Finding Walks

It can be fun and an adventure looking for walks as you get to discover places you never knew existed. Here are some suggestions of places you might check out:

• Generally you are looking for walks that are more or-less on the flat.
• Do you know somebody in the area who walks and knows the locality? Perhaps they can give you some tips and ideas.

For those living in an urban area:

• Can you make up an interesting walk around local streets?
• What about the local housing estates? Are there interconnecting passages or pathways between them you could use to link them up?
• Is there a park in the area with a network of paths inside where you could make a walk?

For those living in a rural area:

• Are there quiet local roads and lanes around that could be used?
• Is there a public forest nearby with signposted routes where you could walk?
• Is there a river or canal in the vicinity where you could include a section along the banks or even walk up one side and back the other?

General considerations:

• Do you have a local sports club or GAA pitch in the area which you could walk around? If it is floodlit, could you walk there at night?
• Do you have any of the Irish Heart Foundation’s Slí na Slainte routes? Check out www.irishheart.ie to see if there is one in your area. They are easy to follow and mostly have signs at 1km intervals.
• Why not check out www.irishtrails.ie to see if any walks are listed near you. Walks on this website have directional signage and are of different lengths, from as short as a few hundred metres up to many kilometres, and varying levels of difficulty, starting with family and buggy friendly on up through Easy and Moderate.
• The website www.coillteoutdoors.ie will give you information on walks in the Coillte forests. They also have directional signage and are of different lengths and levels of difficulty.
• You could look at indoor venues for days when the weather is very bad, maybe a community hall or a shopping centre.

Be Safe

When you are looking for places to walk, bear in mind that you want to stay safe so:

• Stay off busy roads and those where traffic travels fast
• Avoid obvious dangers, such as exposed cliffs, tidal beaches, areas that flood, farm animals and working areas such as farms, building sites, etc.
• If walking at night choose places that have good lighting.

Finding a walking group

Walking in a group can really help you to get started, stay motivated and enjoy walking. To find a walking group in your area check out our ‘Supports Near You’ page. You could also keep an eye on your local papers and newsletters or on notice boards in your area for details of any walking groups nearby. Social media sites are also worth checking out.

Find a walking event

It can be great fun and very sociable to attend walking events. For any that might interest you follow the link on the ‘Supports Near You’ page. Watching your local papers and newsletters and looking at notice boards or checking out social media sites, you may find details of events.

Enjoy the adventure!

Download this  ‘Get Ireland Walking’ Fact sheet in our Health downloads section.