Welcome to the South Wales Long Distance Walkers Association website. The LDWA is a national organisation whose aim is to further the interests of those who enjoy long distance walking. The South Wales group is one of 43 regional groups that organises activities in its geographical area of the United Kingdom, and this website provides information about its activities.

The South Wales group is one of the fastest growing LDWA regional groups. New members find us in various ways including Facebook, meeting group members on challenge events that the group organises or because they have found us via the national LDWA website. Feedback that the South Wales group has received is that we are a friendly, welcoming and fun group of people to be with.

The South Wales group was formed in 1983 and in the intervening years has organised hundreds of informal social walks for its members. The details of our social walks can be found in our ‘Walks Programme’, and new members are always welcome. In addition, the group has organised, and continues to organise, challenge events that enable visitors to explore our countryside, be catered for at checkpoints whilst undertaking to finish within a set time. The details of our challenge events can be found in our ‘Events’ page.

Our geographical area is large, and we walk anywhere in South Wales and sometimes beyond our boundaries! Our favourite locations are the Brecon Beacons National Park, the South Wales Valleys, the Gower and the Vale of Glamorgan.

Our social walks are all led by volunteer group members. The walks are undertaken at a reasonable and social pace. We do not leave people behind, but there is an expectation that you can walk at about 3mph. We usually have three breaks during a walk, and our overall pace including breaks is always around 2.5mph.

We usually have a walk somewhere every weekend and our distances can range from 16 to an eye watering 55 miles dependent on the time of the year! The average number of people on our walks is usually about 17.

So, if you fancy coming along, please do so, but don’t be late as we leave on time every time!! You will be made most welcome, and if you join, you’ll soon find yourself amongst people you will consider to be your mates. If you are concerned about your ability to keep up with the group or complete the distance please read out Getting Started page where you’ll find plenty of advice. You don’t need to join the LDWA to join us on our walks, but if after a couple of weeks you’re becoming a regular, you’ll be expected to. At just over £1 per month, we think membership of the LDWA is extremely good value – there is no additional fee for membership of the South Wales group.

We hope you enjoy the content of our website. We’d love to receive feedback on how useful the site has been for you. If you have any questions or comments, please send an email. Finally, some of our members use our interactive Facebook Page. If you use Facebook, either use the Facebook button in the menu at the top of this page or search Facebook with ‘LDWA – South Wales Group’ and you’ll soon find us. Click ‘like’ and you’ll be a part of our growing on-line community.