John has been walking with the Festival for many years and has been key to the evolution of the Festival. He has been leading walks since 2012 and knows the area around Haltwhistle extremely well. He is a long standing member of the Festival Committee and acts as the Treasurer, making sure the books balance and that the Festival is financially viable. He leads on Leadership Training.

Catriona is a keen hill walker and has extensive experience of working in protected landscapes including National Park’s, World Heritage Site and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. She is Chair of the Festival Committee and is also involved with Leadership Training.

“I am passionate about the wonderful countryside on our doorstep and am delighted to share it with visitors from near and far.”

Mary joined a Festival walk on Isaac’s Tea Trail in 2021 and enjoyed it so much she immediately signed up for more and has never looked back! She enjoys anything from short social walks to multi-week trails and loves all the variety Northumberland has to offer.”

Nick is the author of a number of walking books, including Diagonal Walking, which recorded the ups and downs of a trek across England using a self-devised route. Retired, but busy, Nick is also a volunteer leader on the Northumberland National Park’s guided walks programme as well as part of the team behind a successful B&B on Hadrian’s Wall.

Wendy is a new team member. She first helped with the festival in 2025.

Walking has been a consistent feature of her leisure time, in the UK and abroad. Over the last 2 years she has joined the Haltwhistle Wednesday walkers; enjoying the friendships and opportunities to discover more of the delights that the local area provides. She has lived in the northeast for over forty years and would not consider leaving.

Jenny was introduced to the pleasure of hiking when she went to the HWF 2017.
Having joined the Wednesday walks and made new friendships, she joined the committee in 2024.
She has been inspired to tackle several long distance walks including the West Highland Way and the Inca Trail.
She also loves wild swimming and has been known to take a dip on a walk!