Dale Town Moor is 7 miles north-east of Thirsk, easily accessed from the A19 or the A170.  Parking will be in a paddock at High Paradise Farm.  Postcode YO7 2HT will get you close, but don't count on it taking you right to the farm.  The What3words reference of the entrance to the car park is ///gravel.crossword.pulse.

Click on the link to see a map.  You can zoom in (and, optionally, switch to Satellite mode) to see the details of the final approach to the event. You can also get directions if you specify your starting location.

The event will be signed from the turn off Sneck Yate Bank (at What3words reference ///smudges.dwarf.lamplight).  From there, access is on a slow single carriageway lane.  Please take care.

Depending on your direction of travel, there are multiple potential approaches.  From the North, turn off the A19 at Knayton and go via Upsall and Boltby.  From the South, you can use the A170 from Thirsk and go via Felixkirk and Boltby.  From the East, turn off the A170 at the Sutton Bank Centre, and go along Cleveland Road to Sneck Yate Bank.

Parking will be in one of the small paddocks.  The surface is suitable for winter parking, but space is limited, so please car share where possible.

Enquiries, Download and toilets will be at the farm.

Dale Town Moor is a fast open moorland with plenty of navigational challenge, testing your ability to navigate at high speed with accuracy to the correct one out of many pits and depressions.  It has been used for previous events, most recently in 2023.

This event introduces a new extension to the existing Dale Town Moor map to the north to include Little Moor.  Little Moor has similar characteristics of fast open moorland with numerous pits and depressions, but also has some areas of deeper heather, giving competitors a fresh challenge.

One dangerous pit will be taped off.

Important notes

• Whistles and headtorches will be compulsory and checked.  We strongly recommend that you carry a backup torch.
• The competition area is exposed moorland, and in the event of bad weather it's possible that cagoules may be made compulsory.  Please come prepared.
• As this is a night event, and in accordance with YHOA Night League rules, each competitor will have a maximum of 90 minutes to complete their course.  Please respect this and retire if you are going to be out longer than this limit.
• If you have gone through the Start system, you must Download, even if you have not completed your course.  We really don't want to have to initiate a 'missing competitor' search in the dark because someone has forgotten to download.

In accordance with the YHOA Night League rules, there are four courses with the following suggested age class allocations.

The course details are subject to final adjustements.

Scoring for the YHOA Night League is calculated by the following rules:-

Competitors in the Senior Men, Senior Women, Veteran Men and Veteran Women classes only score points on the Long course.

Competitors from other age classes can run the Long course (i.e. 'run up') but, if they do so, they will score points in the Senior / Veteran classes and will not score points in their own age group.  Any competitor running up in this way needs to agree with the YHOA League Co-ordinator, Steve Corrigan, which class they are competing in.  (The default would be that M/W20- run up to the relevant Senior class and M/W55+ run up to the relevant Veteran class.)

Any competitor outside the Senior / Veteran classes – i.e. M/W20- and M/W55+ may enter the Medium, Short or Very Short course and score points in their age group.  League points will be allocated in each age group category as below:-

1:7,500 scale     5m contours     Newly extended to include Little Moor

Control descriptions will be printed on the maps and loose copies will be available at the Start.

SPORTident electronic punching will be used.

The control boxes will be activated to enable SIAC cards to operate in touch-free mode, but please note that you will need to punch the conventional way at the Start and Finish.

If you need to hire an SI-card, please order it via the online entry system – there is a £1 hire charge – and collect it from Download before your run.  Remember to return it as you download, and take care of it, as there will be a £20 charge if you lose it.  A limited number of SI-cards will be available for hire on the day, but please pre-order via the online entry system if at all possible.

If you wish to participate in this event, please pre-enter via the Racesignup online entry system.

The entry deadline is midnight on Sunday 8‑Nov‑2026.  After that, you will still be able to enter until midnight on Thursday 11‑Nov‑2026, but there will be a £2 late entry surcharge for Seniors and your choice of course may be limited by map availability.

There will be very limited entry on the day subject to the availability of maps ..... but please make every effort to pre-enter if you possibly can.

6:15 - 7:15 p.m.   Courses close at 8:30 p.m.

The Start is about 1.25 km flat walk along a good path from the parking area.  Allow 15-20 minutes.  You will need your headtorch for the walk to the Start.

The Finish is about 200m from Download.

Toilet near Download / Enquiries.  First aid at Download.

Please bring your own drinks for after your run.

Well behaved dogs are welcome in the parking area but must not be taken out into the competition area.

British Orienteering members are covered by British Orienteering's public liability insurance while participating in this event.  Non-members are not covered.

Note: Public liability insurance covers you against liability for causing harm to someone else.  For example, it would cover you if you were sued for accidentally injuring a member of the public or causing damage to property during the event.  It's fair to say that most people go through life without worrying about public liability insurance.

The competition area is exposed moorland, and in the event of bad weather it's possible that cagoules may be made compulsory.  Please come prepared.

Whistles and headtorches will be compulsory and checked.  It is highly recommended to carry a backup torch.

As this is a night event, and in accordance with YHOA Night League rules, competitors have a maximum time of 90 minutes to complete their course.  Please respect this and retire if you are going to be longer than this limit.

Please ensure that you download even if you do not complete your course.

A comprehensive risk assessment will have been carried out by the Organiser, but please remember that competitors take part at their own risk.  Orienteering is an adventure sport – your safety while orienteering is your own responsibility.

If you have a relevant medical condition, please add this to your competitor details in Racesignup.  Any information provided will be treated in strict confidence and will only be used if you need medical treatment and are unable to communicate at the time.