WHITE CLIFFS WALKING FESTIVAL (2016)
Not just a walk - an experience
Purpose of the Festival
Through a varied programme of walks to suit different age, ability, and interest groups, the
purpose of the Festival is to attract local people and visitors alike, of varied walking abilities,
to develop the love of walking for health, interest, enjoyment and social benefits, and
consequently promoting the area, the facilities, the attractions and its friendly communities.
Summary
Wow! What a week. Sunshine, happy walkers, and with the countryside and coastline
looking great.
Key points:
Good weather every day
40 walks
255 miles (415km) of walking routes used
Walking routes visited all three Town Council areas, & 25 of the Parish Council areas
1102 walkers (cumulative: the sum of the total number of walkers for each walk, for the
40 walks)
Collectively – walkers walked for around 4,200 hours
Collectively – walkers covered 10,058 miles
Collectively – walkers burned up to a million calories, covering all walks, all walkers
Introduction
The White Cliffs Walking Festival 2016 was organised by the White Cliffs Ramblers Group,
Kent, part of the Ramblers organisation, Britain's walking charity. This is the fourth
consecutive year White Cliffs Ramblers have organised a walking festival.
The festival ran (sorry – walked) from Thursday 25th August, to Wednesday 31st August,
covering the Bank Holiday weekend. Forty walks were organised all within the Dover District
Council area. Overall the walks covered over 255 miles (415 km) in this beautiful area of the
country.
Over the seven days the weather was sunshine, sunshine and more sunshine – glorious.
The quality of the experience is fundamental to our planning, organising and operating of
the festival, so feedback is encouraged and is important to us. The cumulative total of
walkers was slightly up on 2015 which again demonstrates the popularity of the walks and
the interest of local people and visitors alike.
Promotional activity
Promotion starts with raising people’s awareness of the event, to exciting their interest, to
providing sufficient information for people to make choices as to what walks they wish to
participate in.
Therefore the promotion of the event is very important and relates to the majority of the
expenditure. We now have a database with around 1000 names of people who wish to be
kept informed of future White Cliffs Walking Festivals. The White Cliffs Walking Festival
website contains information on all the walks with a simple booking online process.
In addition we emailed details of the
walk programme to all senior schools in
the Dover District Council area, Parish
Councils, health outlets, community
outlets, various youth organisations,
camping and caravan sites, various
walking groups around Kent and
elsewhere, including Ramblers Groups,
other organised groups, and social
walking groups.
This was followed up with the
distribution of 6000 good quality walk programme leaflets. These were distributed widely,
primarily within east Kent, but also targeted with various organisations further afield,
including all the Ramblers groups in Kent. Details of the festival were also featured on the
national Ramblers website.
Many Parish Councils were extremely proactive in organising posters to be displayed on
their notice boards, distributing walk programme leaflets to key community outlets such as
post offices and village halls, publishing details on their websites, and publishing details in
their newsletters. We are extremely grateful to Parish Clerks for their support.
We also circulated 1500+ flyers, and distributed 300 A4
posters, of which 90 were displayed on Stagecoach buses.
Banners were displayed at various places in Deal, Dover and
Sandwich. Social media played an important part with a
campaign on both Twitter and Facebook. A YouTube video was
also produced with many viewings.
And leading up to the festival, newspaper adverts were placed
in the Kent Messenger newspapers, Kent Online, Dover Express
and the Folkestone Herald. In addition news articles were
published with particular prominence in the Kent Messenger
Group.
The festival was mentioned in the Guardian’s travel section. We also had a journalist from
the Sun on one of the walks, as she was writing a piece about White Cliffs Country. It is the
first time the festival has been mentioned in national newspapers.
Cumulative number of walkers
Quality of the experience is fundamental to our approach. Whilst it is gratifying to see the
numbers being maintained or slightly increased, we believe it is the quality of the
experience that drives everything we do to make the festival a success, so the actual
number is just one indicator. As can be seen from the graph below, the cumulative total for
2016 was 1102, slightly up on 2015. This may indicate the Festival has reached a plateau
considering the level of volunteer time available, and the budget we are able to attract
through grants, primarily used for printing of walk programmes, posters, advertisements
and other promotional material and equipment.
