A few hills have attempted to emerge from the Hall of Shame during the year, with mixed success.
Alan Dawson: A very pleasant ascent through open woodland, but after half an hour of searching I still couldn't find the trig point. Shortly after getting home I discovered detailed instructions which Jon Metcalf had sent me months earlier but which I'd forgotten about.
Peter Wilson: The comment in Marhofn 38 about Woodhead Hill is unjustified and incorrect - recent felling means the top is relatively easy to reach and there is a small cairn (assuming of course that the small cairn we found was the true summit).
David Purchase: This is not quite as difficult as Ken Whyte suggests. Yes, there is new planting, surrounded by a fence, but there is a gate at the SE corner, and the highest point is just outside (S of) the fence. It is worth going soon however, because when they fell the trees to the S of the summit the problems will be much greater.
David Purchase: If this hill is in your Hall of Shame under Excess Tree Density, it can now be removed. The summit region has been felled, giving some pleasant views. But getting there (from the north) across the resulting debris was none too easy.
Chris Peart: There is a track over the top along the district boundary, and the trig is in a large clearing.
David Purchase: I am not sure why this is classified as Excess Tree Density. There is a wide north-south track just east of the trig point, which itself is in an open clearing. Admittedly there is no view, and the area is flat, so you just rely on the 25K map to satisfy yourself that it is the summit. As I returned to the SSW I was greeted affably by the landowner and we had quite a long chat.
John Abbott: I feel as though I should defend Dundry Hill as I have lived most of my life in its shadow. Even now, I live within four miles of the Marilyn and much closer to the (more pleasant, less spoilt) eastern end of the hill. I have to concede that the immediate vicinity of the summit is a mess (old tractors, building debris, 'sludge' etc). It didn't smell (okay, so it was breezy) and the views of Bristol, South Wales, Somerset hills etc are as good as ever. Surely there are worse Marilyns? Am I being too protective of my local Marilyn?
Alan Dawson: Yes you are. Maybe there are worse, but unless there's been a big clean-up, it's still shameful.
David Purchase: I think its qualification for the Hall of Shame is at least marginal. If approached from the south you avoid all the nastiness in your photo and may not even be aware of it. I think Billinge Hill is much worse.
Alan Dawson: I don't. But then Billinge Hill used to be my local Marilyn, so perhaps I'm biased too.
David Purchase: Found a near-naked couple in the bushes not far from the road. After making lots of noise to warn them of my approach, I found that they were members of the cast changing for an evening performance at Glyndebourne.
