Saturday Walkers' Club

Saturday Walkers' Club

New Members

Welcome

  • All club walks are free. New members are very welcome, especially visitors to the UK or to London. Just turn up!
  • See This Week's Walks for details of forthcoming walks.
  • Just catch the specified train (or drive) and meet up at the station where the walk starts.
  • These walks are 'self organising'. So, as there is no leader, everyone should have a copy of the route (either the appropriate book, or for SWC walks, a printout).
  • Sorry, there are no contact numbers.

This Week's Walks

Simply choose the walk you like the sound of, or the one that leaves from the most convenient London train station!

Please bring a copy of the walk directions with you. They are either in Time Out Country Walks Near London Volume 1 or 2, or are downloadable from this website.

How do you find the group? They should be obvious on the platform when you get off the specified train. You may also find them in the middle of the train as you are travelling down: we tend to be obvious as we are dressed for walking. If in doubt, wave a Time Out Country Walks book and see if anyone notices!

There is no guarantee that anyone will turn up for a particular walk, but it is very very rare that no one does, and that is usually on days with awful weather. Usually groups are 6 to 15 or so. To increase your chances, pick a nice day and do a walk south of London (they tend to be more popular). To have an idea of how many people turned up on recent walks, have a look at 'walk numbers'.

No Walk Leaders and No Contact Numbers

There are no walk leaders and no contact numbers as the walks are "self-organising" - you are responsible for finding the way yourself, using the directions, which you should bring with you. In practise someone usually navigates, and everyone else usually follows them... but you shouldn't rely on this :)

The great benefit of this system is that there are no membership fees, nobody telling you how fast or slow to walk. Smaller groups tend to stick together, but larger groups often split into some walking fast or some walking slower. It is much more relaxed than a led walk.

This may all sound a bit haphazard if you have not been before, but believe me it does work, and has been doing so for at least 11 years.

Weather.

Check the weather. A good tip is to check the BBC's Breakfast Program, or the Met Office website, for a last minute forecast on the chance of rain or shine.

Check the 'last minute changes' box on the This Week's Walks page for last minute changes, e.g. railways engineering work. Also check for any weekend work on the tube (via a link on the same page)

Travel

All the walks are train friendly. They start and end at trains stations about an hour's travel from central London. Just catch the recommended train. Meet up in the second class carriage nearest the middle of the train, or on the platform of the station at the start of the walk.

A Network Railcard cost £20 per year, and gives a 1/3 off.

You can of course, travel by car, but do check that the start and end of the walk are on the same train line.

What to bring.

Wear boots in winter, bring water in summer, a raincoat if it might rain, and of course, a copy of the route :)

Lunch and Tea

The walks stop for lunch at the pub recommended in the book, but you are welcome to bring sandwiches, and just have a drink at the pub. The walks end with afternoon tea or at pub.

What happens on a walk?

If there are only a few people on the walk, they usually walk together. If there are lots of people, they usually split into several groups, some faster, some slower. In the summer, people sometimes stop to go swimming, or just enjoy the sun.

What if I want to leave the walk?

It is pefectly acceptable to set your own pace and leave the main group. This might be because you want to go sightseeing, visit a NT property, go for a swim, or if you find at any stage that the group that day, or the individuals within it, are not suited to your mood.

What do you do if you miss the train?

There are 3 options:

  • Catch the next train, and walk quickly. You probably won't be the only one, and you'll catch the main group up at the lunchtime pub.
  • Cath the next train, then use a taxi to catch up with the walk.
  • Do one of the other walks with a later start time.

What if weather is bad?

There is no guarantee that anyone else will be doing a particular club walk that day, especially if it happens to be New Year's Day with a hurricane blowing, but you may well be lucky.

Weekend Engineering Work

  • Don't forget that the tube sometimes has engineering work at weekends.
  • If you travel from a local train station, check the UK rail timetable.
  • Don't forget the return journey either.

When are the walks?

There are walks every Saturday and Sunday. There are also occasional midweeks walks

During the summer there are evening walks in central London

Book Rota

Walks used to be done according to a rota published some years in advance in the 2 Time Out books. They were the Vigourous, Relaxed, Nature and Creative walks (volume 1) and the Main, Vigourous and Sunday walks (volume 2). This is no longer the case (as we can now use the internet). Check This Week's Walks for currently scheduled walks.

The Legal Bit

These walks don't have a leader, and are entirely at your own risk.

You MUST bring your own copy of the walking instructions.

Nobody else on the walk is responsible for you. You are responsible for yourself at all times

The club and rota only exists to allow like minded people to independantly walk together

The club has no bank account, no insurance, no officers, and no legal existance.

Last Updated: Feb-09 by Andrew