Day One of a weekend of Urban League Orienteering by the east coast shared with Roxburgh Reivers whose event follows on Sunday 7th at Eyemouth just 8 miles north across the border.

Updated: 9/5/26 Safety + Courses + Map Scale

Image courtesy English Heritage- used with permission.

The much fought over historic town of Berwick will be stormed one more time on 6th June. The land slopes from North to South, becoming quite steep as it nears the Tweed. Courses may take in the Elizabethan town walls (see Safety Notes below), the remains of the castle, and the streets, alleys, and courtyards of the town centre. Longer courses will cross the river to Tweedmouth, and all courses will make acquaintance with the hillocks, depressions, gulleys and ruins of the mediaeval defences. Plentiful rain of recent months has encouraged the grass to grow thick and long and also been good for nettles. Long socks might be advisable.

Access: Berwick-upon-Tweed lies close to the A1 Great North Road London to Edinburgh, some 60 miles from Newcastle and from Edinburgh.
Berwick-upon-Tweed railway station is within the town and only 500 metres from the event assembly. Direct services call from/to London and Edinburgh (LNER & Lumo) and stations along the East Coast main line, and from/to stations on the Cross Country network. From Glasgow currently two early morning direct run, otherwise one change. From Manchester, Leeds, Inverness, Aberdeen one change. From Newcastle LNER and TPE shuttle to/from Edinburgh

Parking: Castlegate, Berwick-upon-Tweed TD15 1JS. ///leader.apples.sailor Google Maps
The Car Park is in two sections. Short stay (3 hrs) at the west end (9 on the plan); Parking Disc required (any authority including Northumberland CC available from dispenser (£1 coin) or local shops.) Further east, nearer assembly, free (no disc or time limit 18 and 20 on the plan). Plan of these and alternative Parking.

Entries: online via SiEntries from 6th April to midnight Sunday 31^St May. Limited entry on the day for Courses 7 & 8 only, subject to map availability. Please enter in advance if possible.
Seniors (M/W 21 and over): Courses 1-6: £15
Seniors (M/W 21 and over): Courses 7 & 8: £5
Juniors (M/W 20 and under)/Students: All courses: £5 
Enter any course you want, unless aged under 16 on the day (restricted to course 7 or 8). Entry to age group courses necessary to score UKUL league points.

Assembly: On the grassy area at the east end of Castlegate car park. Registration/download tent (open from 11:00 am.) and a tent for leaving bags and kit will both be here. No indoor Assembly. You can leave a car key at registration/download.
No personal or club tents to be pitched.
Starts: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.. No pre allocated start times.
Two starts: The Far Start (courses 1 – 3) 1.5 km. taped route from Assembly. Pavements with 2 pelican road crossings.
The Near Start (courses 4 – 8) 225 m. taped route from Assembly.
Loose descriptions at starts.
Two Finishes close to Download/Assembly. Courses close 3:30 p.m.

Courses: subject to final controlling.

Entrants on courses 1 and 2 need to ensure they have an SI card (‘dibber’) that will register more than 30 controls (punches). This is also advisable for entrants on course 3, too, in case you punch an extra control or two. SI-card 8 has a limit of 30 controls and SI-card 5 will not register split times after 30 controls. If you need to check the type of your dibber/SI card, please click this link.
If you need to hire an SI card for your course (£1 to hire, £30 if lost), you can do so when you enter.

Mapping is using ISSOM symbols, a reminder that the competition area is at two levels. Black triangles indicate ends of tunnel under a higher mapped level. Black dots show outline of tunnel.
White hatching shows where the upper level crosses the lower level.(Purple hatch is road that is out of bounds)

Map: new map by Lewis Taylor 2025. Scale: 1:3000

Facilities: Public toilets at the west (entrance) end of Castlegate car park.
Full range of eating and shopping opportunities in town centre in short walking distance.

Dogs: In the car park only.

