Ramblers Cymru need your voice for the future of walking in Wales

In their recent 10 year vision, Ramblers Cymru mapped out how Wales
can be a happier, healthier nation where walking is at the heart of
every community. They now want your voice to encourage the Welsh
Government to make that vision a reality and ensure Wales becomes a
world-class country for walking.

Welsh Government is consulting on the ways that people use and enjoy
Wales’ incredible landscape. Ramblers Cymru have been successfully
championing many of the proposals Welsh Government have put forward –
extended access to our coast and cliffs, a statutory code for
responsible access and an all-Wales digitised definitive map of paths.

Director of Ramblers Cymru, Angela Charlton, said “It’s really
encouraging to see Welsh Government take on some of the changes we
have been calling for as we believe they will make a real difference
to how walkers enjoy the Welsh outdoors. For example, by creating a
complete online map of Wales’ paths people will find it so much easier
to find out where they can walk, and the statutory code will helps
everyone understand how to behave responsibly. Opening up the coast
and cliffs for more access is also a great step forward as it builds
on the amazing success of the Wales Coast path”.

Angela said “We fully support opening up the countryside to more
people, but we are concerned that some footpaths simply aren’t
suitable for bikes or horses. We are asking Welsh Government to
consider each path on a case by case basis, with the help of local
knowledge and of course Ramblers Cymru’s volunteers”.

Ramblers Cymru supports the idea that community should be at the
heart of decisions about changing use because outdoor spaces should be
cherished community assets. Across Wales much of the path network,
which is enjoyed by millions of people each year, is regularly
maintained by Ramblers Cymru’s volunteers who take a hands on approach
to improving their local patch.

The volunteer groups across Wales, with the support of their local
councils, clear footpaths, fix and build fences, bridges, gates and
even boardwalks. One Ramblers volunteer maintenance group in Anglesey,
the Silver Slashers, have clocked up 572 work days over the past 12
years, with an average of 12 people working per day. In this time they
have cleared a staggering 48KM of footpaths, and opened up 70 paths
which were previously inaccessible to the general public. This is in
addition to building 375 gates, 78 bridges and 3Km of boardwalks.
These statistics, from just one of our volunteer groups, highlight the
time and energy Ramblers Cymru volunteers invest to ensure our varied
footpaths across Wales are open.

Local Ramblers Cymru volunteer, John Stubbs, “Our path network is
something to be treasured and we want everyone to recognise the value
that it brings in connecting people to the places around them. As a
walker all my life, I volunteer to maintain the footpaths as a simple
way to give back to my local community and let the public enjoy our
beautiful outdoors”.

Angela added: “We’d love people to join us and add their voice to our
campaign, let’s unite and ensure Wales is a world-class country for
walking”.

For further information about Ramblers Cymru’s vision for walking in
Wales, please visit www.ramblers.org.uk/walesforwards