Whanganui Walking Group
(River City Walking Group)

Welcome to the Whanganui Walking Group!

(Formerly River City Walking/Tramping Group)

We are a community group based in the River City of Whanganui, New Zealand. We run a diverse range of walks and tramping trips around Whanganui and further afield. From short walks to a full day's strenuous tramp, we have something to cater to most people's walking abilities.

• Our walks and tramping trips are open to everyone.
  

• We have NO ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP FEE.
  

• To join our email list: Email us at whanganui.walking@gmail.com and please state which of the four list options below you would like to join.
  

  📧 Our Email Options

  If you would like to be notified about upcoming walks and tramps, please choose one of our four email lists based on your preferences:

• Local Walks & Easy Trips (Default): Includes all local, semi-local, Sunday twilight walks, plus any easier out-of-town trips, alongside the full programme every 1.5 months.
  

• Out-of-Town Walks & Tramps Only: Includes all out-of-town trips (both easy and strenuous), semi-local walks, and the full programme every 1.5 months.
  

• All Walks & Tramps: Includes every single invite (including twilight walks and long weekend trips), notice, and update we send out.
  

• The 1.5-Month Programme Only: Sent out roughly every one and a half months. You'll get the full new calendar calendar, plus any core news and notices. This contains less detailed day-to-day text than the other lists.
  

  🥾 Our 5 Walk Classifications

  Our walks are split into distinct categories so you can choose the ones that best fit your fitness and schedule:

• Local Walks (Whanganui City Limits): These casual walks take place within the Whanganui City limits. Saturday local walks are usually a bigger, longer walk, while Sunday local walks are easier and much more suited for families. Twilight walks run in the evenings from October through March. Note: We aim to run at least one afternoon local walk per month while twilight walks are active, provided we can fit it into the schedule alongside our 2 twilights and 2 out-of-town trips. These range from 30 minutes to 3 hours and require no registration—just turn up!
  

• Semi-Local Walks / Hikes: Located just outside of Whanganui's urban zone, but no more than a half-hour's drive away. These range from 30 minutes to half a day and are mostly family-friendly. No registration is required unless you wish to arrange pooled transport, or it is explicitly stated that a booking is required (such as for the Whangaehu Bridge hike).
  

• Out-of-Town Trips (Walk or Hike): Events located more than a half-hour drive away. These can be half-day or full-day journeys on more technical or alpine tracks. Registration is mandatory for these trips to secure group transport and for Health & Safety reasons.
  

• Flexi-Distance Events (Shorter & Longer Options): Used across both local and out-of-town trips where multiple distances are available. To keep it simple, we use the term Shorter or Longer Options if everything is fully guided. We use Shorter Options* if the shorter loop requires walking back self-guided. If it's an out-of-town trip, please be prepared for a bit of downtime if you are not completing the full route, unless you have brought your own transport.
  

• Multi-Day Trips: Look out for these in the future! These will be overnight events staying in huts or other accommodation. Costs will be higher to cover hut/accommodation fees.
  

  🛡️ Health & Safety Guidelines

  The safety and well-being of our walkers is important to us. To ensure everyone has a safe and enjoyable time on the trails, please keep these practical guidelines in mind:

• Know Your Limits: Please check the difficulty gradings for each walk carefully before coming along. If you are unsure if a trip suits your current fitness level, feel free to reach out to the walk leader beforehand.
  

• Mandatory Registration: All out-of-town trips (and select semi-local hikes where bookings are stated as required) require you to register in advance. This ensures we have passenger lists for transport and emergency contact details on hand.
  

• Online Health & Safety Form: First-time participants, or those joining an out-of-town trip, must fill out our online form before departing: Click Here for the Online Health & Safety Form. (This is not required for standard, local Whanganui walks).
  

• Listen to the Leaders: Our walk leaders are volunteers who coordinate transport, navigation, and group safety. Please follow their instructions and stay with the main group unless a self-guided shorter option has been explicitly arranged.
  

  📜 Walking Group History

  The Whanganui Walking Group was formed by Willem Doodeman-Beamsley back in 2020 as the RiverCity Tramping Group, with foundational support from the Ingestre Street Bible Church (now Church on Ingestre). In its earliest days, the group focused mostly on tramps outside of Whanganui.

  Regular Local Walks began in 2021 with a highly successful series of twilight walks on Monday evenings. These local tracks quickly became the primary focus of the group due to their immense popularity, growing into a year-round schedule, while the technical tramping side slowed to a few select trips a year through 2022 and 2023.
  

  The group took a short, joyful pause in mid-2023 as Willem and his wife Wai welcomed their daughter Anneke into the world. The group bounced back into full stride in August of that year and has been going strong ever since, offering a fantastic balance of family-friendly local outings alongside regular day tramps. Late 2023 also saw the launch of our official website.
  

  Growth truly accelerated in 2025, which saw the group step up to a weekly schedule as our dedicated volunteer leadership team nearly doubled in size. To top off a massive year of growth, late 2025 saw us officially change our name to the Whanganui Walking Group to better represent our community and our mission on the trails as we head through 2026 and beyond!