Long Distance Walkers Association
A British volunteer-led association that supports long-distance walking, maintains trail information, and organizes social walks and endurance challenge events.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The Long Distance Walkers Association (LDWA) is a British not-for-profit, volunteer-led association serving people who enjoy long-distance walking in rural, urban, mountainous, coastal, and moorland environments. Its stated purpose is to advance the common interests of long-distance walkers. The association is recognised as the governing body for the discipline of long-distance walking in England, Wales, and Scotland. The LDWA combines membership activities, event organization, route information, publications, and achievement registers. Its network includes more than 40 local groups, which organize led social walks and longer challenge events. Social walks are generally guided outings of up to approximately 30 miles and are listed through a member-accessible walking database. Challenge events are normally between 20 and 100 miles. They are usually self-navigated rather than raced, with participants following written route instructions and completing the course within a specified time. Organizers use checkpoints or other control points to confirm that walkers have followed the intended route. The association's best-known activity is the annual Hundred, a 100-mile walking and running event held in a different part of the country each year, normally over the late-May bank holiday. Participants must first complete a qualifying event of at least 50 miles. The Hundred allows up to roughly 500 participants and provides a maximum completion period of 48 hours. Although participants may run, the event is not presented as a conventional race. The first event of this type was the Downsman 100 in 1973. The event was cancelled in 2001 because foot-and-mouth disease restrictions closed much of the countryside, and it did not take place in its normal form in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the Sir Fynwy virtual 100 enabled participants to complete their own routes and submit evidence of completion. The LDWA also publishes Strider, its official journal, three times a year. Its online resources include a substantial database of British long-distance paths, route information, and downloadable GPX files. The route database is available to non-members as well as members, while membership provides additional access and benefits, including unlimited route-file downloads. These information services make the association relevant not only to event participants but also to walkers planning independent journeys. Achievement recording is another important part of the association's work. The LDWA maintains a National Trails Register for people who complete five, 10, 15, or all 19 of the National Trails in England and Wales and the Great Trails in Scotland. It also maintains a Hillwalkers' Register covering several categories of summits in England, Wales, and the Southern Uplands of Scotland, including Wainwright hills in the Lake District and county tops in England and Wales. The Scottish Mountaineering Club maintains equivalent records for the Scottish Highlands. The association is therefore best understood as a membership and governing organization within British long-distance walking rather than as a commercial consumer brand. Its identity is built around volunteer coordination, route knowledge, organized participation, walking culture, and the preservation and recognition of endurance-walking achievements.
History
The Long Distance Walkers Association developed as a national organization for people interested in extended walking across the United Kingdom. Its remit covers more than a single form of terrain: members may walk through countryside, towns, mountains, coastal areas, and moorland. Rather than operating as a commercial tour company, the association relies on volunteers, local groups, member participation, and shared route knowledge. Its stated objective is to promote the common interests of people who enjoy long-distance walking, and it is recognised as the governing body for long-distance walking in England, Wales, and Scotland. A central part of the LDWA's structure is its local-group network. More than 40 groups organize activities in their areas, giving members opportunities to join led walks and to participate in longer challenge events. Social or group walks are normally guided and can extend to approximately 30 miles. Challenge events are generally longer, commonly ranging from 20 to 100 miles, and are usually completed by participants navigating for themselves from written instructions. Event organizers use checkpoints or clipper points, where walkers report or have their tally cards marked, both to support event control and to confirm adherence to the route. The association's most prominent recurring institution is the Hundred. The first 100-mile event was the Downsman 100 in 1973. The annual event subsequently became a defining part of the LDWA calendar and has been described as the longest-running 100-mile ultramarathon in the world, while retaining a non-race ethos. It is hosted in a different area each year, traditionally over the late-May bank holiday. Participants may walk or run, but must have completed a qualifying event of at least 50 miles, and they are given up to 48 hours to cover the course. Attendance can reach approximately 500 people. The Hundred's continuity has occasionally been interrupted by circumstances outside the association's control. In 2001, foot-and-mouth disease restrictions made the countryside unavailable for the event. The COVID-19 pandemic prevented a normal Hundred in 2020. The following year, the LDWA adapted the format through the Sir Fynwy virtual 100. Instead of following one centrally organized course, participants completed their own routes and submitted evidence of their achievements. The event's 50th edition, the Elephant, Bear and Bull 100 in May 2023, combined the annual challenge with a celebration of the event's half-century. In 2024, the Speyside 100 produced new oldest-finishers records when Jim Catchpole and Roger Osgood completed the course at 82. This surpassed the previous record associated with Henry Bridge, who finished in 1992 at age 81. Information management is another long-standing function of the LDWA. The association maintains a large online database of long-distance paths in the United Kingdom. Both members and non-members can access route information, while members receive additional benefits such as unlimited downloadable GPX files. This resource supports independent walking as well as participation in LDWA-organized events. The LDWA also documents walking achievements. Its National Trails Register recognizes walkers who have completed five, 10, 15, or all 19 of the National Trails in England and Wales and the Great Trails in Scotland. A separate Hillwalkers' Register records completion of selected summit collections in England, Wales, and the Southern Uplands of Scotland. Examples include the Wainwright hills of the Lake District and the county tops of England and Wales. Equivalent records for the Scottish Highlands are maintained by the Scottish Mountaineering Club. The association communicates with its membership and wider walking community through Strider, a journal published three times each year, as well as through its website and route resources. Its media team has also produced documentary material following participants in the Hundred, including personal accounts of navigating a largely off-road course around Birmingham, Stratford-upon-Avon, and Coventry. Across these activities, the LDWA combines sport governance, volunteer-led community organization, event administration, outdoor recreation information, and recognition of long-distance walking accomplishments.
