I once attempted a recce of the Duddon race, on the climb upto Little Stand (i think!) the weather went mental, blizzard, zero visibility. For some reason i did nt have my compass but had my garmin on, so i thought id use it to find my way back to the road or start point.....i did nt work the blumin' needle just kept spinning. A similar thing happened on a recce of kentmere, i ended up doing 16 miles, visited Hayeswater and did nt get further than high street!!
I ve since enhanced my skills, learnt to remember my compass and not rely on race maps. It was an experience though, funny, but not at the time!