Walking provides health and economic benefits and there are many places to walk in Dereham, some are public streets, some are parks and open spaces. Dereham has 41 public rights of way - paths and tracks which everyone can use by right. We have published fourteen walk-guides which cover most of the countryside paths.

News:

While walking outside is not usually regarded as a high risk activity, we will follow Public Health England advice regarding public events.

The short walks (first Friday every month) are suspended, also the longer walks planned since April have been cancelled.

(BH = bank holiday):

Fri	First Friday, 10:00	Regular (monthly) Short Walk
Sat	27 Jun, 13:30	Annual Public Meeting
Thur	30 Jul, 10:00	Possible, but unlikely
BH Mon	31 Aug, 09:30?	Possible, but unlikely
Thur	17 Sep	Heritage Open Days walk - TBA
Sat	19 Sep	Heritage Open Days walk - TBA
Sun	27 Sep	Garden Party walk, holding date as 'possible'
Tues	27 Oct, time:TBA	Annual Public Meeting
BH Fri	1 Jan 2020, 10:00	Dereham walk

Short walks SUSPENDED

On the first Friday of each month meet at Queen Mother's Garden at 10:00am for a leisurely walk (less than 4 miles). There is no charge but there is an opportunity for a modest donation to support Dereham Walkers are Welcome (see why we have expenses).



The walks are pot-luck, with no advanced published route and unlike our main events (longer walks) simply conclude back at Queen Mother's garden. There is an option, at the end of the walk, to enjoy some refreshments together at an agreed venue.


The 6¼ mile route, took a bit over 2 hours for the select band of merry walkers celebrating the new decade! The day was still and warm (for mid-winter), so despite the promotional image, there was no snow.

The walk took in St Nicholas Church, Gingerbread Cottage, Northall Green and Etling Green before we returned to the town centre and our welcome refreshment at Coco’s.


Read the full report.

Unfortunately this walk had to be cancelled at the last moment due to torrential rain and potential flooding. As this was one of the last regular service trains of the year it was not possible to reschedule.


The walk took in The Neatherd, Dumpling Green, Potter’s Fen and the fringe of Scarning Water Meadows before returning for our welcome refreshments and a mardle: tea/coffee and cake served in a local back garden, but we moved inside when a heavy shower arrived.

Read the full report.

A repeated event for (accompanied) children:

Participants met at the car park near the pond on Neatherd Moor and followed a designated walk on the moor taking about an hour to complete.

During the fun walk we discovered more about our native deer and their connection to Dereham.

Deer are shy animals and unlikely to be seen in the middle of the day on a busy Neatherd moor, but early morning they are about.

Read the full report.


Our Late Summer Bank Holiday walk took us well out of Dereham. We visited our friends in Clare - a Walkers are Welcome accredited town in Suffolk. The walk itself was Number 3 in a series prepared by Clare Walkers - see clarewalks.co.uk/walking (opens in a new tab).

Read the full report.



An updated and extended version of last year's event, spend a couple of hours looking at the views of our town itself. Exploring some of Dereham's history there is also a peep behind the scenes, beyond what is normally open to the public.

As part of the package, each person received a booklet which was produced especially for this event detailing the main buildings and their history.

Read the full report.

©2016-20 Dereham Walkers are Welcome Coded with a simple text editor by Timothy Birt