Joyce Gubbins: 1945 - 2025
A few fond memories …..
Some of our present members will not know Joyce who was an active member of Doncaster HF Rambling Club and Doncaster Ramblers for many years. She first joined Doncaster Ramblers around 2005, before becoming a member of our group in 2008.
In those early days Doncaster Ramblers ran a programme of walks on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and Joyce would invariably be present , and within a short period of time began leading walks. A couple of years later she joined our HF walking group which offered Sunday walks on a fortnightly basis to more distant locations, by coach, as well as weekend stays in various HF houses in wonderful areas such as Cumbria, Northumberland, Shropshire and Derbyshire. 
Joyce also loved long distance, self-guided holidays and over the years walked several 'Camino' routes - originally pilgrimage routes - in Spain and Portugal. Even as recently as 2019 she walked the final section of the Portuguese Camino Central Route, with her close friend Elaine Richmond, which involved seventy one miles over a period of six days.
A private, thoughtful person, who was in her element when out walking, she undoubtedly made a substantial contribution to the groups she joined. Throughout her time as a member of both Doncaster walking groups, Joyce must have walked thousands of miles and led walks to many different locations. This was no mean achievement when you consider she used no navigation aids, but just a compass and a full size Ordnance Survey Map, which frequently threatened to carry her away on windy days! Fond memories….
Unfortunately, ill health meant that Joyce had spent the past few years of her life in a care home, where she passed away on August 7th, aged eighty.
September 5th, 2025