To bring you our fantastic set of self-guided walks, YHA enlisted the help of some fantastic volunteers who tried out all of the walks to test for accessibility and add some extra details such as picnic spots, scenic viewing points and refreshment places. Here Toni tells us about how to make the most of walking as a family and how she contributed to YHA’s route guides and maps.
“I have been walking in one form or another for as long as I can remember. As a child, my mum always used to take my brothers and I for a walk on Sunday afternoons to get some fresh air and exercise. As a teenager, I walked on Dartmoor with my brother when staying with my grandparents in Devon over the summer holidays. Later in life, I worked in London and joined a rock climbing/walking club to get away from the city at weekends. We’d go camping or hostelling in Devon, the Peak District, Wales or Cornwall and walk and climb depending on the weather.
Although we don’t climb any more, my husband and I continued to go to these places and when our daughters were born, we took them with us. I remember taking my eldest daughter up Stanage Edge in a baby carrier when she was less than a year old, and we went camping with her in the Gower Peninsula when she was one.
Walking as a family is fun, although its important to take into consideration the ages and abilities of your children. Most of YHA route maps have accessible or easy routes that would be suitable, but I’d recommend to still check carefully before you go. If it is your first walk as a family, I would choose one of the shorter flatter walks and look for those with short cuts or where you could do just part of it if the children get tired.
The route maps also include advice on what to bring with you on a walk. I always take a small backpack with waterproofs, suntan lotion, a small first aid kit or plasters, plenty of water and a picnic lunch. When walking with small children, snacks, and something fun, like a kite or ball, are a must. I always take my phone so I can use the OS Map App, and take some cash for extra drinks, snacks, or ice cream along the walk.
I’m pleased to say that as teenagers our daughters picked up the habit of walking and getting out in countryside too. We had to modify our routes and expectations when they were younger, but now they are older they are fitter than us., They’ve learnt to love the outdoors and know how to read a map, navigate, and take care of themselves when walking.
I took my younger daughter, Emily, (aged 15), when I did the walk route checking for YHA last year. Taking the draft map along with an OS map and compass and armed with OS Locate App we set off. While following the route, I marked down any hazards, stiles, places of interest as well as practical points such as toilets or where to get food and drinks.
When checking the routes, I paid special attention to any terrain changes, or stiles and gates that could be difficult to navigate. Accessible means different things for everyone, so by including all these details we hope that people can make their own judgement on whether it’s accessible for them. By using volunteer mappers like me, YHA can ensure their self-led walks are as detailed and accurate as possible.
Once the YHA walks team receive my notes, the map is updated and checked again before it is published on the website, available to download for free.
I always feel great at the end of a walk. Partly the sense of achievement at having completed it (and navigated it successfully) but also the endorphin buzz you get from having done some exercise and breathed in the fresh air. There’s also the satisfaction of having been somewhere new, seen some spectacular views and discovering lovely places to visit again like a castle or the steam railway. To me it doesn’t matter if it’s sunny or pouring with rain, you always feel great when you’ve finished a good walk. Emily, my daughter, prefers it when it rains.”
Written by Toni Chapman.
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