We are delighted to offer a wide range of events and activities at the ChaseEscape Walking Festival!
From history to ecology and conservation, we hope you’ll find a walk of interest – or just join us for a social ramble.
This year we are pleased to be working again in partnership with Dorset Visual Arts on a range of FREE ‘walking workshops’. Each session invites different approaches and the chance to try a variety of materials to explore the unique landscape of Cranborne Chase. Sessions vary in distance and all involve exploration and discovery of the ecology, history and other stories of Cranborne Chase.
All events have limited capacity, so we would politely ask that you only book on one or two events, so that as many people as possible can take part.
TO BOOK YOUR FREE SPOT, GO TO EVENTBRITE.
As a taster, here are some of the walks that you can book:
In the footsteps of pilgrims
Wednesday 16 September, 1–4.30pm
Farrington to Shaftesbury
Follow the last section of the St Edward’s Way. Having started at the Priory Church of Lady St Mary in Wareham, the path follows the route taken when the body of St Edward the Martyr was moved and reburied at Shaftesbury Abbey in 979.
This friendly walk is perfect for those who are nervous of walking alone, so join us and make some new friends, we’ll even finish in town for tea and cake!
Wilder Melbury and Melbury Down
Friday 18 September, 2.30–5pm
Melbury Down, nr Shaftesbury
An escorted walk with National Trust’s area ranger for North Dorset and Cranborne Chase, exploring beautiful Melbury Down and the Melbury Valley.
Melbury Down is a beautiful, biodiverse chalk grassland with prominent interlocking chalk spurs, which runs alongside a beautiful beech plantation – home to a wide variety of specialist bird, mammal and plant species.
As we walk, the area ranger will explain how the Trust is integrating the beech wood with the adjacent downland and restoring nature by employing a range of natural processes and nature-based solutions.
Win Green Sketchbook Workshop
Sunday 20 September, 10.30am–3pm
Win Green, nr Shaftesbury
Create a concertina style sketchbook inspired by the landscape. You will combine drawing with found objects, rubbings, mark making, printmaking and collage to gather observations, record visual details and develop ideas through experimentation and reflection.
Our artist, Helen, is particularly excited by combining text and image. Words offer an added emotional resonance, prompting the viewer to pause and reflect. In response to the Cranborne Chase National Landscape, this approach offers a visual and experimental way to indulge in its quiet beauty, while reflecting on the fragility and significance of this protected environment.
Don’t forget to book your place!
This project is made possible thanks to funding from The Grocer’s Charity.