Organiser: Gwenda Cavill NATO <gwenda352@gmail.com>
Planner: Fred Miller NATO
Controller: Robin Sloan RR

Safety: General: A comprehensive risk assessment has been carried out by the organiser, but participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety. Non-members of British Orienteering who, for example, accidentally injured a member of the public or damaged property during the event, are not covered by British Orienteering’s public liability insurance. 
Mindful of recent incidents, whereby a competitor has collided with a member of the public and just carried on without apology or offering assistance, please, please, exercise care. Look out for pedestrians, who will not be expecting to encounter you, and other competitors, around tight bends or when exiting alleyways. It is your responsibility to avoid them, not theirs to get out of your way. Should you collide with a member of the public, at least pause to check the wellbeing of the person(s) collided with. Any incident involving the public should be reported. Be aware of vehicles and cyclists when crossing roads. Busy roads are signified by the darker tan colour – take extra care. The roadway past Castlegate car park and south and west to the road bridge is dangerously busy and marked strictly out of bounds. Pavements and pedestrian crossings can be used. 

Berwick specific

Berwick town walls are several metres tall, and have a sheer drop. All courses except 8 Young Juniors touch upon these walls. The walls are delineated on the map by a very thick black line, and reinforced by a purple do-not-cross line on the inside of the walls (see attached illustration). Keep to the paths or open areas along the town side of the defences and be very careful of other people using them. Along the back edge of these defences there are a number of former ammunition stores (the sideways black ‘V’ on the illustration). The doorways of three of these have been used as control points and should be approached from the side, not from directly above.

Berwick town wall is very high. That arch contains a door that allows public access up to and down from the wall. You may need to use it!” The figures in the photo give some scale.

There are a number of gates in the vicinity of the walls – please close them after you.

The town wall along the Quayside is pierced by a few rather narrow ‘tunnels’. Be very cautious when emerging from these tunnels onto the Quayside, as other people or occasional cars may be passing.
The roadway in the vicinity of Castlegate car park and south and west to the road bridge is dangerously busy and marked as strictly out of bounds. Pavements and the pedestrian crossings can be used.  

Please upload your route to RouteGadget
Guidance available: “How to upload a route”

Beanley Moor, Beanley Plantation and Titlington Pike occupy an elevated site in rural Northumberland approximately 25 miles north and 35 minutes drive from Morpeth. The summit of the moor, Titlington Pike, is a prominent landmark travelling on the A697 Morpeth to Wooler road.

Entries: It is necessary to enter in advance before midnight on Sunday 12 October. Click here to enter at SiEntries. Entry fees are £12 for seniors or £5 for juniors/students. If you do not have a dibber you will need to hire one, which can be done during the entry process. You will need to pick up your dibber from Download on the day of the event before going to the Start. There will be a charge of £25 for a lost dibber.

Parking / Assembly / Download: Google Maps ///stunning.gains.redefined NU 08424 16724

The event will be signposted from the A697 (Eglingham turn-off)

Starts: 1.9km (60m ascent) north-east from the parking/assembly up the minor road and then a short walk on a forest track. The route will be taped. Allow 30-45 minutes walk.

Finish: On the opposite side of the minor road from the parking/assembly.

Course Start Times: 10:30 – 12:30. You can turn up at the start at any time between these times to start. A one minute interval will be left between participants on the same course so you may need to wait before you can start.

Course Close Time: 14:30

Maps: We have a brand new map for 2025 by Paul Taylor. Previous maps are available on RouteGadget here: 2023 event map, 2016 event map

Terrain: White and Yellow courses are on tracks or following fence lines/walls in the forest or on the fellside. Orange/Light Green and Short Green course are in the forest and on the fellside. Green, Blue and Brown courses additionally visit Beanley Moor. The forest has undergone a lot of felling recently but the courses are planned to avoid the worst of the brashings. Beanley Moor has intricate rock and crag detail and some heather to contend with. The fellside towards the finish is fast going. Vegetation hatching on the moor can represent bracken or particularly tough heather. The marshes on Beanley Moor tend to offer better running because they often have animal tracks, and the boundary fence also has animal tracks along most of its length. Thickets across the entire map may be gorse, thick bushes or patches of windblown trees, individual fallen trees are not mapped.

Facilities: A toilet will be available in the parking/assembly field. First aid will be available in the assembly field. The Tankerville Arms in Eglingham serves food and drink from midday.

