Glamoraks Connect: Making new friends through walking

Glamoraks was set up to help women find other women to go walking, hiking or adventuring with.

Picture this: you have a free weekend or day and want to head outdoors for a good long walk. You could go on your own, but you'd rather have some company. However, no-one you know is free. Do you scrap the idea or go alone?  That's where the Glamoraks community kicks in to help you find a new walking buddy. So how does it work? 

Here's a real life example from Jo Shaw, a Glamoraks member from Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK. Jo describes herself as a beginner walker on her community profile, saying:

"I’m very new to walking and would love to meet up with others for walks in and around Yorkshire. I would love to make some new friends, get fitter and have fun!"

Here's how she used Glamoraks to meet someone new to go walking with:

After signing up to the new Glamoraks network I put a post up asking if anyone would mind if I tagged along on a walk in the Leeds area and Claire Woodland replied to say she would be up for going walking with me.  Together, we decided on a date, location and time and then posted our walk as event on the app to see if anyone else wanted to join us. 

Where did you walk?
We went walking in Yorkshire Sculpture Park and managed a leisurely walk of just under 6 miles.

What was the experience like?
It was a really great experience! I was nervous about meeting up with someone new and I can get quite anxious in new situations but as soon I met Claire I felt at ease. We had lots in common, never ran out of anything to say.  Our pace of walking was the same too so it was really lovely to not feel rushed or worried that we were holding anyone up.  After the walk we had a well deserved ice cream in the sunshine and chatted about walks we would like to do in the future. As my first ever walk with someone I didn’t know, I thought the experience was great and has given me the confidence to go on more walks with new people. 

Have you got plans for future hikes?
Yes, I'm now arranging another hike for June and am happy to have others in the area join me. 

Jo Shaw

Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Would you like to meet other like-minded women to get out walking with? Join Glamoraks. We have 1,200 members across the UK and now in a number of countries around the world.