Panshanger
Note: 10:30 start – later than usual to avoid clashing with ParkRun.
Welcome
Panshanger is one of our monthly Saturday Series events. Beginners are very welcome and there are courses for all standards.
The planner says: “The courses take place within the western half of Panshanger Park, making full use of the spectacular woodland this side has to offer. Competitors will navigate through three distinct pockets of forest, each offering their own character and technical challenges. Success will depend on accurate bearings, decisive decisions, and the ability to move efficiently through—and over—the runnable terrain. A highlight for those on the Short Blue course will be a visit to a beautiful swathe of forest running up toward the ruins of Panshanger House.”
Beginners
First timers are very welcome. Look for our greeters in hi-vis jackets.
You can go around individually, in pairs or in a larger family group. From an entries perspective, pairs and groups are treated as a single runner – it’s one entry, you get one map, one timing chip (“dibber”) and one finish time listed in the Results. We charge per “entry” not per person and it’s easiest to enter in advance – see Entering for the first time for more info on how to do this.
If you’ve not orienteered before, we suggest most people start with the yellow course. Young juniors, say primary school age, and family groups are better on white. People confident with a map and compass may start on orange. If you find your course too easy, club policy is to offer you a run on the next course up at no cost, provided there’s enough time and there are maps available.
Don’t forget to download between runs!
Location
Panshanger Park is 1000 acres of woodland and open parkland astride the chalk-stream of the Mimram Valley, between Hertford and Welwyn Garden City. Courses have been planned to be mostly in the wooded area to the west of the park, with less ‘dead running’ across meadows than events in the eastern part have had.
Parking
The new car park is not yet ready for use. Parking will be along the access road, enter from Panshanger Lane at SG14 2NJ, What3words cult.term.bake
Public Transport
Panshanger Lane is serviced by the Arriva 401 bus service. The nearest stops are Leys Down or Russett Wood. From the bus stops, walk East through Moneyhole Park and through the woods to arrive at the Panshanger Lane parking entrance (around 1km).
By rail:
Hertford North Station 3km
Hertford East Station 4.6km
Welwyn Garden City Station 5km
Terrain
Wooded ridges with contour detail running EW above the wide river valley which contains lakes and open parkland.
Our thanks to Tarmac for allowing us to use the area.
Map
1:7500 pre-marked maps with 5m contours for all courses on waterproof paper. For a previous event see Routegadget.
The map has been updated by Simon Errington leading up to the event.
Control descriptions will be on the map, there are no loose descriptions.
Course Timing
Sportident punching will be used. SIAC will be enabled for those with ‘contactless’ dibbers, but you must punch start, finish is flyby.
Facilities
Portable toilet
Dogs
Keep under control and clear up behind you.
Safety
Orienteering is an adventure sport. You take part at your own risk and are responsible for your own safety. A full risk assessment has been carried out.
Officials
| Planner | Alex Lines |
| Organiser | Stu Levene |
| Controlling | Mike Bennett |
Courses
Courses for everybody from beginners of any age to experienced orienteers.
| Course | Straight line Distance | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| White | ~1.5 km | Easy – all along paths. Control flags when you need to decide whether to turn. |
| Yellow | ~2.5 km | Fairly easy – navigate along line features such as paths, walls, streams. Some turns with no control flags. |
| Orange | ~3 km | Moderate – start cutting across country, some controls a bit away from line features. |
| Light Green | ~3.5 km | Harder – a range of navigational skills needed to find controls on any mapped feature. |
| Short Blue | ~5.5 km | As hard as we can make it on the area. |
You may enter any course and will automatically be entered in the club’s Saturday League unless you ask not to.
Course Notes
Courses have been planned so that you should not need to cross any of the high fences marked on the map. Please avoid climbing fences anyway, Tarmac have invested quite a bit in fencing recently.
The Short Blue course crosses the river. You must use the marked crossing point in both directions. It’s the safest and quickest route.
Starts
When you enter, you can choose a 15 minute start block between 10:30 and 12:00.
Courses close 13:15. Please choose a start block to allow yourself plenty of time to finish before then.
Entry & Fees
Entry only via SI Entries. You must enter on line. Online entry will remain open until 11:45 on the day, while maps and start slots are available.
Entries up to midnight on Sunday 28 September:
|
Entries from September 29:
|
Dibber hire £1. Charge for lost dibbers £35.
If you cancel more than 7 days before the event we will refund your fees less an amount for admin and transaction costs. There is no refund for cancellations less than 7 days in advance.
If we have to cancel the event we will try to reschedule it. We will transfer your entry to the rescheduled event unless you ask for a refund.
Results
Interim results will be published direct to the club website every few minutes during the event. There will be no printed results (apart from your own splits) or WiFi available.
Full results will be published to the same location and to Routegadget; we aim to do so on the day of the event.
The small print
This event is registered with British Orienteering, number 85679.
Orienteering is a great sport for youngsters. If you bring children, please help us to keep to our safeguarding policy and British Orienteering’s photography policy.
Your personal data is used for results and insurance, see our privacy policy.