Safety: All competitors must report to the Download in the assembly field even if you have not finished your course. Full leg cover is compulsory. All competitors must carry a whistle. Cows may be encountered in the fields towards the finish – give them a wide berth. Ticks are present in the area; check yourself as soon as possible after your run. The organiser will advise nearer the time if a waterproof, hat and gloves must be worn or carried (depending on the weather). A risk assessment for the event has been prepared. Orienteering is an adventure sport and participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event. The event is run under British Orienteering rules.

Strictly no Dogs: Sorry, but no dogs are permitted at this event even if they are left in your vehicle. There have been issues before in the area and we don’t want to jeopardise future events.

Courses

North East Championships: To be eligible for the North East Championships competitors must enter the course for their age class.

NATO Club Championships:  Runner speed (min/km) multiplied by an age factor multiplied by a course difficulty factor will give a score. Link to NATO Club Championship factors. Entrants can enter any course to be eligible for the NATO Club Championships but may want to consider entering the course for their age class to additionally be competitive in the North East Championships. NATO Club Champions will be declared for men and women in categories Young Junior (12-), Junior (16-), Senior (35-), Veteran (40+), Supervet (55+), Ultravet (65+), Hypervet (75+).  

Organiser: Francis Shillitoe, fshillit@hotmail.com, 07941 360 586
Planner: Jonny Malley
Controller: Andy Lewsley – Borderliners

NATO Champion declaration.
NEOA Champion declarations will appear on NEOA website

Please upload your route to RouteGadget.
Guidance available: “How to upload a route”

Terrain Notes updated 12/10/25

Final Details 13/10/25

Terrain: Cramlington is a typical 1960s new town. The housing estates are split by arterial roads (which are out of bounds – see below) and connected by underpasses.  The whole area is spanned by a network of cycle tracks.  The various estates lead off arterial roads and provide a complex grid of paths and green spaces within which are several urban parks, schools and small shopping areas.  There are also several care homes as well as some blocks of sheltered housing.

Competitors must use the underpasses to avoid the main roads which are indicated by purple hatching..

Junior courses (6 & 7) will include quiet estate routes. Please take care. Juniors who have not reached their 16^th birthday must enter one of these courses.

Assembly, toilets and a café are at Concordia Leisure Centre, Forum Way, Cramlington, NE23 6YB.

What3Words: ///unloads.sectors.weaned
Google maps

Bus: From all surrounding parts including Newcastle Haymarket and Regent Centre (from Metro) to Dudley Lane Shops. Walk right through the shopping mall (400 m.) to Concordia Leisure Centre outside the far end.
Rail: Newcastle > Cramlington > Morpeth (650 m.)

There is ample free parking at the leisure centre limited to four hours.

Entries: It is necessary to enter in advance before midnight on Sunday 12th October. Click here to enter at SiEntries. Entry fees are £12 for seniors or £5 for juniors/students. Dibber hire can be done during the entry process. Collect your hire dibber from Download on the day of the event before going to the Start. Note that courses 1 & 2 require a dibber that can record more than 30 controls. There will be a charge of £25 for a lost hire dibber.

Starts from 12:00 noon until 2:00 p.m. You can turn up at the start at any time between these times to start. A one minute interval will be left between participants on the same course so you may need to wait before you can start.

Courses close at 4:00 p.m.

Start – 5 minutes walk south of Concordia Leisure Centre.
Finish – (Manned) East of Manor Walks Shopping Centre. Taped return to Concordia Leisure Centre.

First Aid will be located at Assembly at Concordia Leisure Centre with communication from the finish.
Maps: The map for all courses is A3 size at a scale of 1:4,000. Courses 1 & 2 will be double sided.

Organiser Mary Rack m.rack@AOL.com
Planner Patrick Smyth
Controller Allen Banister – Northern Navigators

Safety: Orienteering is an adventure sport.  A comprehensive risk assessment for the event will be prepared and identified risks mitigated. However, please be aware that participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event.
First Aid will be located at Assembly at Concordia Leisure Centre with communication from the finish.
Be aware of urban hazards – traffic, cycles, pedestrians particularly at blind corners.
Please take care of yourself and others.

