How does rambling help encourage more people to appreciate the Maltese countryside?

Rambling brings people in direct contact with the Maltese countryside and thus makes them aware of the great natural, historical and cultural heritage of our islands. For most of the year our archipelago offers some of the most fascinating country walks in the Mediterranean: a thrilling array of scenic landscape rich in geological features, secluded beaches, coastal cliffs, historic and archaeological sites, coastal towers and wayside chapels scattered in remote corners.

Many members who attend our walks for the first time confess that they had no idea that the locations we visit even existed. This is most unfortunate as people cannot feel the urge to protect all this patrimony if they are not even aware of it.

Unfortunately, Malta has already had its share of disgrace at the hands of unscrupulous speculators, landowners and squatters. Many rubble walls, corbelled huts, Punic sites, rock tombs and whole stretches of garigue have disappeared, along with features characteristic of the Maltese countryside such as well-heads, water troughs, olive crushers, sundials, milestones and notarial deeds carved in marble.

We hope that when we make people aware of all this, they will start to want to take ownership of what has been handed down to us and to preserve it for future generations. The difficulties of defending a countryside under siege by illegalities from one side and overdevelopment on the other are great, but thankfully the public is becoming increasingly receptive to our ideas.

Compared to that of other countries, the local countryside is small. However, is it still wealthy in endemic species and variety of flora?

Despite the small size of the Maltese countryside, hundreds of species compete for the attention of an appreciative eye

Despite the small size of the Maltese countryside, hundreds of species compete for the attention of an appreciative eye. All this bio-diversity varies richly when you consider different types of habitat. Starting from early autumn and lasting into late spring, the Maltese countryside comes to life with an unexpected array of wild flowers. Fields become adorned with the white and yellow wall rocket (ġarġir) interspersed with pockets of red clover (silla) or red poppies and bordered by banks of the ubiquitous Bermuda buttercup (ingliża) or the crown daisy (lellux).

Moving on to the garigue, you are welcomed by the fragrance of the wild thyme (sagħtar), the sweet smell of the yellow-flowered fennel plant (bużbież) and other wild herbs. On the other hand, if you visit the coastal cliffs you can find several endemic plant species unique to our islands such as the Maltese rock centaury (the national plant widnet il-baħar), or Maltese salt tree (xebb), which are of great scientific importance.

Traversing the Dwejra Lines.

Discovering nature

What challenges do you face when rambling?

One of the most pressing problems facing rambling in Malta relates to right of way issues. It is common to meet abusively placed gates blocking public passages, along with a host of ‘private’ and ‘reserved to owner’ signs. The public is thus deprived of its right of access to the countryside, rendering its enjoyment the preserve of a restricted few.

The common citizen is unable to distinguish between legitimate barriers and abusive ones, or to know whether a path is really private or not, and thus is forced to give up exploring the countryside for fear of trespassing.

It is common to meet abusively placed gates blocking public passages

This problem could be alleviated if government published a definitive map of Malta, indicating all public lands and public paths, and made this available to the public.

Another impediment to the enjoyment of the countryside is the relatively recent practice of erecting countryside walls which are higher than the legal limit, turning countryside lanes into corridors and depriving the rambler of any view. Often these high walls are simply a pretext for hiding illegalities occurring behind them and should be reported to MEPA’s enforcement directorate so that their height might be brought down to the legal limit.

What kind of walks does the Ramblers’ Association of Malta organise?

We use our extensive knowledge of the Maltese countryside to organise walks of different types, difficulty and duration. Various walks will have a different emphasis, and while a large number of walks are based on an appreciation of our natural landscape and rural heritage, others have a cultural aspect as their focus, such as visiting sites of historical importance in our village cores. Walks range from very short two-hour ones for those who feel like going for a pleasant stroll to longer walks lasting up to five hours. We also grade our walks according to their difficulty and this reflects how rugged the terrain is going to be. This helps our members choose those walks which best fit their appetite for adventure and fitness level.

For more information visit www.ramblersmalta.org.