Couple brought together over passion for ‘Walking in Wales’
THERE’S a Facebook group for everything. There’s groups for residents who live in particular streets and neighbourhoods, groups for parents looking for the best places to take their children, groups advertising jobs and groups for like-minded people to meet up and share a common interest.
The “Walking in Wales” Facebook group, which boasts more than 130,000 members, was set up for people who love spending time in our gorgeous countryside and want to share photos from their walks and to arrange to meet up with others to walk together, if they wish.
Amazingly, a couple who walked into each other’s life through the group – and wouldn’t have otherwise met – are now celebrating their engagement.
Dental nurse Samantha “Sam” Price, 37, and driver Roger Taylor, 28, met after Sam posted on the group to ask for recommendations on a new place to walk, having completed many solo walks and cold water swims across South Wales.
Roger replied to her post and the pair started chatting online before arranging a walk together as friends. “Neither of us was looking for a relationship,” Roger said. “We were just looking for likeminded people to go for walks with.”
But over time, their friendship progressed to something more. Earlier this month, after a year together, Roger popped the question in front of waterfalls in
Brecon – and Sam said yes.
Sam, who has two children aged six and seven, lives in Abertillery whilst Roger, who has two children aged seven and nine, lives in Cardiff – so the pair think it’s extremely unlikely they would have met, if not for the Walking in Wales group.
Speaking about her new fiance, Sam said: “I’m so grateful to have met Roger, he’s the most amazing person! I joined the group [Walking in Wales] because I used to do solo walks and cold water swims and wanted recommendations on where to go next. I posted on the group and Roger commented and we started talking and later arranged a walk, and it went from there really.”
While dating, the pair enjoyed a
Christmastime walk across Brecon last year and particularly enjoyed visiting the waterfalls. It was here that Roger decided to take Sam to ask her to marry him.
“We’d spoken about getting engaged but I was not expecting it,” Sam said.
“Roger proposed at the waterfalls in Brecon where we went last Christmas, then we went out for a meal to celebrate. We’re looking at 2024 [to tie the knot].”
“Sam really is amazing and she has such a beautiful aura and I am so proud to call her mine,” Roger said about his new fiancee.
The couple’s comments come after Sam shared photos of the proposal on the Walking in Wales group - and racked up more than 8,500 likes and hundreds of congratulatory comments.
“Just wanted to say I met the most wonderful man in this group and this week he took me to the waterfalls and proposed,” she wrote.
“Forever grateful for him coming into my life and for this group.”
“I want to show my appreciation for the group [Walking in Wales] it’s amazing to have met somebody through it!” she added.