- 2024
Age record set at Speyside 100
[1]Jim Catchpole and Roger Osgood completed the event at age 82, establishing a new oldest-finisher record.
- 2023
50th Hundred
[1]The Elephant, Bear and Bull 100 marked the 50th edition of the annual Hundred and the event's half-century.
- 2021
Sir Fynwy virtual 100
[1]The association adapted its 100-mile challenge into a virtual format using participant-selected routes and submitted completion evidence.
- 2020
COVID-19 prevents the regular Hundred
[1]The annual event could not be held in its normal form because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 2001
Hundred cancelled during foot-and-mouth restrictions
[1]Countryside closures and access restrictions caused the annual 100-mile event to be cancelled.
- 1973
First 100-mile event
[1]The Downsman 100 became the first 100-mile event associated with the LDWA's Hundred tradition.
Products and positioning
A volunteer-led national membership association and governing body for long-distance walking in Great Britain, combining community-led walks, endurance challenges, route intelligence, publications, and achievement recognition.
100-mile endurance event · 1973
The Hundred
The LDWA's flagship annual challenge is a 100-mile course held in a different part of the United Kingdom each year, traditionally during the late-May bank holiday. Participants can walk or run but must complete a qualifying event of at least 50 miles. The route is supported by checkpoints and must be completed within 48 hours. The event is structured as an endurance challenge rather than a conventional race and has been held in varying formats when external conditions made a standard course impossible.
Guided walking activity
Social walks
Social walks are normally led outings organized by LDWA local groups. They can reach approximately 30 miles and are listed through the association's social-walk database. The format gives members and other eligible participants a structured way to explore routes, build endurance, and take part in the association's walking community without entering a formal challenge event.
Long-distance walking event
Challenge events
LDWA challenge events generally cover 20 to 100 miles. Participants normally navigate independently using written route instructions and must finish within an event time limit. Organizers use marshals, checkpoints, clipper points, or similar controls to monitor progress and confirm that participants have followed the prescribed route. These events emphasize personal endurance and route completion rather than head-to-head competition.
Walking information service
Long-distance paths database
The LDWA maintains an extensive online database of long-distance paths in the United Kingdom. The resource supports route planning and is available to members and non-members, with members receiving additional benefits including unlimited downloadable GPX route files. It is one of the association's principal contributions to independent long-distance walking.
Association journal
Strider
Strider is the LDWA's official journal and is published three times a year. It provides a communication channel for the association's walking community and complements its website, local groups, events, and route-information services.
Walking achievement records
Achievement registers
The association maintains registers that record walking achievements, including completion of National Trails and Great Trails and collections of recognized summits. The National Trails Register has categories for people completing five, 10, 15, or all 19 relevant trails in England, Wales, and Scotland. The Hillwalkers' Register includes collections such as the Lake District Wainwright hills and the county tops of England and Wales.
Brand decisions
2021
Adoption of a virtual Hundred formatStrategyBackground
The regular 100-mile event had been prevented in 2020 by the COVID-19 pandemic, creating a need for an alternative format.
Action taken
The LDWA organized the Sir Fynwy virtual 100, allowing participants to walk or run individually selected routes and submit evidence of completion.
Aftermath
The virtual event enabled the Hundred tradition to continue during a period when a centrally organized mass event was not feasible.
Recent events
- 2024
New oldest finishers complete the Speyside 100[1]
Other
At the Speyside 100, Jim Catchpole and Roger Osgood completed the event at age 82, surpassing the previous oldest-finisher record associated with Henry Bridge's 1992 completion at age 81.
- 2023
The Hundred reaches its 50th edition[1]
Other
The Elephant, Bear and Bull 100 marked the 50th running of the LDWA's annual 100-mile event. The edition also commemorated the event's half-century and included three 81-year-old finishers.
- 2021
The Sir Fynwy Hundred is held as a virtual event[1]
Other
After the COVID-19 pandemic prevented a conventional 2020 Hundred, the LDWA organized the Sir Fynwy virtual 100, allowing participants to complete independent routes and provide evidence of completion.
- 2001
The Hundred is cancelled during the foot-and-mouth crisis[1]
Regulation
The annual 100-mile event did not take place because foot-and-mouth disease restrictions closed access to countryside areas needed for the event.
Sources2 sources
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