A new website was launched today dedicated to helping people get fit by taking short walks in some of the most outstandingly beautiful countryside in the United Kingdom.
The Peak District attracts over 22 million visits each year and is one of the most popular National Parks in the world. Famous for its hill walking and, in particular, for the start of the Pennine Way, it is also hugely popular for its more gentle dales and picturesque villages.
The Cheshire Plain, with its rolling farmland, quaint villages and large country estates, is rich in history and is ideal walking country for every kind of walking enthusiast.
As our lives have become more sedentary and the rate of heart disease has soared, people have started to look for easy and enjoyable ways to get fit.
To many people, the idea of working out in the gym, or jogging to fitness, is singularly unappealing. As an alternative, what easier way to fitness could there be than getting out into the countryside and taking a short walk in the fresh air?
The short walks web site will:
Provide a growing number of opportunities for short walks in The Peak District and Cheshire Plain;
Provide detailed route plans and maps;
Ensure, as far as possible, that members don’t get lost and that they have a pleasant and enjoyable walking experience.
Commenting on the launch of the site, Tony Dunne, of Northgate Information Publishers, said, “I used to go hiking when I was young and the experience was most memorable for the number of painful blisters I got after walking up steep hills all day.
“I was determined the short walks web site would offer people an easier way to enjoy the countryside. So we concentrate on providing routes to short walks over less demanding terrain. That way, people realize that exercise can be fun, and they want to do it more”.
For a small subscription fee, members of the web site get access to lots of short walking routes, with more being added each month and each accompanied by an easy-to-follow map.
There is an Events Calendar, and a Message Board where people can contribute to discussion about the site and influence its future development.
Over the coming months visitors to the site, and especially members, will be provided with lots of articles on topics of special interest and on the very special areas of outstanding natural beauty that sit right at the heart of the UK.
