge.
Travel by bus: Bus #50 operated by Go North East runs every hour from 09:15 from Durham bus station and will drop you on Waldridge Road from where you have a ~15 mins walk up to the fell.
Map & Area: Congburn and Waldridge Fell, fully remapped for the purposes of this event using current Lidar data by Allen Banister and Julian Warren in Summer 2025. Map scale 1:10,000 with 5m contour intervals. Congburn is a steep sided naturally wooded valley. A wagonway runs partway along it’s length, evidence of its former use as a colliery. The highest point of the area (Waldridge Fell) is a moorland containing heather and bilberry from where you can obtain fantastic views of the surrounding countryside.
Registration/Enquiries: in Waldridge Village Hall located across Waldridge Road from the parking. Waldridge Road is a fast road with limited visibility, please follow marshalls’ directions. The village hall will house registration, enquiries, download and toilets. Bags/bikes etc can be left here at the owners risk. Registration will be open from 10:30 – 12:15 for EOD, dibber hire. Access to toilets will be avaiable until 14:00.
Entries: Online via Racesignup Entries close on 19th October 2025 at 23:59.
Late Entries: Limited EOD subject to map availability.
Fees: Senior BO members – £8, Senior non-BO members – £10, Juniors/Students – £4
EPS: This event will use the SportIdent electronic system. Control stations will be enabled for touch free punching (SIAC) but competitors will need to punch the start and finish control. All control sites will have a backup system in the event of control failure. This involves a tag with a unique 3 letter word instead of the traditional punch. Remember the word and report it to the download team to prove you have visited the control.
Hired Dibbers: Dibber hire is available for £1 – choose this option with Racesignup. You’ll need to pick up your hired dibber from Enquiries before you go to the Start. Lost/damaged dibbers will be charged at £30.
Start: Start times from 11:00 – 12:15. Courses close at 13:15. Walk to start tbc.
Finish: location tbc. All competitors must report to download even if you do not complete your run.
Control descriptions: descriptions will be on the map. There will be no loose descriptions required for this event.
Results: Live results should be available at the event and later on the website (see results tab above).
Safety Information: First Aid will be available at enquiries/download. In the event of injury/incident whilst out on the course, report to finish for assistance. Brambles are prolific once you get off the paths and so full leg cover is required.
Note that orienteering is an adventure sport. A comprehensive risk assessment for the event has been prepared and identified risks have been mitigated, however please be aware that participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event.
Facilities: Toilets will be available in Waldridge Village Hall, 5 minutes from the parking. Please treat the facilities respectfully e.g. remove shoes if muddy.
Sorry, there will be no water at the finish, please bring your own supply.
Dogs: Dogs will be allowed, but please clean up after your dog.
Thanks: Many thanks to 2nd Chester-le-Street Scouts for use of Waldridge Village Hall and to Adam Dixon (Senior Parks and Countryside Ranger, DCC) for permission to use the area.
Officials:
- Organiser – Debby Warren
- Planner – Kate Hampshire
- Controller – Allen Banister
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This is a score event open to all and planned to meet the guidelines for the NE Score Championships.
A number of controls will be set out which you can visit in any order. There will be a time limit (see below) – collect as many controls as possible in the given time – each control will have a point value with points deducted for being over time.
There will be a penalty of 10 points per minute or part thereof for being overtime. The winner will be the competitor with the most points in the shortest time.
The results of this event will be used to determine the North East Score Championships in the following categories:
Course:
60 min – Men Open, Men Vet (40+), Men Super Vet (55+)
60 min – Women Open, Women Vet (40+)
45 min – Men Ultra Vet (65+), Men Junior (16-), Men Young Junior (12-)
45 min – Women Super Vet (55+), Women Ultra Vet (65+), Women Junior (16-), Women Young Junior (12-)
You may want to run out of class and if so you must declare this at registration (i.e. 45 or 60 min course).
NEOA members will qualify for certificates to be awarded to the class winners shown above.
Results are not yet available.
Organiser’s Comments