Access Adventure

This book is a unique and inspiring guide to the UK's best trails and outdoor adventures, opened up to all through the expertise of accessibility champion Debbie North and her interviewees. From the crunch of gravel on a canal path to the hush of woodland in morning light, it celebrates the space, stillness and connection that only the outdoors can offer. Access Adventure takes readers from the Lake District to the Kent and Hampshire coast, the Yorkshire Dales to the Brecon Beacons and Wye Valley, and the Isle of Skye to Rendlesham Forest's UFO trail. Each accessible route comes with practical details and ideas for nearby adventures, all specifically written with wheelchair-users in mind. Alongside route descriptions, Debbie shares moving stories of people whose lives have been transformed by being outdoors. These walks don't just guide you through landscapes - they offer a window into human resilience, welcoming all who seek both adventure and a deeper connection with nature and each other.

Before a diagnosis of spinal degeneration took away her ability to walk, Debbie and her husband Andy spent most of their weekends in the hills and dales of Cumbria and the Yorkshire. No longer being able to ramble on her beloved fells was a crushing blow, but she began to explore alternative ways of accessing the countryside, and getting her TerrainHopper, a 4x4 all-terrain wheelchair, was the start of my new adventures. With this 'serious bit of kit', Debbie and Andy completed several of the Wainwrights in the Lake District, a few Munros in Scotland and a good selection of the Dales 30 - The Yorkshire Dales highest peaks. In 2015 they completed the Coast to Coast, creating their own route from St Bees to Robin Hoods Bay using a mixture of bridleways and quiet country lanes. Being outdoors once again gave her the drive, the passion, and the determination to become one of the country's leading campaigners for creating a countryside accessible to all. But in 2021 tragedy hit once again. Andy was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer and passed away, aged 56 years old. As a legacy to Andy, Debbie and her family set up a charity called Access the Dales. The charity exists to break down the barriers that prevent people with limited mobility enjoying the great outdoors, either independently or with their friends and family. As well as running the charity, Debbie is a freelance writer (writing regularly for BBC Countryfile Magazine and author of two books), a keynote speaker and consultant, working closely with organisations such as the YHA, Natural England and RSPB, helping them to make their provision more accessible to more people. She is also an Ordnance Survey Champion, Champion for The Ramblers and was recently appointed by the Cabinet Office as Disability and Access Ambassador for the countryside. Her motto is 'Making the inaccessible accessible'. www.access-the-dales.com www.debbienorth.org

Introduction Miles without Stiles Grades The Watercut, Mallerstang, Cumbria | Debbie North Sutton Bank, North York Moors National Park | Sara Towers Threlkeld to Keswick, Lake District National Park | Arron Hart Orrest Head, Lake District National Park | Dawn and Alan Towart Coniston to Tarn Hows Circular, Lake District National Park | Alex Staniforth Newborough National Nature Reserve and Forest, Anglesey | Mike Palmer Beacon Fell, Craig-y-nos Country Park, Bannau Brycheiniog National Park | Karen Harris The Wye Valley, Redbrook, Gloucester | Bethany Handley Hergest Ridge, Herefordshire | MariKa Kovacs Leigh Woods, Abbots Leigh, Somerset | Dee Crute Kings Wood, St Austell, Cornwall | Pat Smith River Otter Estuary, Budleigh Salterton, Devon | Isaac Kenyon Ashdown Forest, East Sussex | Anita Kerwin-Nye Heartwood Forest, nr St Albans, Hertfordshire | Emma Harrison Sutton Park, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands | Darren Harris Stansted Park, Stoughton, West Sussex | Stephanie Jane Quintrell Folkestone Warren, Kent | Gini Mitchell Millennium Quay, Portsmouth, Hampshire | Pauline Nixon Folkestone Coastal Path, Kent | Tina, Cas and Freddie Bush Holmwood Common, Dorking, Surrey | Genny Brown UFO Trail, Rendlesham Forest nr Woodbridge, Suffolk | Natasha Sones Sutton Hoo, Woodbridge, Suffolk | Ozzy and Victoria Raynor Lady Canning's Plantation, Ringinglow, South Yorkshire | Maxwell Ayamba Cullen to Portknockie, Moray | Georgina Jackson The Kelpies to the Falkirk Wheel | Chris Butterfield Edinbane, Isle of Skye | Sarah Lister Beacon Fell, Goosnargh, Lancashire | Sarah Dornan Gisburn Forest, Ribble Valley, Lancashire | Declan Fraser-Higgins Sprotbrough, Doncaster, South Yorkshire | Andi White Nateby Fell, Yorkshire Dales National Park | Adam Medlock Useful websites Index Photo credits