Our group started in 2009 as an collaboration between the University and Active Stirling. During that time our numbers have varied between 6 and 25 and we have managed to walk on over 48 weeks of the year. We also vary in age and level of fitness but this doesn't seem to make any difference because the most important thing we have in common is our enjoyment of walking. Our walks vary from fairly flat walks on pavements though the local town to tramping through fields with frolicking lambs and the woods on the hillside above the campus. At this stage we really have to say thank you to those people who have taken the time to train as walk leaders and who give up so much of their time to keep our walks going. Each walk needs two of these volunteers to ensure the safety and enjoyment of the group members. Volunteers are trained by Active Stirling and training sessions takes place several times a year. Each walk has been planned, scoped and checked by the walk leaders several times and is usually checked again in the week leading up to the walk to ensure the route is clear. Heavy winds can bring down trees and block a route or rain can cause the path to become waterlogged or slippery underfoot. This sometimes means we will be unable to do the planned walk for that week and will fall back on a more realistic option. This is sometimes disappointing if you had hoped to cover a particular route but we do try to make the routes as varied as possible.