Please upload your route to RouteGadget.
Please note: Because of a technical issue, which cannot be speedily remedied, GPS traces will record off line. We apologise for this and suggest you try the Autofit facility to mitigate this.
Guidance available: “How to upload a route”

Entries now closed. Limited Entry on the Day (see below for details).

Following the Durham Spring Sprints in Durham organised by Northern Navigators on Saturday 14 June (part of the UKOL), we present Newcastle Urban on Sunday 15 June (part of the UKUL & UKOL).

On this classic-length urban event in Newcastle city centre, courses visit university campuses, streets and lonnens. This race forms part of the UK Urban League (UKUL), offering challenging age-group courses. Courses may cross churchyards, the town wall, Chinatown and other central areas of the Toon.

Assembly and start: Registration/download and kit/clothing tents on the grassed area in front of the Great North Museums: Hancock, NE2 4PT. No indoor assembly; tent available for kit/clothing bags. You can leave a car key at registration/download. The Start is within 50 metres of the Assembly and the Finish is located nearby on the Newcastle University campus. Approach from the south end of Claremont Road. Please do not walk through the campus on your way to the Assembly area.

Finish: follow the taped route back to Assembly, either via the steps or ramps. This route crosses a road using a light-controlled crossing.

Facilities: Coffee cart serving drinks and ice creams from 10:30am. Café and toilets open from 11am at the Great North Museum: Hancock adjacent to Assembly. See also this toilet map for nearby facilities.

Public transport: Newcastle central railway station 1.5 km from assembly, Manors railway station 1.2km

Eldon Square bus station 650m, Haymarket bus station 500m

Haymarket metro 400m, Manors metro 1.3km

Car parks: No designated event parking. Parking is available close to the assembly, for example at Claremont Road car park NE2 4AN (£3.00 fixed charge on Sundays), on-street at Park Terrace and Kensington Terrace (£1.50 per hour, maximum 5 hours. Blue Badge holders free), or Sandyford Square car park (£2.10 per hour, next to Newcastle Civic Centre). For council-run car parking, see here.

Terrain: Almost the whole of the City Centre, including Newcastle and Northumbria Universities, China Town, shopping and leisure areas, and parts of the Town Wall, including the town ditch. The ground largely slopes downwards from north to south, but the really steep-sided Tyne river banks are not visited.

Map: Updated and extended north and west 2024-25 by Fred Miller. Contours every 5m. Special symbol to represent public steps between ground and upper level: may be rectangular or circular.

Courses: If you are new to orienteering, don’t feel you need to compete in your age category: the age classes only apply if you want to compete in the orienteering leagues. Otherwise, over-16s can enter whatever course they want. Anyone aged under 16 on the day of the event may only enter course 7, 8 or 9.

Safety: Anyone aged under 16 on the day of the event may only enter course 7, 8 or 9.

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.

Please note: The club will not be able to organise future events if the current event causes problems for members of the public. Please take care to avoid other users of the roads, pavements and spaces. They will not be expecting to encounter you, and it is not their responsibility to get out of your way.

– Participants are responsible for avoiding members of the public and should control their speed and route choices to achieve this. Note that approaching ‘noisily’ so that people might get out of the way may create a poor impression of the sport.

– Map reading should be performed in areas where there are low risks of collisions and competitors shall control their speed while reading the map to avoid collisions.

– Participants, should they collide with a member of the public, shall at least pause their runs while they check on the wellbeing of the person(s) they collided with.

– Participants shall report all incidents involving members of the public while they are competing.

– Look out for any cycles, e-bikes and e-scooters: they may behave unpredictably.

– Some route choices, including on junior courses, take you close to a pond. Please do not go into the pond!

– Some route choices may take you past the finish. Tape will be in place between the last control and the finish to help separate people still on their courses and those heading for the finish.

– The forecast is for rain showers. Please take care on surfaces that may be slippery when wet.

Image credit: Roger

Revised results uploaded to this site 17/6/25 at 21:30 (amendment to WUV)
To UKUL & UKOL 18/6/25 12:00

Please upload your route to RouteGadget.
Guidance available: “How to upload a route”

The controller apologises for the delay in releasing the results: time was needed to address a protest, and adjust the results when the protest was upheld.  I hope that competitors enjoyed the challenging courses set by the planner, as well as the new section added to what is now an extensive urban map of Newcastle.

