Ramblers celebrate inaugural National Parks Week
[04 June 2004]
The importance of National Parks is to be recognised during the first ever National Parks Week, Thursday 1 - Sunday 9 July 2004, and the Ramblers' Association (RA) will be participating by offering a series of walks in National Parks during the week.
The week is intended to raise awareness of the unique qualities our National Parks have to offer, and to highlight their diverse and breathtaking beauty as well as the wide range of recreational opportunities on offer. Our National Parks contain a mosaic of rich landscapes, including sweeping heather moorlands, dramatic coastlines, stunning upland and mountainous areas that are worthy of celebration in their own right.
The RA was hugely influential in the formation of National Parks; working
alongside other environmental and heritage groups to ensure legislation was
passed to protect these wonderful landscapes. When National Parks were founded
in the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act they had two
purposes: to preserve and enhance their natural beauty and to encourage open-air
recreation, the RA can take much of the credit for the latter.
Photo: Association of National Park Authorities
Likewise, the RA has been at the forefront campaigning for Scotland?s first two National Parks in the Cairngorms and Loch Lomond & Trossachs, as well as arguing strongly for new parks in the South Downs and New Forest areas of southern England. We have also been instrumental in defending the integrity of the other eleven National Parks in England and Wales.
To celebrate National Parks Week, a number of Rambler's Association walks are taking place throughout the week, to find walks close to you visit our Events Section.
National Parks Week is being organised by the Association of National Park Authorities (ANPA), and RA group walks will complement a wide range of other events happening throughout the week. For a full list of events and more information on the week, and National Parks generally, please visit the ANPA website.