KEEN to celebrate its 50th birthday in style, Wokingham Town Council revived an ancient tradition this month.
Councillors invited The Wokingham Lions, already experienced in running the Wokingham Walk, to organise an event called Beating of the Bounds.
This was traditionally a practice where townspeople would walk round the edges of their parish to ensure that knowledge of local boundaries was maintained and passed on from generation to generation.
It involved swatting local land marks with branches to maintain a shared mental map of the perimeter.
On Sunday, borough residents were able to take part in the tradition, choosing one of three routes for walkers of differing abilities, to Beat The Bounds of Wokingham.
Around 240 walkers of all ages took part, tapping wooden boundary markers with beating sticks as they trekked round the town.
Debbie Slay from Wokingham Lions Club, said: “The forecast wasn’t great, but the weather remained good – and mostly dry – which is what you want when you’re walking.
“Only a few of the participants, taking the longest route, caught a bit of the late rain.”
Andy Slay, Wokingham Lions Club walk organiser, agreed.
“It went very well,” he said.
“It was a new event, and people were excited to take part.
“We were very pleased to be able to direct people to drop in to Kimmel Cafe en route to be able to use their facilities, and to pick up a hot drink there.
“Many of the walkers enjoyed tapping the boundary posts, and lots of them are now looking forward to the Wokingham Walk in October.”
A Wokingham Town Council representative, said: “Wokingham Town Council would like to say a huge thank you to the Wokingham Lions for delivering this event for our residents to enjoy.
“This historic tradition seemed a very fitting way to mark the town council’s 50th Birthday, and it was great to see so many people enjoying the walk on the day.”
For information, visit: www.wokingham-tc.gov.uk and www.wokinghamlions.org.uk
