Unbroken 40 annual walks
THIS year's 'Poddle', the Wey & Arun Canal Trust's annual walk will be its 40th unbroken sponsored event.
The organisers plan a different route each year and always try to include a part of the canal route, this year's walk being held on Sunday 10th June.
Attractive parts
This could be a section where the Trust's restorers have been active or one that has been virtually untouched for over a century. The canal route runs through some of the most attractive parts of the Surrey and Sussex countryside.
The Poddle route is never more than 15 miles long, and there is always a lunch stop somewhere around the halfway point where walkers are welcome to a free lunch. Transport can be arranged for any walker who wishes to return from the lunch stop to the start/finish point. Every three miles or so there is a refreshment point offering squash or water.
The first walk
The first sponsored walk was back in 1973 over a route including Alfold and Rowner. There were 16 walkers and the event brought in some £50 (which must have been worth quite a lot more if considered at 2012 values).
By way of comparison, last year's Poddle, which took place in the worst weather that the event had experienced for many years, involved 181 entrants and raised some £11,100. This remains the biggest public fundraising event of the year.
Towards the restoration
If you would like to join the walk and raise money towards the restoration of the Wey & Arun Canal, please telephone 01403 752403 or email
A sponsorship form is available for download from our website www.weyandarun.co.uk. And you can still support the work of the Wey & Arun Canal Trust by sponsoring 'the last man' even if you don't want to join the walk itself.