CONTACT US

If you are interested in membership, then click here for our brochure and here for our printable application form, which includes our Membership Secretary's name and address.

If you want to order a copy of 'Vinter's Gazetteer – Old Railways You Can Walk and Cycle', click here.

If these links do not provide what you are looking for, then please check whether your enquiry is dealt with by one of our Frequently Asked Questions (see below).

If you have any other queries, technical problems or information (e.g. details of new railway paths or corrections to published content), then please contact the Webmaster using . If the Webmaster cannot deal with your communication directly, he will forward it to an appropriate member of the committee.

Do remember that we are a voluntary group with no paid staff, so please be patient if it takes a little time to reply – especially during holiday periods when committee members are likely to be away with their families.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)

(1) Can I walk on any old railway? No – every piece of land is owned by someone. You can walk on any old railway that has been converted into an official path, but otherwise you need permission from the landowner. The situation is more relaxed in Scotland, but even there walkers are expected to respect landowners' privacy and keep away from private dwellings. For further details, click on the Access link.

(2) Can I walk on an operational railway, e.g. on a day when there are no trains? No – walking on an operational railway is always a criminal offence, even on Christmas Day when few, if any, trains are running.

(3) What walks does the club organise? These are described on the Access page.

(4) Can non-members join the club's walks? Yes – non-members can join club walks up to twice per year. If they attend more walks than this without joining, they will not be covered by the club's Public Liability Insurance.

(5) How much does it cost to join the club? Current membership rates are listed on our printable membership application form, which can be accessed from the link here.

(6) Is there a branch of the club near where I live? The quickest and easiest way to see where we have active areas is to look at the 'Reports from Area Groups' on the AGM page. Please bear in mind that the absence of a report does not necessarily mean that nothing is going on in that area – the area group contact might just have forgotten to file a report. Areas which really are inactive are shown as 'Vacant', indicating that the club has no area group contact there. New volunteers are always welcome.

(7) Why doesn't the club advertise its walks on the website? The answer to this is simple – it is too much work for the Webmaster! This website includes a message board where area group contacts can advertise walk details, changes to planned walks, and anything of that nature. If your local group is not using this facility, please encourage them to do so, or consider volunteering to undertake this job yourself. Details of all area group contacts are published inside the front cover of the quarterly magazine.

(8) Does the website accept advertising? For example, would the club be willing to include a link to a commercial website advertising relevant products such as walking gear? No – Railway Ramblers is a voluntary club whose committee has decided to keep its website free from commercial content including all advertising and sponsored links. The only exceptions are two or three small advertising links which appear on our Search page, but those are a condition of our using Freefind's search engine – which really is free, and a very good search engine to boot.