Dates for Your Diaries
2026 AGM will be held at Morley Cricket Club on Tuesday APRIL 14TH 2026 at 19.45 hrs
This is an important club event for which we need a minimum 25% of members to attend so please do your best to be there.
A Message from our President Andy Bell December 2025
On behalf of the Committee and myself, may I wish you all a Merry Christmas and best
wishes for the New Year.
Where does the time go, it doesn’t seem 2 minutes since I was writing an article for the 2024
Newsletter and it will be 2026 in a couple of weeks! Still, we’ve squeezed in over a hundred
club walks in the past year with regular mid-week walks and the monthly Adventure walk,
thank you to Ian for organizing the latter and adding something different.
It’s pleasing that some of the walks have been led by our newer members. I hope they
continue to be involved, perhaps also in social events where new ideas are always
welcome.Thank you to those who have organised social events throughout this year,
especially Bev for the coach trip to Beverley and our excellent Christmas Party and Lizzie
(and Tony) for our February coach trip and the Mince pie walk. The February coach trip to
Cromer was particularly enjoyable with a great location and fabulous weather.
The weather has made for some memorable walks this year with snow at the beginning of the
year followed by one of the driest summers I can remember. The 6 mile Strenuous Adventure
Teashop walk was memorable both for the challenge and the closed Teashop!
Here’s to 2026 being another great walking year; I have the first walk of the year, January 4th
an easy 8 miles from Wetherby so I look forward to seeing you then.
Andy Bell
President
Walking Update -Ian Pickering
We are halfway through our current walks calendar, and our walking numbers are positive.
January is a great month to shed those extra pounds we gain over the Festive period. We have
a full program starting 4th of January, a medium categorised easy walk, meeting as usual for a
9:00 am departure from Morrisons Carpark.
Remember this from last year? “Adventure walks. Something for those lighter mornings, an
earlier start, a walk further afield, a summit, a peak just out of reach of our normal short,
medium and long walk starting times – Adventure walks on the 4th possible 5th Sunday of the
month. Currently at the planning stage”
. I am delighted to report that these adventure walks
have been and continue to be a great success.
Eight walks completed and well attended with a total of 21 members walking at least one walk.
Our walks averaged over 9 miles with a total ascent of all walks over 15,300 ft. Buckden Pike
and Great Shunner Fell both summits above 2000ft.
We are lucky to live in an area close to three of our national parks, providing great walks, great
scenery with a habitat full of wildlife, stunning natural beauty. While walking off Great
Shunner Fell and the adjacent Lovely Seat, heading back to where we’d parked, at the bottom
of West Greenseat we spooked 20 to 30 hare. At speed they climbed up towards Muker Edge
jumping rocks as they scurried. Their running speed was mesmerising, like watching something
you’d see on a wildlife program. Memorable moments and the rewards of walking in the fells.
Our annual Christmas Mince Pie Walk 21st December is upon us. This year at Lizzie’s. The
mince pie walk will be a local around Morley, approx 3 to 4 miles, starting from Morrisons
carpark at 10am or at Lizzie’s from 10:10am (we usually have a quick drink stop halfway if
the weather is kind). From Lizzie’s its an easy, across the fields and back, finishing at
Lizzie’s house for a finger buffet, tea/coffee, and plenty of catching up, ‘walking tales’ and
Christmas Cheer. Please, no food that requires warming up and please, not too much. Non-
walkers can go to Lizzie’s around midday; there will be someone to let you in. For anyone
who has not been before the buffet is made up of contributions from everyone attending and a
mixture of savoury and sweet which will be collect from you all at Morrisons at the start of
the walk.
A heads-up, after New Years, Ian will be asking for walking leaders for our summer calendar.
Why not give it a go, if there is somewhere you have always wanted to walk but you’ve never
led a walk, there are previous leaders who are willing to help, give them a shout.
Elf and Safety
Just a word to ensure we all walk safely and enjoy ourselves when out there.
For leaders, please ensure you grade your walks appropriately on the walks list and when out
there leading please go at a pace to suit the slowest walker, appoint a back marker, even for
smaller groups and keep the back marker in view. Don’t forget to have a break around 11am,
it’s more than your life is worth to leave it much later!
For walkers, if there is something not right or the pace is too much, please speak out and
ensure the leader is aware of any issues. Nothing can happen if the leader does not know.
And one last request, a polite request, as conditions become muddier, please don’t forget to
take a change of footwear so we don’t mess up cars of drivers who are kind enough to take us
walking.
We need your help
We always need volunteers to manage or help organise some events if we are to continue with them. So if you can help please contact our secretary who has kindly offered to collate this info for the committee. It’s your chance to put your own slant on an event or bring something new!!