Alton Walking and Cycling Festival 2021 - Time to dig out your walking shoes and you bike

 As part of Alton Town Council’s 2021 events programme, we are pleased to be able to stage the ever popular Walking Festival during the month of May. This year there are over 50 walks included in the programme and for the first time, we are able to also feature 3 days of cycling, offering participants guided rides to explore the area from easy 5 mile rides up to 50 mile rides for the more experienced cyclist. As a Walkers are Welcome Town, we have also been able to organise two walks with neighbouring Walkers are Welcome accredited Towns; Overton and Whitchurch - Alton to Overton (1st May) and also Alton to Whitchurch (31st May). The Walking Festival has grown considerably over the past few years and has successfully evolved from being just a weekend event , to a week and to what is now an extensive programme of varied walks (2 mile – over 26 miles) over the entire month of May. The festival seeks to encourage not only the local community to take part but also to attract visitors from outside the area, to discover walking and cycling for the benefit of improving their mental health and wellbeing; to explore a new area and more importantly meet and make new friends for social interaction. During the month it will hopefully provide the ideal opportunity for people to reduce social isolation by bringing people together in a safe and welcoming environment, after what has been a very difficult year.

The month long festival has something for everyone, short, long, leisurely to challenging walks and rides. There are shorter walks where you stop and listen to an expert about the local trees, history or wildlife, leisurely evening walks for those who can’t make the day time walks and for those looking for more of a walking challenge you can attend one of 3 longer walks.

All walks and rides are free to attend and for this to happen Alton Town Council would like to thank Newbury Building Society for sponsoring this year’s event and to district councillors Ginny Boxall and Paula Langley for grants towards to the cost of the event

All walks and cycle rides must be booked in advance. For full details and to book please visit www.alton.gov.uk.