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The Christmas walk is a very special walk for us for a few reasons. The first and most important one for us is that it marks the anniversary of the first Strolls with Poles walk in 2017. If we look back at the photographs from the 3 walks we can see a lot of the same faces, most we see regularly during the year however there are a few we don’t see as often as well as those who are new to Strolls with Poles. Everyone regardless of the frequency of them joining us are always assured of a warm and friendly welcome.

The second reason is that it is “usually” our last walk of the year (this year we had an extra one in December). Regardless, this is a great time for us to thank everyone for their support throughout the year.

The third reason is that it is one of the few walks that is repeated every year. As such it is known as our Annual Christmas Walk. The walk always takes us up to the Christmas Tree on Simonside.

We had been contacted by Louise at the Royal Voluntary Service (RVS) to provide a training session for the over 55s, as part of the First Time For Everything project which is funded by Prudential. Obviously, we obliged and suggested Alnmouth as the place to conduct the training.

Arriving early for the Allen Banks and Staward Gorge walk, we knew it was likely to be a wet day. However, for the moment, the rain was holding off.

We welcomed Jane for her first walk with Strolls with Poles and Julie gave her tuition on the technique before we took advantage of the weather and quickly did our warm up before setting off.

When we checked out this walk from Barnard Castle and along the Teesdale Way back in April, we knew that it had to go onto the programme. It was lovely and varied but never straying too far from the River Tees. It also had the bonus of allowing us to visit Egglestone Abbey on the way back.

This walk from Haltwhistle to Featherstone and Lambley Viaduct was planned back in April. It was a lovely day then too. We could tell early on that this was going to be a good walk.

This walk from Haltwhistle to Featherstone and Lambley Viaduct was planned back in April. It was a lovely day then too. We could tell early on that this was going to be a good walk.

We came to Old Bewick, Blawearie and Cateran Hole earlier in the year. However, then we could barely see our hands in front of our faces. The weather on this trip was completely different and in a good way. Take a look at the gallery for evidence.

The Coldingham and St Abbs walk is the the furthest North that we usually go. It is one of the best walks though. The views are truly outstanding along the coast and the lovely village of Coldingham is very welcoming.