Webmaster is Geoff Kirby

NEWSLETTER

Programme As this is the winter programme you will notice that there are no evening or weekend walks but there are 3 special occasions:

On December 14^th we have been invited to Douglas Jackman House for coffee after our walk

On Thursday 17^th December we plan to walk from Age Concern to the Borough Gardens to join in with the carols which start at 6.30 pm. Afterwards we will return to Age Concern for seasonal refreshments.

Christmas party – this will take place from 3.15pm on Tuesday 26^th January in the Corn Exchange and promises to be an enjoyable event as always. Planned activities include quizzes, games and dancing. Please bring a raffle prize or food to share.

Change of time of afternoon walks – the keen eyed amongst you will have noted that the Tuesday and Thursday afternoon walks now leave at 2.15pm instead of 2.00pm. This is to facilitate the collection of the back packs prior to the walk. You will notice that we have reinstated a Poundbury walk once a month. On the leaderless Sandringham afternoons a cup of tea at the Thomas Hardy is recommended

The walk leaders would like to take this opportunity to send their best wishes to you all for the Festive Season. We look forward to welcoming you on our walks and please wrap up warmly during this cold weather!

Aim of the Group is to encourage walking on a regular basis in a very sociable atmosphere.  We have all ages from youngsters in pushchairs to very senior citizens.  We aim for the pace of the walk to be what ever suits you best. There will be a leader at the front setting a moderate pace and a leader at the back going at the pace which suits the slowest walker. They will have First Aid packs, water and mobile phones for emergencies. The route and any hazards will be discussed at the beginning of the walk.  We hope walkers will be able to stop for refreshments at the end of the walk. It is, of course, optional but having a chat is a great way to get to know people.

Health Forms If you are attending a walk for the first time you will be asked to fill out a confidential health questionnaire.  Those who have been walking with us for a while will have filled in a green form. There are now new forms and everyone is being asked to complete a new one – and that includes all the leaders.

Other Walks  For people who want to walk independently in the town but are not sure where to go, there are the Dorchester Town Trails which tell you about the history of the town. Maps and information are available from Tourist Information (on the corner of Antelope Walk and Trinity Street).  For people who want more challenging walks the South Dorset Group of the Ramblers’ Association has regular short walks – for programme ring 01305 262911. The Casterbridge Ramblers also has regular short walks – for programme ring 01305 263759. For other nearby Walking the Way to Health Groups contact Alan Burfield 01305 835637 for Weymouth and Portland and Tony Hawthorne 01308 458966 for Bridport.  The County Council is also a source of information and booklets.  The Broadmayne Strollers also offer a short walk each month – for further information ring 01305 854436.

The Strollers was formed in July 2003 arising from the Action Plan of the Dorchester Area Partnership upon which one of our leaders now sits.  The Strollers has a constitution and Committee and holds regular meetings of both Committee and Leaders and an annual AGM in the autumn.  It is under the umbrella of Natural England’s Walking the Way to Health – www.whi.org.uk.  We do not charge the walkers and funding in kind and by grants comes from Dorchester Town Council, Age Concern, Dorchester and other organisations, as well as our own fund raising activities.  We now have a set of display boards to publicise the Group and to support talks and events. 

You can find us on http://www.geoffkirby.co.uk/DorchesterStrollers/index.html.

The Ramblers’ Association Group programmes point out that “All sporting and leisure activities have inherent hazards associated with them and rambling is no exception. In spite of the safety of members being the paramount concern, accidents will occasionally occur. It is important, therefore, that when entering into the activity, each member appreciates that they have a responsibility to identify the hazards associated with the activity and take all reasonable steps to eliminate or minimise the potential for an accident to arise”. The walk leaders feel this applies to THE DORCHESTER STROLLERS activities too and so would like to bring it to your attention.

The Leaders are always interested to hear your views and comments and try to act on them.  Our next Leaders meeting will take place in March.

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