Newsletter - October 2019
Happy Autumn everyone!
I'll start by congratulating group members Sheena Findlay, Lucy Robins, Clare Staff and John Walker, as well as Gwyneth Littlejohn from the Bristol & West group, who all took part in the 56-mile Bullock Smithy recently. John had to retire at 32 miles but the others went on to complete it. Nice one!
In this month's newsletter:
- Walk Leaders Needed;
- Annual General Meeting (AGM) & Xmas Meal
- GDPR - Taking Photographs;
- Winter Walking; and
- Forthcoming Walks
Walk Leaders Needed
From Andy Todd:
"The following Thursday walk dates still need to be filled:
- Thursday 19th March
- Thursday 16th April
Please contact me at andy@andytodd.org.uk to volunteer your services."
Annual General Meeting (AGM) & Xmas Meal
From Lesley Bellis:
This year’s Xmas Meal and AGM will be held at the Royal Oak, Wootton Rivers,Marlborough SN8 4NQ.
The plan is to meet at the pub to start our walk at 0900hrs, led by John Walker. There is additional parking at the village hall just a few yards further on from the pub. We will return to the pub by 1230ish and, after a quick change and the opportunity to buy a drink, the meal will be served at 1330hrs. We have used this venue on several occasions and the food is excellent.
I am still awaiting the menu from the venue. Upon receipt, Clive will send it directly to group members. All your menu choices will need to be sent to me by 1st November.
All members who have contributed either a walk or marshaled at a checkpoint will receive a subsidy towards their meal.
GDPR - Taking Photographs
From Stuart Bain (LDWA Data Protection): "It is worth highlighting to members that a pragmatic approach should be taken to taking photographs of individuals on local group social walks and challenge events. Explicit consent is not required to take photos, and they may be featured in group newsletters, Strider or on LDWA websites and social media. If you do not wish to have your/your child’s photo taken you should ensure you/your child are out of camera shot when the photo is taken. If, on the very rare occasions you feel a photo may have been taken without your knowledge, you should respectfully request that the photo be deleted. The LDWA offers the right to correction, and on request, will remove photos, where feasible, from LDWA websites or social media." |
Winter Walking
Is your rucksack ready for winter? The weather is changing, so now is the time to check your rucksack to ensure you carry the right items for the season ahead. You will need:
- Waterproof jacket and trousers;
- A fleece (or other warm layer);
- A working torch or head torch with spare batteries;
- An emergency survival bag;
- A whistle;
- Hat and gloves;
- An emergency food item. Something high in calories e.g. chocolate, flapjack or nuts. It can be a good idea to have something you don’t like that much to ensure you don’t snack on it;
- A waterproof bag or waterproof rucksack cover to ensure all the above stays dry; and
- Essential item: ICE card with your next of kin and medical details. You must carry one of these on group walks.
Forthcoming Walks
Finally, here's the usual look ahead to all the group walks and challenge events that are taking place this month within a 50-mile radius of the geographical centre of Wiltshire.
| Date | Name | Type | Mileage | Organiser |
| Wed 2nd Oct 2019 | North and south of the A4 | Group | c15ml. | Thames Valley |
| Sun 6th Oct 2019 | Christmas Common Caper | Group | c20ml. | Thames Valley |
| Sun 6th Oct 2019 | Seend You Later | Group | 18ml. | Wiltshire |
| Sun 6th Oct 2019 | Tony Farrell Tribute Walk | Group | 19ml. | Wessex |
| Sun 6th Oct 2019 | Wylye Valley Kanter | Challenge | 25, 19, 12 or 6ml. | (Non LDWA) |
| Tue 8th Oct 2019 | Down on the Farm - Event Cancelled | Group | c16ml. | Bristol & West |
| Sat 12th Oct 2019 | A Wiltshire 50 - Devizes and out | Group | 50 or 23ml. | Wiltshire |
| Sun 13th Oct 2019 | Thealing your way - Event Details Updated | Group | c20 or c15ml. | Thames Valley |
| Wed 16th Oct 2019 | Down, down, deeper and down - Dean | Group | 15ml. | South Wales |
| Wed 16th Oct 2019 | Water and Woods Walk | Group | c15ml. | Thames Valley |
| Thu 17th Oct 2019 | Box Figure of 8 | Group | 15ml. | Wiltshire |
| Sat 19th Oct 2019 | William Cobbett's 100-miler | Group | 19ml. | Wessex |
| Sat 19th Oct 2019 | Winchcombe Way - Eastern Loop | Group | 21ml. | Heart of England |
| Sun 20th Oct 2019 | A North Oxford Exploration | Group | c22ml. | Thames Valley |
| Sun 20th Oct 2019 | Across the Heaths | Group | 20ml. | Dorset |
| Fri 25th - Mon 28th Oct 2019 | Autumn 4 Day Beaches, Bars & Blisters walk | Group | 72ml. | IOW |
| Wed 30th Oct 2019 | Walking in history | Group | c14.5ml. | Thames Valley |
This e-mail has been sent to 490+ Primary and Associate group members. If you wish to opt out of receiving e-mails from us, you will need to change your e-mail preferences by logging onto the LDWA website. The newsletter is also shared with the 7,000+ members of the LDWA Facebook group.
That's it for another newsletter. All our newsletters are available via the Wiltshire LDWA website. If you have anything to contribute to future editions, please can you get it to me by the 20th of each month. I look forward to seeing you out on our group walks this month.
Warmest regards
Clive
Secretary of the Wiltshire LDWA
WiltshireLDWA@outlook.com
