Walking
Great for the mind and body, pull on your boots, wrap up warm and explore the local area for your daily exercise. If you are looking for new walking routes on your doorstep then take a look at our Walks to explore Basingstoke by foot blog for inspiration.
Explore one of the many trails in Basingstoke and Deane.
- Streets Alive Trail – Spot all the colourful street furniture brought to life with poems and illustrations by local artists. Basingstoke Festival has partnered with TrailTale, and created a guided walk map featuring all the Streets Alive artworks, which you can download for free here.
- Follow in the footsteps of Whitchurch resident and author Richard Adams as you explore the stunning new Watership Down Circular Walk marking the 50th anniversary of the publication of Watership Down, the much loved modern classic and the 50th anniversary of the creation of the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the setting for the story.
- ‘Hunt for the Lost Toys’ is a free family trail from High Street Safari. Join heroes The Luminauts on a free family adventure around Basingstoke town centre. To play, simply scan the QR codes at the 10 stops to find the presents and choose what happens in the story next. See the characters spring to life in augmented reality and download your digital fun pack.
- Take in Basing House, Basingstoke Common, Crabtree Plantation, War Memorial Park and Eastrop Park on the The Basing Trail , a seven-mile circular walk.
- Basingstoke ‘history’ town trail - Enjoy the self-guided walk showing you more about the town’s history, from Domesday to the modern day. Pick up a copy from The Willis Museum or find the trail on the free TrailTale app.
Jogging / Running
If you enjoy walking, you can also try jogging, start off easy with a few minutes and keep increasing the time gradually. It’s an easy and inexpensive activity, all you need are comfortable clothes and a good pair of trainers.
Once you’re comfortable with jogging you can try running! If you’re new to running, try the NHS Couch to 5K, you can easily download the podcasts or app to your phone and follow the instructions!
Once you are comfortable running 5K or if you are a regular runner you may wish to try the weekly Park Run at War Memorial Park on a Saturday. This is free to join in and they meet for a post run coffee at the Orchard Café! If you have little ones interested in running there is a Junior version that takes place at Stratton Park on a Sunday morning. This 2k course is suitable for those aged four to 14 years and is also free to join.