Whilst Ramblers’ members are always supportive of the festivals, the fact that 72% were
not Ramblers members showed the popularity of the event to less frequent walkers who
were attracted to the walks by their variety and suitability to the individual’s ability and
interests. Hopefully this will lead to many getting out and about on various walks on a
regular basis in the future. This is what we encourage.
Through conversations on many of the walks, Ramblers members highlighted various
options for the infrequent walkers, to improve health through walking, not just with the
Ramblers, but other walking groups, or forming a small group of friends or neighbours to go
on walks, or just to leave the car behind for short journeys and walk instead.
Comparison with 2015
The main increases were Dover residents (including surrounding parishes), Deal residents
(including surrounding parishes), and Shepway residents. As the main focus of promoting
the event was in these areas, it is not surprising this is where the largest numbers came
from. We are also noticing, and receiving comments, that increasing numbers are now
attending each year, both local people and visitors.
These increases are primarily offset against a drop in those coming from outside Kent.
150 150 150 150 150
674
1005
1095 1102
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Yr 2008* Yr 2009* Yr 2011* Yr 2011* Yr 2012* Yr 2013 Yr 2014 Yr 2015 Yr 2016
White Cliffs Walking Festivals - cumulative totals of walkers
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
74
21
201
61
14
241
131
214
30
108
78
6
270
78
37
77
187
263
9
97 2015
2016
Comparison - 2015 and 2016
Long Distance Walkers Association (LDWA)
Each year the Kent branch of the LDWA have organised a challenge event covering long
distances, always over 30 miles, and last year up to 52 miles. The key organiser is also one
of the founder members of the White Cliffs Ramblers.
In 2015 the LDWA organised the very popular 50 mile White Cliffs Challenge which attracted
very large numbers. The 50 mile walks are part of the KSS (Kent, Surrey, Sussex) Triple
Challenge of 50 mile walks. In 2016 it was the turn of Sussex to host the 50 mile Sussex
Stride event. This year, the White Cliffs Challenge was either a 15 mile or 32 mile walk that
still attracted good numbers but less than the very popular 50 mile Challenge Walk of last
year.
This year 102 people joined in the two
options, a 15 mile walk or a 32 mile walk.
Most came from outside the DDC area. This
represents around 9% of the cumulative total
of participants for the whole festival. It was
noticeable this LDWA event was particularly
well attended by walkers from Medway,
Canterbury, Tonbridge and Essex, as well as
some from as far afield as Swansea.
This shows the popularity of this type of long distance walking and we are grateful to the
LDWA for their partnership in the White Cliffs Walking festival.
Where did walkers come from?
As the festival walks were all in the Dover District Council area, the majority of promotional
activity was in this locality.
48% came from the District. This is up from 37% in 2015.
In all 83% came from Kent. This is a significant increase from 65% last year.
It is hard to explain why there has been
such a big increase. Apart from the
significant promotional activity, we believe
the Festival is now receiving a regular
following of local people, and ‘word of
mouth’ leads to friends and family deciding
to experience the joys of local walking
opportunities.
Health benefits
It sounds like an enormous figure but as a rough estimate the number of calories burned
during the festival by the collective number of people walking was up to one million. This is
not an exact figure but calculated at 100 calories for every mile walked. This is calculated by
the mileage of each walk, and the numbers on each walk which equates to 10,058 miles,
multiplied by 100 (calories per mile). Please see Appendix ‘A’ for greater detail.
Walking is simple, free and one of the easiest ways to get more active, lose weight and
become healthier. It's underrated as a form of exercise, but walking is ideal for people of all
ages and fitness levels who want to be more active. Regular walking has been shown to
reduce the risk of chronic illnesses, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, asthma, stroke
and some cancers (source – NHS).
So many to say thank you to
Firstly thank you to Dover Town Council,
Deal Town Council, Kent County Council,
Stagecoach and other organisations who
wished confidentiality for providing funding
to support the event.
Thank you to the Kent Area Council of the
Ramblers, and to the twelve other Ramblers
groups in Kent for their ongoing support.
