slowcoach, yes I remember the fire engine, did you ever see the tractor on Fylingdales, just the air intake pipe and the exhaust sticking out off the bog.

re bogged tractor , it could have been on Stony Marl Moor

Hi Tim. No I haven't seen the tractor. Do you have a location please? I saw the remains of the aeroplane above Low Mill that crashed during the war and spoke to one of the lads who took a pair of scissors from it! Also, the owner of Spaunton Grange was killed when an aircraft crashed into his field and the blast blew a kitchen door open crushing him.

I believe the remains of the fire engine are still there, but, shame on me to say, I haven't been back since those long nights fighting the moorland fires!

Slowcoach, time flies,
i was over there a few weeks ago , whoa when i think about it,
it was some time in 1991 and the remains of the fire engine was still there,
you must be getting a bit long in the tooth if you were fighting that fire, what a dangerous job. a change of wind direction and you can be in trouble.
there are a lot of people we take forgranted.
i have been involved with fires getting out of control
a workman set some dry dockings on fire in a hayfield one morning,
I was the first one back to the field after dinner and ruined a pair of boots stamping the fire out before it had chance to burn the crop of hay.
the wife was non to pleased at me wasting a pair of boots.
dangerous stuff fire , when you are out side ,if you run away it seems to chase you. I suppose that is because you cause a vacuum.

the tractor , last time i was that way there was no sign of it.
I reckon it would have been at OL951 005
that is quessing as I did not take a grid reference at the time
and it would have been at least thirty years ago.

My most vivid memory of the fire was the night that a rep from Newcastle Brewery turned up with about a dozen creates full of ale for "the firefighters". Once news got round people appeared from nowhere! Two arrivals wereceven dressed in suits and a collar and tie. The alarm was raised on 26th June and the flames were eventually extinguished on 17th September when Stokesly had about 7in of rain in 24 hours. (Remember the town going underwater?)

Been quite a bit on this, but as Oldun says it's not easy to locate! Yes, a gps can be set to either give you a magnetic or true bearing. compass variation can be quite high in some locations - some of the spots I go to, the difference is over 20 degrees, so if using a gps in conjunction with your compass then it is critical to know what setting your gps is on.
IMO map & compass skill is the ace in the pack, but a gps is invaluable in situations of 'whiteout' or becoming disorientated in featureless or restricted vision terrain.
If the co-ordinates of your base camp are entered before leaving (a simple question of just pushing a button and giving the base a name) then in the event of a 'whiteout' scenario you can immediately get your gps to give you a compass bearing to follow back to your destination. Similarly, if you get the coordinates of your destination from your map and enter them before leaving, then you'll have the option of continuing on.
I remember it being drilled into us that because it relies on electricity, 'radar is an aid to navigation' and not a substitute for it. Although I often carry a gps and find it offers good peace of mind, I think of it in the same way!

I'm 38 and a bit stuck in my ways, I recently got a phone with a GPS app on it which gives you your OS grid co-ordinates amongst other bells and whistles. We got caught up above Patterdale a couple of months ago in white out conditions which slowed us down considerably and the GPS was invaluable in getting us down below the weather quickly as we started to lose daylight.

TBH that's the only time I've used it as if you have decent visibility a map and compass is more than adequate.

I agree with Oldun on this.
After I purchased mine some years ago, at first I used it a couple of time combined with routes that I had set on Memory Map and downloaded to the GPS. Following the arrow on the unit, you end up only seeing the GPS and not the surroundings. I dont use it this way anymore. In fact I only have it in my rucsac, in case i need to know my exact location, as I spend a lot of my walking cross country, off the paths. Map and compass for me with the occasional GPS location to set another compass bearing from a known position.
Dave.

In reality, having a quality GPS which shows OS maps on it can be likened to having a paper map in that you still have read it and follow directions! You don't however, have the problems that paper maps create when windy or you are on the edge of a sheet or in rain (even with a waterproof cover). Checking a location/ checking a route takes less then 10 seconds in all weathers. But, at the end of the day it is how you intend to use it that matters.

As I have said before, if your walking is mainly on identifiable paths and you don't intend to get lost (in the snow) then maps are fine. If you walk across open terrain in all weathers then once the mist comes down they are a great comfort as you always know your exact position (as opposed to a rough estimate)and you can identify hazards that you are aiming towards. Without a GPS this becomes more difficult.

However, for many, using only a map and compass adds to their fun ... and long may it be so!!!