Norfolk Walkers Brave 26.2 Mile Marathon Walk!

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There was an excellent turnout for the marathon length walk which was organised by Jim from the Norwich group. Members from various groups across the county took part in the walk which went through beautiful scenery and coast.

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Villages and towns visited on the walk included Paston, Edingthorpe, Bacton, Happisburgh, Eccles-on-Sea, Lessingham and Ridlington.

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Despite being a Bank Holiday, the weather was fortunately favourable to the twenty walkers taking part in the walk.

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More longer walks are being planned over the next few months to the already extensive walking programme offered by the Ramblers. There are short walks of two miles through to these longer 18+ mile walks, offering great variety to members.

Congratulations to those who completed the walk – including some who hadn’t tried a walking challenge of this length before. Also special mention to Andy Coghlan who was walking as part of a charity challenge – more information at:

https://mymarathon.everydayhero.com/uk/AndyCoghlanmarathon

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King’s Lynn Ramblers – Photos from Past Walks

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For those who haven’t yet seen it, King’s Lynn Ramblers have an excellent web-site with photos and updates from past walks. Above is a photo from their web-site which was taken by John Hocknell at the group’s Bluebell and Garlic Walk at Reffley Wood.

The site can be found at:

https://kingslynnramblers.wordpress.com/posts/

Their web-site also has a list of the group’s walks and lots of background information. New members are always welcome!

More Path Clearance Work from Norfolk Ramblers

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A photo from an earlier path clearance project in Dereham

After our investment in new path clearance equipment we’ve been able to clear several footpaths in the area already. We will put photos on this site on an ongoing basis to show the work that has been achieved.

Below are two further examples of footpaths which are now passable and many thanks to the volunteers who have been involved with this project.

The photos below show paths at Little Ellingham (FP7) and Great Ellingham (FP12) before and after our work.

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2016-04-19 23.19.12 after (1)

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Good News as Dereham is Awarded “Walkers are Welcome” Status

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A member of Norfolk Ramblers has been instrumental in helping Dereham become the fourth Norfolk town to gain the coveted “Walkers are Welcome” status. This is an award from the national body which is given to locations which are attractive destinations for walkers with high quality information about the local walks.

The planning for the application started when Ken Hawkins, the area secretary for Norfolk Ramblers and the footpath warden for Dereham Town Council, was able to lead an application to secure funding from Breckland District Council to produce 3,000 copies of a Dereham Walks pack. There were two guided walks for members of the public arranged to show local residents what was available just a short distance away.

It wasn’t just Ken’s hard work which has been important in seeing this endorsement as others including Tim Birt, Neil Cliff, Kate Millbank, Dorothy Sneesby, Martin Sneesby, Sue Rothwell and Jean Stratford all played their parts in driving the process forward. They helped to ensure that sufficient public support was demonstrated as 5% of the town needed to get behind the project, which was 900 Dereham residents. Over 950 signatures were achieved thanks to the committee members and other local institutions.

Richard May, the area chairman of Norfolk Ramblers, said:

“This is great news for walkers living in Dereham and another good reason for visitors to come to the town: we’re all proud of the work that Ken and others have put in to not only getting this proposal off the ground, but also by engaging with local residents.”

Two walkers from Hike Norfolk attempt coast to coast walk

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Liam at the finishing point – the North Sea at Scarborough.

Two walkers from Hike Norfolk, Julian White and Liam D’Souza undertook a walking challenge from Morecambe on the west coast to Scarborough on the east coast of the country. The challenge lasted for six days from 4 to 9 April 2016.

Despite Julian’s impressive bravery he had to withdraw mid-way through day five of six, but Liam completed the challenge. It was over 130 miles in total and full of challenges such as sleet, rain, scary sheep, bogs and closed pubs.

They blogged their walk, with many photos, at:

https://morecambetoscarborough.wordpress.com/

Richard May, the new area chairman of Norfolk Ramblers said:

“Congratulations to Liam and Julian on their inspiring achievements on their coast to coast walk”.

We are all hoping that Richard too will be in training for a coast to coast walk in the future. Hike Norfolk is one of the ten groups within Norfolk Area Ramblers and there is more information about them at:

http://www.hikenorfolk.org.uk/

Sheila Smith Memorial Walk

Sheila in 2012 when presented with a 50 years of service to Ramblers certificate
Sheila in 2012 when presented with a 50 years of service to Ramblers certificate

A memorial walk for Sheila Smith, a stalwart of Norfolk Area Ramblers, took place on 10 April 2016. The walk remembered Sheila’s work and also visited the bridge which was built as a memorial to her.

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The walk was well attended by members of numerous groups across the county and many stories relating to Sheila’s work and contributions were discussed.

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Two speeches were made at the bridge in honour of Sheila, including by Richard May, the new area chairman.

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There was a small table of memories of Sheila at the hall afterwards where refreshments were provided and stories discussed. It was a rewarding day for all and an opportunity to ensure that Sheila and her work will be remembered.

