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News and inspiration for visitors to our woodlands and National Nature Reserves.
We’re excited to welcome a special guest to our Royal Welsh Show stand in Builth Wells next week. Shaun the Sheep is joining us to champion the Countryside Code and help everyone respect, protect and enjoy the outdoors safely.
Bring your family along to learn about the Countryside Code and get a selfie with Mossy Bottom Farm’s most famous resident.
You can also find out about our organisation’s work dealing with environmental incidents, flooding and fly-tipping with the hands-on displays on our stand.
Find us at stand 878-CCA between 22 and 25 July. We hope to see ewe there!
If you can’t make it to the show, you catch up with Shaun’s Countryside Code adventures on YouTube.
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Last year saw an increase in water-related fatalities in Wales, including in those under 20 years old.
Before cooling off in open water this summer, follow these four tips from Water Safety Wales:
- Stop and think:
- Is it a safe place to swim?
- Are there hazards beneath the water?
- Are there hidden currents or fast-flowing water?
- How deep is it and can you get out easily?
- Stay together: Always go with someone else
- Float: If you get into trouble in the water, #FloatToLive until you feel calm
- Call 999 or 112 if you see someone else in trouble in the water
Although they may look inviting, waterfalls are not safe places to swim.
The water can be shockingly cold and often deep with strong currents and slippery rocks that can lead you into trouble quickly. This is especially true at Waterfall Country in Bannau Brycheiniog National Park where people have tragically lost their lives.
Reduce the risk of a slip, trip or fall during a waterfall visit by wearing walking boots, keeping to waymarked paths and taking extra care on slippery terrain.
To develop your water safety knowledge and skills, go to the AdventureSmart website.
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Looking for a family-friendly day out this summer?
There are easy cycling trails and pushchair-friendly walking trails in some of our woodlands and National Nature Reserves, along with plenty of space for younger visitors to let off steam and get closer to nature.
Go to our website to plan a visit to a woodland or reserve near you.
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Coed Nercwys near Mold is the most recent addition to a series of films about our walking trails that are suitable for people who use adaptive equipment.
Adaptive equipment includes adaptive cycles, adaptive wheelchairs and off-road mobility scooters and we have made the films to allow users to work out if the trail is right for them before a visit.
Each film is narrated by a disabled person as they negotiate the route using their own equipment. It shows the trail surface, uphill and downhill gradients, and certain sections where help may be needed.
The other films feature trails at Newborough National Nature Reserve and Forest, Coed y Brenin Forest Park, Beddgelert Forest, and Afan Forest Park, and they can all be watched on our website.
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We are working with partners to help improve the accessibility of trails so that more people can enjoy and benefit from being outdoors.
This includes working with local authority partners across Wales to identify and improve sections of the Wales Coast Path.
We are also piloting visual information in the form of photo trails for sections of the Wales Coast Path to show people what to expect before their visit.
Go to our website to read the blog by our Outdoor Access and Recreation Advisor about this work.
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The official app for the Wales Coast Path has been updated.
Available for iOS and Android, this map-based app allows you to record and save your walks and track how much of the path you’ve completed.
It also offers digital features for use at certain points along the path, including a game, an augmented reality feature and a 3D video.
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Have you walked your dog at any of these places since March?
- Newborough National Nature Reserve and Forest
- Great Orme
- Moel Famau
- Dinas Brân
If so, please complete our survey to help us explore ways to enjoy exercising dogs while minimising incidents with livestock and wildlife.
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We hope this snapshot from the places we look after across Wales has given you some inspiration to get out into the great outdoors.
Please do let us know what you think of this newsletter and share any ideas for content for future issues.
And why not forward it on to friends and family who would like to discover more of Wales?
For information about our woodlands and National Nature Reserves with visitor facilities, go to our Days Out website.
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