Muslim Hikers ‘making the outdoors more accessible’ with signs pointing to Mecca installed in the Peak District

Signs pointing to Mecca on the Peak District’s most popular hiking routes have also been installed.

Muslim Hikers, a group tackling barriers to make the outdoors more inclusive, received online abuse following a Christmas Day hike in 2021 and an appearance on BBC’s Countryfile in September 2022, where the group was accused of not being ‘proper walkers’.

The popular hiking group brings together Muslims from across the UK for its national events on the UK’s most picturesque trails.

Wiggle and Adidas TERREX have worked closely with Muslim Hikers to identify the barriers that need breaking down like facilitating praying in the outdoors and making the countryside feel like a place that Muslims can enjoy.

The aim of the bespoke prayer mats and first-of-their-kind signs is to empower more Muslims to get outside and celebrate everything nature has to offer.

So far, 100 prayer mats have been created and donated to Muslim Hikers as part of the partnership.

The prayer mats’ design depicts topography – used on maps to represent contours – and was created in partnership with QM design, a seventh-generation Islamic craftsman.

Muslims pray in the direction of Mecca up to five times a day and groundbreaking signs have been placed along one of the Peak District’s most popular hiking routes, Cave Dale, in a bid to help Muslims more easily incorporate prayer time while exploring the outdoors.

The signs will not only point the Muslim community in the right direction of prayer but also signal to a wider audience that the outdoors is for everyone.

Haroon Mota, founder of the Muslim Hikers said “Everyone should feel empowered to get outside and enjoy nature, and the prayer mats and signs have made it easier for us within the Muslim community to do this without having to worry about the practicalities of prayer.”