Stonehouse Walking Festival is scheduled to take place from Friday 10th to Sunday 19th September this year. The Festival includes a wide variety of walks for all abilities. This includes day hikes for fitter walkers through to walks suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs . All the walks are free guided group walks. There are some…

NOTE This Wednesday’s lakeside walk led by Janet has been postponed for 3 weeks until Wednesday 11 August to avoid very high temperatures this week.

Everyone has heard of Edward Jenner of Berkeley, but have you heard of Benjamin Jesty of Dorset? He predated Jenner by many years. READ MORE

Further to Ann’s message yesterday, we are now ready to accept your offers to lead our walks. For walks in July and most of August please offer them on our front page as we have been doing recently and they will be published online only. Thanks, Mike Led Walks Coordinator  

At our committee meeting on July 8th we decided to restart our formal walks programme, initially for 2 months from Aug 31st which will then get us back to our normal 4 monthly routine. We intend to have a fixed Saturday walk, 1st, 3rd and 5th Mondays as before but allow flexibility with a mid…

We now have a Facebook Page thanks to Sue J. Click on Read more below and you can find the link https://www.facebook.com/groups/302569751378935/ We will be working on it to make it as user-friendly as possible.  

Thanks to the Stroud Times, here’s a short clip of a drone view of the Ocean at Stonehouse, and the fully cast concrete sections of the new bridge in a nearby field, ready for installation scheduled for December 2021. Click the play button to see the movie. https://stroudtimes.com/a-birds-eye-view-of-the-ocean-and-new-rail-bridge/ Also a Fast Boat Ride from Ebley…

Please see this link https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-57596395. This may be of interest to the Group as members do walk by the River Frome. Thanks Andrew Hawkins

We were pleased to receive a message from Richard in Washington DC today. Name – Richard Strub Subject – Thankyou Location (optional) – Washington DC Message – Being able to still find the May 2012 walk and share the link and your website with likeminded friends is a great joy! See photos of the walk…

Temporary diversions are being made on the multi-user path between Nailsworth and Woodchester. The main path over the Newman Hender bridge near Gydynap Lane was shut yesterday (21 June) and will be closed for around 7 days to allow Gloucestershire County Council engineers to bore for samples in preparation for improvements to the bridge. There…

The maximum number of walkers allowed on our walks used to be 30 and the leader could choose a lower limit. BUT NOW There is now no need to reserve a place. Just turn up on the day. Walkers’ contact details will be taken and kept for Track and Trace purposes. Please keep the touching…

A bridge which links two counties still does not have a public right of way on the Gloucestershire side, three years after the error was discovered.

I wonder if it is worth putting another reminder on the website to check regularly for ticks. I found one feasting on me this morning. (There’s no accounting for taste!) writes Karen. YES HERE GOES:- Be tick aware at this time of year. Here’s a link to a very good summary of how to spot…

Have you discovered Pathwatch yet? If you know of any path problem, you can report it on PATHWATCH APP FOR APPLE OR ANDROID while you are out walking here in Gloucestershire or anywhere in GB. At home you can report a problem via the internet right now (give it a go by clicking “Report a…

There is now an excellent hot drinks and snack service at the Walkers’ Car Park Painswick. It operates 8am – 2pm Wednesday to Friday and 9am to 3 pm at weekends. Many thanks Penny Boydell

An Edinburgh widower who was struggling with mental health issues due to the isolation of lockdown has walked 2,000 miles in a year after his doctor prescribed that he join the Ramblers. Jim Snodgrass, 84, from South Queensferry, said he was expecting to receive medication for his anxiety. But instead all he was given was…

In case you haven’t come across Gateway routes, thanks to Sue for pointing them out. Some excellent ideas for walks here: https://www.cotswoldsaonb.org.uk/visiting-and-exploring/walking/cotswold-gateways/

Parkrun in Stratford Park are looking at restarting and using the car park at Stroud Leisure Centre, making it almost impossible to park as all spaces are taken by runners. Parkrun’s website says that there will be a Parkrun there every Saturday at 9am. Leaders might want to avoid this as a starting place on…

Our South Cotswold Ramblers newsletter and the Area newsletter were emailed out on April 1st. Paper copies which had to be printed and posted out should have arrived shortly afterwards. If you have not received one or the other, please let the membership secretary know by emailing membership@southcotswoldramblers.org.uk Both newsletters can be found on our…

At our AGM (via Zoom) on 14th January there were some changes of officers. Ann A is now Chair, Sally Vice Chair and Ros is Membership Secretary. Brian W is continuing as Treasurer, Andrew as Secretary and Malcolm as Footpath Secretary. Mike is continuing as Walks Co-ordinator (when walks are permitted) and Richard is remaining…

As you may be aware, in Feb 2020 the Ramblers Association launched the “Don’t Lose Your Way“ initiative. This was to identify and make sure that historical paths that were not necessarily on the map were not lost. Area Vice Chair Charlie Morris has been involved with this and now has a record of all…

Watch this short video on how best to use the 112 number, especially if you plan to walk in a remote area: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPZv_8dABfU&feature=player_embedded Don’t be put off by the fact that it is on YouTube. This is actually very useful.

If leaders wish to arrange a walk or have questions, ring Mike on 01453 873625. You can use the Leaders > Submit a Walk Form for sending in the details. However we will not be pressurising any leaders. You must feel safe to lead. COVID SAFE You will need to complete a simple Risk Assessment…

Our Walks Programme is now a rolling one – visit our Home Page regularly to see if there are any more walks planned – Remember – First Come, First Served! Also we would be grateful if you could keep any members not online informed of walks as they appear on the website. If any leaders…

https://www.ramblers.org.uk/advice/safety/walking-near-livestock.aspx

It’s been amazing the number of photos that have been sent to me to go on the website, and also the number of different people who have got interested in doing this. The photos have appeared in all sorts of formats and sizes, and hopefully have encouraged South Cots to learn new skills. After unsuccessful…

Lawrence has been to Miserden recently and noted that the sign at the entrance to the CP by the school has been recently changed to “School Car Park – No Parking Mon – Fri”. This means that the car park should not be used for mid-week walks, at least in term time. (Jill and Sue…

On the 11th February Ramblers will be launching  a new campaign, ‘Don’t Lose Your Way’ and will be emailing members with details of the campaign including a promotion pack explaining how you can help to register lost paths. At the same time there will be a major media launch to focus on our activities. An…

Act FAST and call 999  

Our Group was set up in the 1970’s as a Footpath Group and walks started years later. However the work of volunteers is still very much needed in keeping an eye on our wonderful path network. We need more help, having only 5 volunteers on the committee! If you don’t fancy meetings (just 4 a…