We received a protest about the map. We agree that underpasses were mapped inconsistently in the SE corner of the map affecting Courses 1-4. We would like to apologise to anyone this inconvenienced and have excluded leg 115 to 143 on the courses affected (1-4). We have also informed the mapper to consider changes for the future.

We have found a blue t-shirt, water bottle and comb. Please contact sandersonkim@hotmail if they’re yours!

This year’s club championships will be decided by scoring the results of all club members at Day 2 October Odyssey at Doctor’s Gate above Hamsterley Forest, organised by Northern Navigators on Sunday October 1st.

Link to event details.

Pre entry is required by 24th September and club members should enter their choice of course (see below) in the usual way. No declaration regarding the championship is needed.

For each club runner speed (min/km) multiplied by an age factor multiplied by a course difficulty factor will give a score. See link below for details & examples. That leaves entrants free to choose their course difficulty and balance that up with anticipated speed.

Link to Championship factors.

Note, however, that NEOA championships are also awarded at this event and for these you do need to enter your age allocated course.

Part of the Tyne Valley Night and Day weekend, this Hexham urban event invites participants to navigate around the newly developed High School grounds, a park and the wider town.

Terrain Town centre, residential streets, school site and mixed parkland.

Image (c) Paul Buckingham

For beginner orienteers we recommend entering Course 5 (if you have some navigation experience), 6 or 7. Pairs or groups can orienteer together: just pay for one entry if you only want one map. See our FAQs or contact the organiser if you have any questions.

Entries Now open via SIEntries. Seniors (M/W21+): £10.00 Juniors (M/W20-): £5.00.  Guaranteed entries close Sunday 19^th November. Limited entry on the day for courses 5, 6 and 7 only (subject to map availability).

Travel Hexham is accessible by rail on the Tyne Valley line running between Newcastle and Carlisle; the railway station is 2km from Assembly.

Stagecoach Bus 685 runs between Newcastle/Carlisle and Hexham, and stops outside the Police Station approx. 500m from Assembly. The bus station is 1.6km from Assembly.

GO North East buses are on strike, but some (often minibus) replacements may be available.

GO North East Services 687 and 688 would normally stop close to Assembly. GO North East bus service 683 is a circular route through Hexham, connects the bus and rail stations, and would stop close to Assembly.

Free car parking is in the Queen Elizabeth High School car park, signposted off Whetstone Bridge Road.

Free cycle parking is available close to Assembly.

Assembly Follow signposts from the main High School entrance to the Community Sports Hub behind the school.

Starts between 10:30-12:30, Start located approximately 800m from Assembly along a taped route. Finish adjacent to Assembly.

Facilities Toilets, changing rooms and showers at Assembly. Vending machines for snacks and hot drinks (these take card payments). Outdoor seating is available in a courtyard area next to the Sports Hub. No dogs are permitted on the school/sports centre site.

Entry via SIEntries in advance. Entries on courses 6 and 7 will be available on the day.

Officials/contact Organiser: Kim Sanderson sandersonkim@hotmail.com, Planner: Francis Shillitoe, Controller: Tim O’Donoghue.

Map Paper Size A3, Scale: 1:4,000, ISSprOM 2019-2 (Francis Shillitoe 2023)

Safety The terrain for all courses will include parkland and some slippery areas, including a cobbled street with a ford. We advise wearing shoes with grip as there is more mud around than usual. There are roadworks on the main thoroughfare which affects courses 1, 2 and 3. These roadworks are not marked on the map but should not impede progress.

Courses 6 and 7 will go through parkland and school grounds, linked by quiet residential streets. A timed-out pelican crossing (1 minute) will take them across a busier road.

Dogs may be present in the park area where the Start is located.

Please be aware that, if you are retracing your steps after finding a control – especially in a narrow space – the priority is to stay alert because other competitors might be approaching the control.

Orienteering is an adventure sport. A comprehensive risk assessment for the event will be prepared and identified risks mitigated. However, please be aware that participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event.

RouteGadget now available. Please upload your route.
Guidance available: “How to upload a route”

Inspection Saturday 11:30 a.m. Decision to proceed with the event.

