Christmas Cup 2025Loch Ard December 2025
The 2025 Christmas Cup in the Trossachs area took place in frosty but beautifully sunny conditions at the end of December.
The end of 2025 brought the 5th edition of the Christmas Cup and Masterplan Adventure promised three days of top quality yet tough orienteering of the highest technical standard on new maps by Martin Bagness. This year's new areas were further parts of Loch Ard Forest which is still producing some really excellent orienteering terrain. Content provided by David Robertson and Margaret Dalgleish, with long course comments by Keith Brown.
Day 1 at Arndrum Hill on 29th December was described as 'by Loch Ard standards, this is a fast area, with open woods on the higher ground, and low-viz but clean underfoot on the lower slopes. Navigation mainly by compass and contour, with a little bit of mazy young tree green for variety. There’s no advantage in bailing out to the paths, because there are none'
Interlopers Graeme Ackland was the Day Planner and, amongst the few volunteers seen in these bare bones approach events, ESOCs Rhona Fraser was to be spotted daily, supervising the shoe dip or helping at the start, as well as being a roving photographer.
The walk in from Aberfoyle and back could be shortened from 3k if you could arrange a drop-off en route but it was nice to see more of the area if you walked or cycled in. The view of the forest en route uphill to the start was that of an impenetrable jumble of windblown trees but thankfully at the start boxes we saw a much more open forest lay ahead.
There were Long 4.5k , Medium 3.5k and Short 2.5k courses to choose from or an Orange Score. It was cold, but there was low winter sun reaching through the trees which was a complete contrast to last year's torrential rain and flooding.
Days 2 and 3 were in different parts of Drumore Wood, part of the greater Loch Ard Forest near Aberfoyle. Day 2 in the north part and Day 3 in the south, with both comprising very tough terrain, but superb orienteering.
Both days had the same assembly, on a forest track 3k from car parking in Aberfoyle, and the same start approximately 400m further on. Day 2 had all 3 courses (long, medium and short) heading out westwards then looping back and on Day 3 the courses headed south west, skirting the Day 2 area, then heading even further west and then south before heading back. The finishes were different each day but adjoined assembly. The maps actually overlapped, but only the long course on Day 3 seemed to take competitors back into some of the same terrain as Day 2.
The terrain was mainly modest sized hills and plenty of marshes with tussocks and died back bracken, and on Day 3 deep heather, thrown into the mix too resulting in rough going underfoot. The trees in the woodland were well enough spaced, and interspersed with some open areas, for visibility to be excellent. A great relief after the low visibility of the Day 1 wood. The maps were excellent and the courses succeeded in providing a good challenging, but hugely enjoyable, orienteering experience despite the tough underfoot conditions.
The most southerly part of the terrain, used on Day 3, was mainly light green on the map and was visited only by the medium and long courses and included sections of felled forest and extraction lanes. The marshes in this area were reasonably deep, with many getting a refreshing dunk in the icy water!
On Day 3 all courses were a long style rather than the middle style of previous days, with longer legs, and competitors were forewarned that they might prefer to ‘run down’ a course. The ‘more mature’ competitors certainly felt the difference and with the long walks to and from assembly there were some very tired bodies by Wednesday evening.
Temperatures were below freezing both days but the woods were beautiful in the winter sunshine. The cafes in Aberfoyle would do well with orienteers trying to warm up!
Masterplan Adventure’s Christmas Cup is a very low key event in terms of organisation with concentration being on providing excellent maps and courses. The 2025 event certainly succeeded in doing that.
ESOC members in the top half of the results:
Day 1
Medium (61) - Megan Brown 5th, Keith Brown 15th
Short (19) - Les Dalgleish 9th
Day 2
Medium (56) - Megan Brown 1st
Short (20) - Margaret Dalgleish 10th
Day 3
Medium (58) - Rachel Brown 6th, Calum Robertson 11th, Megan Brown 19th
Short (33) - Margaret Dalgleish 12th, Hanne Robertson 14th, David Robertson 16th
Full results for all three days including winsplits and Livelox for Day 1 can be found here https://christmascup.co.uk/
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