British Walking Federation (BWF)
IVV (International Federation of Popular Sports)
There has been a Hawkdean Night walk for 18 years until 2008, organised by my good friend Mike Hardwick an ex scout leader. This was a totally different walk from the present Hawkdean Hike which is a day time event and basically only shares the same name.
The ethos for the night walk was to make it difficult to complete, challenging teams to work together on several tasks. The night walk was only for teams of 6 between the ages of 12-17, requiring good navigation skills, and a good level of general knowledge. The routes varied each year but were generally about 12 miles long. The route was designed to be as challenging as possible, going through mud and brambles if your navigation was bad. Teams set off in intervals and at each check point were asked questions from the bible and general knowledge, correct answers were awarded points.
Points awarded for walking times and quiz answers were combined together giving an overall mark. Often the fastest teams did not win the event, as the answering the questions correctly were just as important as a quick time. This very popular event was limited in numbers to 150 due to safety requirements, organisational backup and sleeping accommodation etc. Hopefully this very popular challenge event will be back on the calendar.
Many of the helpers/organisers from this walk help with the daytime walk, their knowledge and experience from helping on the night walk is highly valued.
Apart from the walks sharing similar names Hawkdean Challenge and Hawkdean Hike, there is little in common. The clue is in the name, the night walk was very difficult and required many skills and determination to finish, many teams failed to complete the course. In contrast the daytime walk's approach tries to ease any difficulty, way marking and providing guide books, cutting back brambles, choosing routes for ease, scenery and interest. This walk is not limited to teams, but is open to everyone, individuals, families and teams. Although you will not be wading through mud and swamps on the daytime walk, it still provide a sense of achievement on completion.
Hawkdean Hikers Logo
Hawkdean Hikers is a club formed with the primary aim of encouraging walking as an activity for everyone, especially the young. Hawkdean refers to Hawkesbury Deanery where the club is located, (the deanery is part of Gloucester Diocese whose boundary extends beyond the club local area). The club is registered with the British Walking Federation (BWF) club No 106, and consists of a small group of volunteers who organise a single walking event the Hawkdean Hike, although the number of events will increase in the future.
As young and old walk together it is our hope that in some small way, the young will see this as an activity for their whole life. The youngest participants so far on the Hawkdean Hike going around in pushchairs and papoose is a boy of just 6 weeks old followed by twin girls 8 weeks old, at the other end of the scale the oldest to our knowledge is a married couple 80 and 85 years young.
British Walking Federation (BWF)
IVV (International Federation of Popular Sports)
The BWF is a member of the IVV, (the full name Internationaler Volkssportverband translates to International Federation of Popular Sports) the popular sports include walking, cycling, swimming, cross country skiing, skating and other events which are non-competitive. Both the BWF and the IVV have their own award scheme, based on distance or number of events completed, the Hawkdean Hike event may be used to add distance or events towards these awards.
British Walking Federation (BWF) web site
IVV (International Federation of Popular Sports) web site
Hawkdean Hiker's Club Documents