Our History
The club was founded in 1958 by Harry Walder, a Customs Officer and a member of The Ramblers Association. Many footpaths had not been walked during the war years, were ploughed up, blocked by barbed wire and mostly not signposted. Walking existing Rights of Way was an attempt by the club to promote their use, which has continued to this day. This gives the opportunity to walkers of all ages access to some ancient footpaths, byways and the wide open spaces.
Affiliation
Although East Kent Rambling Club is affiliated to the Ramblers Association (RA) it is not one of the RA’s named groups and it is not a requirement for our members to belong to the RA.
Membership
East Kent Rambling Club has a stable membership, the majority of whom live in the Canterbury, Herne Bay, Whitstable, Isle of Thanet areas with others from Dover, Deal, Folkestone, Ashford, Maidstone, Medway and beyond. New members and visitors are always very welcome to join us!
Honorary Members
Can you explain how the honorary member title works? This was the question asked by one of our members at the Annual General Meeting in March 2026. In short, you could describe it as East Kent Rambling Club’s version of an OBE or MBE, recognising the contributions of a member towards the club’s operational activities by being involved with different aspects whilst enjoying membership at the same time. An honorary member is given membership of the club to thank them for their contributions, voted on at the Annual General Meeting by all the attendees, and the following three members have received this honour.
Freda B
Freda joined the Club in 1983, walking every Wednesday until 2002 when she started to walk on Sundays too, when walks were available on a Sunday. Freda started leading walks, whilst also taking part in the many social activities and of course "the fantastic club holidays", as Freda describes them. Freda became Vice Chair on the Committee carrying out the duties for more than 20 years, mainly as she puts it, "because noone else wanted to take over!!’" attending nearly all the meetings during this time. Freda also helped one of our late members Pat H over many years organising BBQ’s and quizzes. Apart from these duties Freda represented the Club in a Court Case over a disputed Foot Path in Margate which resulted in success for the Ramblers. Freda is also the 'go to' member when it comes to some of the historical events within the club that need clarification.
Roger K
Rights of Way has always been one of Roger's passions, and he currently submits reports for the club on issues of closure, obstacles, proposed road change layouts and building construction that could affect the club and its members being able to access and use the many footpaths in East Kent. Together with the legendary Gordon Sencicle, he successfully fought against KCC’s misguided footpath rationalisation programme in the 1990s, speaking at the resulting public enquiries. Chairman from 1988 to 2002, Roger was responsible for setting up twinnings with French clubs in Boulogne and Paris, initiating the games evenings, and even organising path clearances – when we were all a bit younger! He also appeared on TVS in 1989 and Radio Kent in 2001 to promote the cause and of course the club. An avid walk leader in the past, he still joins his favourite clubs on short walks..
Rees W
Perhaps we should call him ‘No nonsense Rees’? Rees has the reputation of being the first to leave a walk at the end, no-one knows how he does it. What we do know though is that his dedication to the club is unquestionable: he has arranged holidays and led walks. Rees’ leadership skills are first class, never taking a wrong turn within the Kent countryside nor anyway else in the Country. When Coach Rambles were organized, Rees would lead the long walk on behalf of the trip organizer, Derek. Rees has also been an outspoken advocate for the club especially when it comes to its administration and seeking to find new walk leaders. He encourages those who are not so confident and quietly will help those in times of need. Whilst Rees may not take part in the longer walks any more, he enjoys the leisurely ones as well as enjoying some of the social aspects, even if he does inadvertently tell everyone the answer to a quiz question!