Walker’s Guide to town for visitors and locals
AN avid walker’s boredom with taking her pooch on the same routes day in day out in Drogheda has inspired her to map a series of self-guided walks around the town.
Áine Walsh then enlisted the help of some other enthusiastic ramblers with great local knowledge to bring the map routes project to fruition.
“I had the idea to map some Drogheda walks highlighting our natural beauty, topography, lanes and steps, hidden gems and great views you get from different angles.“explains Áine.
“Frankie Flanagan and Terry Collins from Boyne Valley Walking were contacted in relation to their bone crunching 1,200 steps walk. Pat Coffey was roped in to help re-draft the steps to a more manageable 553, and now that walk covers ten sets of steps, from the medieval Highlanes to the modern infrastructure of the 144 steps down from the Railway Station.”
Along the way, Tom Reilly’s walks and talks in relation to the ancient walls of Drogheda help keep the history and appreciation of our built landscape to the fore.
Emmet Humphreys and Aideen Morrissey gave some valuable input during the planning stages, drawing from their landscape, historical knowledge and architectural backgrounds.
“We also mapped a Walls walk which keeps as tight to the site of the medieval Walls as possible,” she explains.
“I also mapped the easy Bridges walk, and the pretty Spires & Towers walk.”
The guide contains some incredible photography, including unique aeriel shots of the town which would have been largely unseen before.
“Caoimhe Mulroy of Once Upon Design kindly donated her time and expertise to the graphic design, and the images came from a combination of Caoimhe and Brian Connolly of Bang Bang Visuals,” says Aine.
“Pepole are having great fun seeing if you can find your house from the panoramic shot.”
Barry Eaton and Drogheda Tidy Towns (DTT) Committee supported the idea, and the map is geared as much towards locals as it is to visitors. The guides are available in the Tholsel (Tourist office), hotels, pubs, shops and the DI office.