North Wales Rambler Walks restarting after lockdown Paths have become overgrown during lockdown. Footpath secretary Joanna Slattery snappped this beautiful Great Orme silver-studded Ron Williams suggests taking secateurs, and maybe a folding saw, blue butterfly during a quiet June. on your walks in order to do a bit of light clearance on your recce or as you go. It can make a difference! (photos: RW). Ron’s report is on N JUNE North Wales Area should have been hosting the Big page 4. IWelsh Walk, centred on Chirk Castle - see the last newsletter dated December . Planning for that now seems a lifetime ago. It is only now in late July / early August that organised walkers are emerging, blinking, into the light following revised guidance from government and the Ramblers. Of course it was possible to go walking during lockdown ‘for exercise’ but many of us miss the companionship of walking with a group. ere is no printed programme at present, so planned walks will have to be advertised using the national website, social media and email. Members are asked to keep up to date their friends who are not “connected” in this way. Although restrictions on organised walks have been loosened we are in a very fluid situation, with fresh restrictions already seen in certain areas. It is always advisable to check the latest guidance on the Ramblers’ website. e link for this is given below, but you can easily navigate there from the home page by selecting Volunteer zone and then Coronavirus is year also sees significant changes in the Ramblers’ arrange- advice. ments for insurance covering organised activities, including e key points are currently (as at Aug): both walks and path work. See Joanna’s note on page . • Group sizes are restricted to a maximum of , and your Ed. group may choose to limit the size further to keep everyone Link to latest Ramblers advice and guidance : safe. https://www.ramblers.org.uk/volunteer-zone/coronavirus/ • You’ll need to physically distance from anyone not in your volunteering.aspx household. Link to current Ramblers’ insurance arrangements for organised • Before you start out on your walk, you’ll be asked to register activities: your contact details with your walk leader. https://www.ramblers.org.uk/volunteer-zone/support-and- • Please also keep up to date and follow any local lockdown development/ restrictions in your area. Newsletter of Ramblers North Wales Area August 2020 www.ramblersnorthwales.org.uk Secretary’s report HAT an extraordinary year! To be publicised by the group. Not all walks easing and there are things we can all do Wstart we had two major storms during this time will be on the national now: causing chaos including washing away walk lists (GWEM) but they should be • Walks with people from our own the Miner’s Bridge near Betws y Coed on the group website and/ or the group’s ‘household’ and walks (staying and then the Covid Lockdown!! Facebook (or other social media). oudoors) with friends and family. Our very deepest sympathies go to Most people felt their leaders and • Recce walks you might like to share in any members who have lost family mem- groups would not want to rush into the future bers or friends over the recent period to restarting walks as soon as walks are • Take secateurs with you when you whatever cause. I’m sure we have all said allowed. Some felt they were unlikely to walk so you can cut back brambles and continue to say a huge thank you to restart until they were able to organise and small obstacles and report bigger all health and care workers, key workers walks in a similar way as we did before path problems and any unofficial and everyone who kept food on our the pandemic. closures tables and essential services going. ere are a number of reasons for Please keep checking the Ramblers’ It has been challenging in so many caution: and Welsh government’s Covid advice so different ways but many of us now • We do not know what restrictions you know the latest on what is permitted. know our local paths better than ever. may be imposed on us, nor when. Welsh Government latest advice: Hopefully some have made careful use of • Risks from Covid remain, especially https://gov.wales/coronavirus secateurs to help keep them easy to use to leaders and walkers who are over Ramblers latest guidance: for others as well. I have enjoyed getting or who have health issues them- https://www.ramblers.org.uk/volunteer- closer to our wildlife like the Great Orme selves or amongst family members. zone/coronavirus/volunteering silver-studded blue that I saw on a walk • Organising walks will be more com- Walks programme there in June (photo, p.). plicated, with risk assessments and ere is no General Council report registers needed and booking likely. We hope the next Combined Walk or Welsh Council report as these meet- • Walks will need extra planning. Programme(CWP) Winter to summer ings were postponed. If you signed up for Any leaders thinking about planning will come out as usual but we can’t training sessions that have been cancelled a group walk to take place this year begin to collect walks until walking or postponed look out for rearranged and maybe even next year will need to groups have restarted so it might have to dates or get in touch with any particular think about measures that make social start later than usual to allow time to get requests. e Big Welsh Walk planned distancing easier and reduce the risk of all the information in. from Chirk has also been cancelled for the transmission of Covid. ings like ere will be a new look to the CWP, this year. avoiding busy and congested areas, mul- we hope you will be happy with it but we As I get back into longer more chal- tiple stiles and narrow footpaths; using may need to make small adjustments so lenging walks I know I will have to take booking to limit numbers; having some please let me know if you have any com- time to rebuild strength and stamina walks without lunch breaks; circular or ments. Please think about how we can for long walks in the mountains. e there and back walks so public transport use the CWP to promote Ramblers and possibility of some remote routes having and car sharing are not needed; having walking. One of the reasons for changing become obscured or obstructed could good parking as there may be more cars the information was to make it more also be causing some problems. Many of being used. straight forward for non members to use. you will have missed seeing your friends If it becomes necessary to limit num- Cambrian Way on walks and some Groups have restarted bers on walks, they still have to be open walks, but it may be some time before to all including non-members. People e Cambrian Way is now fully way- others are able to start. Please be patient. were keen that any a booking system marked and the sharp eyed among you We are all volunteers and everyone’s should be fair. Suggestions included using may have spotted some of it featured on circumstances are different. phone booking as not all members use ITV Peoples Postcode lottery adverts. ere is no second Combined Walk the internet or platforms like facebook; It has been an interesting side effect Programme (CWP) this year. We are all not allowing multiple booking to try to to the lockdown that we have been able to keen to see group walks and footpath share around places; try to make sure enjoy the sounds of the countryside even work restart as soon as it is safe and people cancel if they are not going to in the towns and crossing roads was as practical to do so but we have to follow attend; ‘first come first served’ bookings. easy as years ago. It has definitely been Ramblers and Welsh government advice. ose joining walks will need to a short term boost for the environment It is very important that leaders respect social distancing, provide their with pollution levels dropping. If we can feel free to temporarily withdraw from own face covering, hand sanitizer and try to keep up some of the local walking leading whether due to health issues, gloves if wanted. to places like the shops as well as sharing age, what they feel comfortable with All our walk leaders are volunteers. some of our local routes for the next walk or because they prefer to wait until the ey are not responsible if someone programme then we can help continue extra issues/ responsibilities have gone. becomes ill aer going on a walk. ey that benefit. An Area “Zoom” meeting agreed that also cannot be expected to be available I have been very pleased to see that each group will discuss with their own to take bookings at all times so text mes- as well as the tree planting plans there is walk leaders and decide when their group sages may be best. increasing recognition of the importance can restart walks. ese walks will then e good news is that things are of other habitats in storing carbon. Nota- bly the seagrass meadows, here seeds from the area off Porthdinllaen are being Insurance used to collect seeds for restoring other S ANNOUNCED in the June . Walk leaders need a written risk areas. Also sphagnum moss peatbogs volunteer newsletter a new insur- assessment for each walk.