Page 11 - The Mossley Browser January 2021

Happy New Y ear 2 021
From t he Peak and N orthern Footpaths Society

The b enefits o f signposts with their h eritage g reen p anel.
having access to We have been installing signposts to help
green and o pen walkers f ind t heir way s ince 1905. Some of
spaces and t he these e arly signposts still s urvive. I f y ou
ability t o g o f or a would l ike t o s ponsor a signpost i n y our
walk from your area, please g et in touch w ith u s. Your
doorstep have signpost c an be dedicated to a l oved one o r
been brought into someone o r s omething that you w ish t o
sharp f ocus by the commemorate.
coronavirus t his
year. T he need to take daily e xercise We also fund
improvements
promoted during the f irst lockdown and t he to footpaths
beautiful weather w e e njoyed, h as shown including
the v alue of our l ocal footpaths, bridleways,
and o ther rights of way. bridges,
boardwalks
Our S ociety, P eak and N orthern F ootpaths and h andrails
Society o r P NFS a s w e f ondly c all i t, has amongst other
been protecting o ur freedom to roam since things. I f y ou
1894. A v olunteer led c harity, w e h ave a find yourself
large t eam o f v olunteers w ho monitor t he trying to cross
condition/state o f o ur footpaths, bridleways, a s tream a nd
and o ther rights of way a cross o ur region t o risk getting
ensure they are o pen a nd accessible t o a ll. your feet wet
Our v olunteers, like Ken S mith in due t o t he lack
Saddleworth (for more about K en, s ee of bridge, or
KentheWalker o n Y ouTube), r egularly walk knee d eep in mud o n a path, t hen w e c an
all t he footpaths i n t heir area gathering d ata help here too. If you k now o f a f ootpath that
on stiles or gates t hat a re broken and might benefit f rom o ur help please l et us
footpaths t hat m ight be obstructed o r know. We have funded many bridges and
overgrown w ith v egetation. We advise the boardwalks o ver t he years - you m ay wish
Highways A uthority of our f indings s o t hey to look at our g allery on our w ebsite to find
can fix t hem. If this fails t o h appen, we give out m ore. w ww.pnfs.org.uk
them a n udge and i f n ecessary (thankfully All o ur volunteers a re passionate about
this is rare) w e c an take enforcement a ction walking a nd protecting o ur freedom to
to get t he problem fixed. You m ay not roam. I f y ou feel the s ame w ay too a nd
notice t he work that we do but w e a re out would l ike t o j oin u s, we would l ove t o h ear
there w orking for y ou to ensure you h ave a from you. Find us on Facebook or
great walk. Instagram, visit o ur website:
If you c an’t find your way, we help with www.pnfs.org.uk
that too. We are w ell k nown for o ur or email u s a t mail@pnfs.org.uk