WARRINGTON’S first walking club has celebrated a 60 year milestone in its history.

Warrington HF Rambling Club was established in 1949 by George Newbold to remedy the town’s lack of walking trips.

A member of the Holiday Fellowship, founded in 1913 by the Rev Tom Leonard to give cheap and healthy holidays to industrial workers, Mr Newbold created the rambling club to give the people of Warrington the chance to venture further afield and explore the countryside.

David Woolf, former chairman of the club, said: “When it was first established the average age of members was mid-20s.

“In the post-war era the world was changing and people wanted to discover more about it.

“Back then people joined clubs as there was a much greater social cohesion than there is now and it was very difficult in those days to go walking – very few people had cars, they went by bus or train and had rudimentary maps and clothing.

“These days, like many rambling clubs, the average age of our members is nearing 60. Our oldest member is 88 and the youngest is 40.

“A lot of younger people, if they are interested in walking, probably walk on their own or with a group of friends as the opportunities are much better now with most people having their own transport and maps and information about routes are far more accessible.”

The rambling club organises walks at weekends and Wednesdays from four miles upwards in Cheshire, Lancashire, The Lake District, The Yorkshire Dales, Wales and The Peak District.

The club is also taking part in a series of walks of the UK’s highest peaks including Snowdon, Scafell Pike, Ben Nevis, Carrantouhill, Snaefell and Slieve Donard.

A dinner attended by 87 of its 140 members was held at Winmarleigh House on Friday, May 15, to celebrate the club’s 60th anniversary.

Awards were given to long-standing members Pat Lloyd, Tom Beecroft, Frank Bishop and Jim Caldwell, who has been part of the club for more than 58 years, for their service to the ramblers.

For more information about joining the club call chairman Dennis Carter on 224506 or visit or log on to:warrington-hf-ramblers .org.uk