West Kent 7%
Ashford 1%
Dover 24%
Canterbury 7%
Thanet 3%
Outside Kent 7%
Shepway 17%
Deal 24%
Abroad 1%
Unknown 9%
White Cliffs Walking Festival - 2016
We very much appreciated support from people and organisations outside of the Ramblers
including the Long Distance Walkers Association, the White Cliffs Countryside Partnership,
Parish Councils, Up on the Downs Project members, Explore Kent, Visit Kent, the Canterbury
Archaeological Trust, Kent Reptile and Amphibian Group, The Western Heights Preservation
Society, The Deal Society, The Dover Society and The Land Trust. Several other organisations
were supportive in promoting the festival on their websites. Our Twitter and Facebook
campaigns continue to develop and are attracting increasing interest.
And finally to the White Cliffs Ramblers Group themselves. So many dedicated so much time
to make this festival happen.
In all forty members of the White Cliffs Ramblers contributed to the planning, organising
and operating of the festival. A big thank you to all involved.
In all, members of the White Cliffs Ramblers
gave around 1600 hours of their time to make
this Festival happen.
Feedback
We invited walkers to provide feedback on our website. Please view all the feedback on the
‘Comments’ page.
Here are a few clips from those comments and a few memories of this happy Festival
(pictures do not necessarily correspond with comments):
“I travelled from Dorset for this Walking
Festival.”
“Loved every minute of an entertaining
and varied walk – can’t wait for next years
festival and to meet more walking mates.”
“Good company, great weather and excellent
organisation.”
.
Hedgerow and fields: a foraging we go!
“Fascinating and fun. Learnt a great deal
about what you can find in the hedgerow”.
Smugglers Walk
“Our 5 year old says “Smugglers Walk is the
best walk ever” and our 9 year old was riveted
by the story line and action.”
“This was great fun.”
History & Wildlife of the Western Heights
“A really interesting walk and talk. So much history
surrounding the Western Heights.”
“Is there a better way than walking by the White Cliffs
of Dover, seeing all the lights of the harbour, good
company, then fish and chips!
And so to 2017 - the planning starts soon!
24 - 30 August 2017 here we come!
Our very own ‘Usain Bolt’s’ limber up for next year!
Appendix A
How Many Calories Does Walking Burn?
Our weight and the distance we walk determine the energy expended (Calories burned) while
walking.
Walking speed matters less than the distance you walk and how much we weigh. A rule of thumb is
100 calories per mile are burned for a 180-pound person and 65 calories per mile for a 120-pound
person.
Calories Burned Per Mile by Walking (source - www.verywell.com)
Speed/Pounds
100 lb 120 lb 140 lb 160 lb 180 lb 200 lb 220 lb 250 lb 275 lb 300 lb
2.0 mph 57 cal 68 cal 80 cal 91 cal 102 cal
114 cal
125 cal
142 cal
156 cal
170 cal
2.5 mph 55 65 76 87 98 109 120 136 150 164
3.0 mph 53 64 74 85 95 106 117 133 146 159
3.5 mph 52 62 73 83 94 104 114 130 143 156
4.0 mph 57 68 80 91 102 114 125 142 156 170
4.5 mph 64 76 89 102 115 127 140 159 175 191
5.0 mph 73 87 102 116 131 145 160 182 200 218
If we achieve the speed of walking a mile in 13 minutes or less, we will burn more calories per mile.
But for most beginning walkers, it is best to increase the walking distance before working on speed.
The calculator and chart of calories burned per mile is based on MET research – metabolic
equivalents of various activities. The rate of calories burned was measured while people engaged in
these activities.
Walking and Not Losing Weight?
If we eat more calories than we use each day, we gain weight.
If we eat fewer calories than we use each day, we lose weight.
To lose weight we need to eat fewer calories and/or burn more each day.
‘A pound of fat equals 3500 calories’. To lose 1 pound a week we need to expend 3500 more
calories than we eat that week, whether through increased activity or decreased eating - or
both
Science comment: The scientific definition of a calorie is the amount of heat needed to raise one gramme of
water one degree Celsius. This is a small quantity of energy and when dieticians discuss our diet they talk in
terms of kilocalories, however, calories is now commonly used (e.g. in food magazines) instead of kilocalories.
i.e. 1 Calorie =1 kilocalorie.