Ordnance Survey – Great Britain's national mapping agency

Health walks for bird watchers

22 October 2007

The Walking the way to Health initiative (WHI) has joined forces with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB®) to promote one ‘gentle walk’ per month in order to bring people closer to nature.
 
Ramblers will be able to enjoy birds and other wildlife on the routes that take walkers through various RSPB reserves around the country.
 
The first in this series of walks, entitled Birdwatching for Beginners, will take place at the RSPB Minsmere nature reserve in Suffolk on Wednesday 24 October and will cost £5 for adults, with a reduced fare of £2.50 for children.
 
A birdwatching site since 1947, this walk will teach ramblers how to use their binoculars properly while the guides highlight some of Minsmere's unique wildlife.
 
Other walks throughout the year will include a ‘winter warmer’ at Leighton Moss in Lancashire in November and the chance to enjoy winter wildfowl at Sedgemoor nature reserve in Somerset on 2, 9, 26 and 31 December.
 
WHI is an initiative to encourage people, especially those in poor health, to take regular light exercise and is the brainchild of Oxfordshire GP Dr William Bird.
 
The scheme has helped create over 400 local health walks and, since 2000, is estimated to have encouraged over a million people to walk more.

RSPB is a registered trademark of The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

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