Walking alone.

Awful to hear. I do walk alone in the country side, can't say I am not aware but do keep my eyes open. I did buy an alarm but I do tend to forget it. I think that you need to be sensible, but it's sad that women are inhibited from doing normal everyday activities.

That’s shocking kircubbin and I can understand why you feel nervous about walking alone. I also frequently walk alone, through the park and on the beach too . I am conscious of looking around me but could never know if there were anyone lurking in the bushes . I feel safer on the beach which is a vast space and nowhere for anyone to hide . I hope they catch whoever raped that poor girl .

That's truly horrific, poor poor girl. My heart goes out to her.
I'd be damn nervous too and ill with worry when it's in the area where you live. It doesn't bear thinking what's in the minds of these evil characters when they see young girls/women. A much heavier sentence is needed with no kid-glove treatment.
I hope the girl reports this cruel and vicious incident and is not afraid to do so.

I echo everything previous posters have said. I will only walk in the busier parts of our local park but when we had our German Shepherd I often walked in the local woods and a nearby country park with her.

My friend wanted to walk the West Highland way but only if Roma could come too but it would have taken us through sheep farms so I would have had to keep her on a lead the whole way and I felt that would have been unfair on a dog who was used to being walked in places where she could be off the lead.

That's terrible and it would make me nervous as well. I always walk alone in the countryside.

It also seems strange to me that a gang of men were up and about so early on a Sunday. Perhaps pre planned.

Whereabouts are you Kircubbin? There doesn't seem to be anything in the news this morning, I wondered if you were in the UK. Sadly these things often happen in what most of us would call the middle of the night and it's a girl on her way home from a club and some men who take advantage or think that a girl out on her own is easy prey.

I am trying to do more walking. I am spurred on by thoughts of my late MIL who would walk her dog through the local woods most evenings, without a care. Yesterday I went for a lovely walk with OH, that involved going through a cemetery entrance to a wide open space of grassland, and then on a long, narrow and very enclosed pathway through the trees which skirted round a huge pond. With him I felt safe, but there is no way I'd do that pathway on my own, which is a shame as it's the sort of good long walk I need to do regularly. We didn't see a soul on our walk so I'd feel very vulnerable. I always think that mad axeman is likely to be about when I am walking alone. Silly, I know, given I have always been quite an adventurous, independent sort of woman.

I do hope those rapists are caught soon and severely punished kircubbin

How awful. I do hope they get them soon!! I am more anxious now about walking alone than I ever was. Horrible things seem to happen everywhere not just isolated spaces! It is sad.

I walk a lot alone, I think you have to keep your wits about you, don't wear headphones or talk into your phone. I won't walk in the dark however, town or countryside things have changed, you can get attacked outside your home, but you cannot allow yourself to overthink everything. the girl that was raped, I can't imagine how you get over that. Poor girl. Anyone that rapes should have the same sentence as a murderer. It's an evil act.

How awful for this young girl I hope the men are caught and dealt with by a judge who can give them a long sentence.
I find it horrific that a gang of men all have the same mindset and that not one of them tried to stop such an act.

Poor girl. I don't think it's advisable for girls and women to walk through parks alone.

I was cycling with my dog on a country lane, aged about 35. A car full of men overtook me and leered out of the back window. The lane was downhill, nothing there but a wood at the bottom. I saw the car parked there so I turned tail, adrenaline kicked in and I cycled up that hill like I could not normally cycle. My heart was pumping like crazy. The car reversed behind me up the hill. I got to a house at the top and went there and rang the bell. They were out, luckily the car went away. I have never walked on my own in the countryside or a park since then, I always have that inner scared feeling. I cycle on my own still, having the bike feels a bit safer

It's terrible and I wonder if the poor girl will ever truly get over it.

Weather permitting, I try to take a little walk most days but I stick to ordinary streets. I wouldn't dream of walking in a park these days. I'd never, ever take a short cut through a park or a footpath. It's a shame that we ladies can't do this but it's a sad reflection of the times we live in.

I walk most days too but always stick to streets. We have a canal at the back of the house and it's lovely to walk along the towpath but I wouldn't do it alone. Too many bushes and undergrowth.

I walk practically every day as its a nice 30 min walk into town - usually along our canal but I pick my time now. I found some days I was the only person around and began to get a bit anxious. I always take my bank cards out of my purse and put them in my jeans pocket. They can have my bag but not my cards (so much hassle to replace them). A Sunday morning was one of the days I became worried as I saw a guy approaching who was obviously still hung-over from the night before and making his way home. I think you definitely need to take care these days.

I walk to my allotment through a large park, never feel unsafe there. When my lovely dog was alive I used to take her down there at about 6 in the evening and sometimes at 10 at night. Nobody nasty ever approached me, but she was a Great Dane!

She is 15. They have arrested a 28 year old and 18 and 19. They will probably get off.

What a truly dreadful experience for this poor girl, at least they have arrested those involved.

These events make the news because they are rare occurences. I walk alone in town or countryside, always have, always will. That is not to say that I am unaware or unbothered by such occurences nor unaware of the risks.

I always have my phone and keep alert, my worst experience in the rural area we currently live in has been a woman with two visibly strong bulldog type animals, both wearing muzzles, she was having great difficulty controlling them. They leapt at me and one hit my arm hard enough to bruise it.

As well as keys in my pocket (I was taught how to use those as a weapon by a police officer) I also always carry a pair of secateurs for cutting back brambles and other plants, which could be put to other uses if necessary. I would also not hesitate to put my knee somewhere painful if required. I can still run at a reasonable speed if needed.

When I was a town dweller, I always avoided back alleys, riverside paths and commercial areas after dark and kept to well lit well used streets.

I feel so sad for the young girl who was raped, how do you ever get over such a vile Act. A few months ago whilst reading gransnet an advert popped up for a personal alarm called Safesound ,I ordered some for my dil,dd,gds ,a friend and myself ,the total cost was seventy pounds including postage I have not received them and have been unable to contact the company by email so know now that I have been scammed so lim posting this as a warning to you all not to fall for the very convincing advert

Ive just bought myself a lovely second hand bicycle, I can get on the canal path about 100 yds away from my home and could cycle to my mums about 4 mile away along the canal then on the disused railway line.

I have done it fe times before and its been lovely, I stop for a drink etc.

But recent events in my home town Accrington have put paid to it all.

You may have well seen or heard of it,A woman in her 40s was last seen walking down a busy main road at around 16:30 and wasn't seen again until approx 2 weeks later where they discovered her body in the nearby cemetery, a 16 yr old boy has been arrested charged with her murder.

Sometimes I think!! what the hell, why should we be able to walk where we want...but I wouldn.t want my family to go through what her family are going through.

It really is a sad world.

shouldnt

I tend to agree with Monica that these events are actually quite rare. I also have some self defence knowledge and I certainly stay alert but I think it's a shame to feel that we can't enjoy a walk or cycle ride on our own.

Something similar happened where I lived in SW England in the mid 1970s. The young girl (15) was raped by a gang of youths when she walked home from babysitting. She screamed for help and the adult men that she thought came to help her also raped her.