CompassSport Cup & Trophy Heat. National event at Beanley, N.W. of Alnwick
Participating Clubs: Cup: CLOK, AIRE, WCOC
Trophy: NATO, BL, NN

updated: 15/02/23 (course details)
2/3/23 (distance to near start shortened)
4/3/23 (start list link added here and below)
5/3/23 (final details added here and below)

Beanley Moor and Plantation occupy an elevated site between the villages of Eglingham near Alnwick and Glanton (near the A697 Morpeth to Wooler road). The summit of the moor at Titlington Pike is a prominent landmark when travelling northwards on the latter route to the event. The moor extends north eastwards towards Eglingham with the central section occupied by a plantation beyond which the moor descends to the village.
The area includes a hillfort and other archaeological features. An article about this prepared for NATO’s next club magazine may be of interest to visiting clubs.

Travel: From the South, travel north on the A697. 10 miles north of Longframlington turn right – signed Eglingham and O-signed) – onto Playwell Road, Glanton. At the crossroad continue straight across. Car park is 500m on the left. Park as directed.
From the North, travel south on the A697 to Powburn. 1 mile south of Powburn turn left ( O-signed) onto Playwell Road, Glanton. See above.
Please use the above approaches from the West only.

Car Park: at NU 08588 16871 ~ 55.4460222,-1.8658814 ~ ///baseballs.thick.alternate
Sorry DOGS are not permitted, not even if they are left in your vehicle. We will be sharing the field with lambing ewes.

Entries: Entries via Club Captains. Closing date: 26th February
(NATO Members to Katherine Brown beanley.compasssportcuptrophy@gmail.com or Kim Sanderson sandersonkim@hotmail.com )
Non-Championship pre-entry via SiEntries from 2nd February.
Entry closes for these courses 5^th March.
Championship and non-Championship: Seniors (M/W21+): £10 Juniors (M/W20-): £5
Entry on the day will also be available for non-championship courses.

Final Details

Start List

Course notes: Courses from the Far Start use heathery moorland offering contour detail and rock features.  Bracken will be low at this time of year. 
Orange (9A, 9B), White and Yellow courses will visit the southern part of the area: rough pasture, moorland and a small wood.  White visits only the pasture and wood.
Maps for the White and Yellow courses should be collected from assembly before going to the start.  
Due to the destruction caused by storm Arwen courses will not include the main forest. 

Map: Original by J.Dixon. Updates: 2010 (J.Mason, P.Taylor, A.Barnes), 2015 (georeferenced F.Miller), minor updates 2022 (George Hare). For scales see course details above.
Previous versions can be viewed at 2010 and 2015 or emailed on request.

Starts: There are two starts. Routes to both begin along a minor road. After 0.7 km. the route to the Near Start turns onto a forest track. The route to the Far Start continues along the minor road. Near Start (1 km.) is for courses White, Yellow and Course 9a, 9b. All other courses use the Far Start (1.7 km.). Please start at your allocated time. As both starts involve a walk along the road, please beware of any vehicles. Start times for non CompassSport courses: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Finish: Both starts have corresponding close finishes. There is limited space for spectating.

Facilities:
In car park: toilets, first aid, a maze and cake stall.
Close to far start and finish: a tent to leave clothing.
Close to near start and finish: a tent to leave clothing.
The Tankerville Arms, Eglingham Village serves weekend meals from 12:00 – 20:00.

Officials:
Organiser: Katherine Brown 07502021816 beanleycompasssportcuptrophy@gmail.com
Planner: Mary Rack
Controller: Lindsey Knox – RR

Safety: This event will be conducted with regard to Government and British Orienteering guidelines in force at the time. Orienteering is an adventure sport.  A comprehensive risk assessment for the event will be prepared and identified risks mitigated. However, please be aware that participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event.

Individual Results

Club Scores

Team Scores (Cup)

Team Scores (Trophy)

Please upload your route to RouteGadget

RouteGadget for courses 6 , 7 & 10

Guidance available: “How to upload a route”

Thanks to all cake stall bringers and buyers! We raised over £120 for the North East Junior Squad.

Found property: Blue swim “Buff”.
A pair of black trainers.
Also a knife from the cake stall (Now claimed).
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