A new Famous Five walking trail has been opened in Purbeck, Dorset, to commemorate the much-loved children's author, Enid Blyton, bbc.co.uk reports.
The trail has been created especially to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the publication of 'Five on a Treasure Island' - in which readers were first introduced to the intrepid Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy the dog. Winding through the Dorset countryside which inspired Blyton's books, the two-day trail sets walkers appropriately on an adventure through Poole and the Isle of Purbeck, following six clues to solve a mystery. It incorporates Corfe Castle, Swanage's Victorian Pier and the Swanage Railway.
For 20 years, Blyton and her family visited Dorset for holidays frequently explains trail deviser, Viv Endecott to culture24.org.uk. "She knew Dorset before we gave it labels like the Jurassic Coast or Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and there would be so much here that she would still recognise."
Endecott designed the trail for families and wanted it to reflect a sense of the time and space that the Famous Five adventures took place within. For those that don't have two full days to devote to the completion of the route, Endecott says that with "careful planing", the trail could be walked in one day.
The locations in Arthur Ransome's books spring to mind (although you might get your feet wet)
Download the trail leaflet from HERE
Even if you don't walk the trail, you could take some of the ideas that have been included here to create a similar leaflet for your own area.
Via the Ordnance Survey Blog
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