Ken Kawkins and Vic Cocker Join the Norfolk Local Access Forum

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There has been good news that two members of the Ramblers, Vic Cocker and Ken Hawkins, have been appointed to the Norfolk Local Access Forum (LAF), subject to ongoing committee approval.

The role of the Norfolk Local Access Forum, which is a statutory committee, is to advise the County Council on the improvement of public access to land in Norfolk for the purposes of open-air recreation and the enjoyment of the area. The LAF is made up of a variety of local people with access-related interests, including walkers, and landowners and managers.

Vic is Secretary to the Fakenham Group of Norfolk Ramblers, whilst Ken is Secretary to the Area Council.  Between them, they bring many years of experience and expertise to the LAF, and we look forward to hearing of the work of the LAF. Further information about the LAF can be found at:

https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/what-we-do-and-how-we-work/policy-performance-and-partnerships/partnerships/local-access-forum

Footpath 10 Reinstated in Beachamwell

There is a useful web-site on Beachamwell footpaths which is edited by Philip Spencer which gives helpful information about rights of way in the area.

There is good news that footpath 10 in the area has been mostly reinstated so that it is clear where to walk. Below are two photos from Philip’s web-site, one taken last year before the path was cut, and the second after it has been cleared.

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Before (above photo) and after (below photo).

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As noted on the web-site:

“It’s pleasing to report that it has been now been re-instated and that the route is now clearly marked by a handsome 6 foot wide path. The belt of trees which crosses the path half way along its length is the only part where the line of the path isn’t marked on the ground but the general direction is fairly clear”.

It’s great when footpaths are reinstated, and if anyone has queries or concerns about footpaths in Norfolk please do contact us. Contact information is available at http://www.norfolkra.org.uk/.

Direct Action on Overgrown Footpaths – Cutting Machine Trials

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Norfolk Ramblers have in recent years given money to the local council to assist with clearing footpaths, along with cutting back some overgrown areas ourselves.

This year we’re planning to do even more work to help keep paths in the county open and to do this we’re looking to buy new equipment to help us. We’re trialling a new cutting machine which is larger than we’ve used before and we started our trials this week in Dereham.

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Peter, who has led much of the work building up to this trial, is seen in the above photo ploughing through some of the overgrown footpath. The path has become quite muddy as members of the public were forced to walk in a smaller area so widening it makes it easier for future walkers.

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Even holly and brambles were no match for Peter!

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Peter led the way as our other volunteers also helped clear the path using more traditional gardening implements.

The before and after photos below show the change which the volunteer team made to the path:

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Before….

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After…..

The trial went well and it is hoped that other Ramblers groups in the county will want to use the equipment throughout the year. Anyone interested in getting involved with the project can contact Peter at pdjames.ramb@ntlworld.com.

The Big Pathwatch Survey Results Are In!

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Over a six-month period starting in July last year, walkers up and down the country have reported on what they found when using our extensive network of public rights of way. These results have come in from walkers who took part in the Big Pathwatch which was run by the national Ramblers organisation.

Here in Norfolk, some 1,800 kilometres of paths were walked, and reports made covering 3,600 square kilometres of town and countryside. We are really grateful to everyone who has assisted with the Pathwatch project as it gives an overview of the situation that we have now.

Walkers were asked to report what they found – good, bad and indifferent. 827 positive reports were made, of attractive views (251 reports, almost two thirds of which were of open country), sightings of flora and fauna (90 reports, a quarter of them birds and another quarter trees), as well as interesting buildings, lakes and other natural features (a further 76 reports). 245 reports were also made of welcoming signs, helping walkers find their way.

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Unfortunately, there was some bad news as well which can be seen on the above chart. 2316 reports were made of unwelcome features and difficulties and this represents nearly three quarters of the reports made, compared to a national average of only 54% of reports being of poor features.

The largest causes of concern were missing signs, either where the right of way left a road (289 reports), or along the route (400 reports). In almost 1 in 10 of these reports, the walker said that this made the route unusable rather than just inconvenient.

The next biggest issues were ploughing across the path (137 reports), crops across the path (117 reports) and overhanging or surface vegetation (241 reports). Again, in approximately a third of these cases, the walker said that this made the route unusable rather than just inconvenient.

We have been reporting this information to Norfolk County Council as the survey has gone on, and we know that officers have looked into the difficulties reported. We are unable to say just what action may have been taken, but we are particularly concerned at the lack of enforcement action being taken when reports are made about paths being ploughed or cropped over, and not reinstated within the legally required timescales. Whilst appreciating the difficulties that the Council faces in taking enforcement action, we – and they – are well aware that they have a legal duty to pursue such action, which includes the ability to recover their costs in doing so.

The Ramblers nationally plans to continue to monitor the state of our public rights of way, as we will do here in Norfolk, and will be pressing the County to make significant improvements this year.