Mitchelstown culture tour is part of Ballyhoura Walking Fest

THRONGS of walkers are expected to descend on the many towns and villages of Ballyhoura Country over this coming May Bank Holiday weekend. The festival, now in its 24th year is expecting to attract walkers throughout the weekend from all over Ireland and appealing to many of our overseas visitors and friends.

This year, Ballyhoura Walking Festival will be merging with the Mitchelstown Culture Walk which takes place on Saturday, April 29th.

The culture tour offers a wide variety of activities throughout the day such as a walk showcasing the finest local scenery and a hurling heroes chat.

It is hoped that by merging with Ireland’s oldest and most popular walking festival, that Mitchelstown will benefit as a result.

The walking festival provides an opportunity to explore some of Ballyhoura Country’s stunning countryside in the company of guides from the Ballyhoura Bears walking club. The Festival features a packed programme of walks for all abilities, from the enthusiastic well-equipped walker who relishes the challenge of the A & B walks on the Saturday and Sunday morning, to the gentle ramblers who are out to enjoy pleasant guided walks in the company of local experts in the fields of heritage, archaeology, history, flora and fauna. This year the walk will be as a fundraising event for Carebright Dementia Hub.

Sponsorship cards are available through Carebright for this event and we are looking for lots of walkers to come out and support this fantastic cause.

This year the Festival line up will include a range of walks including a new and exciting singles walk along the Keale River from Darragh to Ballyorgan, this is an over 18’s walk as a drink or 2 may be consumed at the bars located at the start and end point, This walks will also involve a bus transfer from Kilfinane, a Film screening at the Church of Ireland Kilfinane, Moon walk on the Friday night and a induction to Geocaching. You can find out about the history, folklore and archaeological walks at Lough Gur, a heritage walk at Doneraile park, historical walks in Kilfinane. All walks should prove hugely popular and provide great insights into some of the areas finest historical, heritage and archaeological attractions.

Pre registration is important so contact the Ballyhoura Offices, Kilfinane on 063-91300. To register for the Mitchelstown culture tour, contact 087 358 9734.