Walks With Wheelchairs.com

Good morning!

I would like to tell you about two web sites I have recently created for buggy and wheelchair users..

• www.walkswithbuggies.com
• www.walkswithwheelchairs.com

As a new mum and someone who loves walking, I have become increasingly frustrated with the lack of information available about suitable walks for parents with buggies. On a recent holiday, one tourist information centre directed us up a very steep hill and expected me to get myself and a buggy over a 5ft wall!

It was after that experience that I decided I wanted to create a sensible, centralised database that everyone could access. While thinking through my initial concept I also did some research regarding walks for wheelchair users, as their needs are very similar, and again I found a real lack of information. With over 1.2 million wheelchair users in the UK, both young and old, I believe that more people would be able to enjoy the great outdoors - if only they knew of suitable routes.

With this in mind I have now created two sites where visitors can find details of the walks in their area, and also to share any of their own walk suggestions. The database will allow visitors to filter the results according to county, level of difficulty, distance and facilities. Once a walk has been selected the user can then print off the walk instructions and associated map.

The sites are only just getting up and running and I would really like as many people as possible to know about them. I was wondering if you would be interested in supporting the sites by either:

• Adding any walks to the site that you know would be ideal for buggies or wheelchairs - the sites are linked so adding a walk to one site will automatically make it accessible to users on the other. I know that you do fantastic work with 'Walking the way to health' and I am hoping that some of your routes are suitable for those with access challenges
• Passing this e mail on to anyone you think might be able to help or may be interested in the content

I really believe that having a national centralised database of walks, that is easy to find on the internet, will really help to get people with access challenges out into the fresh air and improve their health. I hope to hear from you soon.

Kind Regards
Marie

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Marie Houlden
marie@walkswith.com