NEW ROSSES POINT WALK
SCHOOLCHILDREN who helped design a new coastal walk in Rosses Point will join the community for the first official walk of the new route this week.
The brainchild of a small group of locals, the Rosses Point Coastal Way has been signposted by a series of nine interpretive panels along the 2.2 km of coastal paths stretching from the Church of Ireland church building at one end of the Promenade to the headland above the carpark at the First beach.
The Rosses Point Coastal Way Group (RPCWG) included birdwatcher Sean Callagy, Réalt na Mara National School Principal Dearbhla Gill and Heritage Council specialist Martina Butler who were keen to engage as many local people as possible, starting with the national school.
The pupils participated in two workshops during which they listed many aspects and elements of the heritage of Rosses Point. They then set about designing different shapes, sizes and layouts of panels, and finally, they identified suitable locations for each of the interpretive panels by getting out with their clipboards and pencils and walking the coastal paths. On their return to school, the pupils then transferred their chosen panel locations onto an oversized route map.
The RPCW Group were aware that the Heritage of Rosses Point would also be of immense interest to a wide variety of people, including those with an interest in the famous brothers Jack and W.B. Yeats, both of whom spent much of their summers locally, and reflected its landscape and history in their works. The group decided to carry out a survey of local visitors and foreign tourists to ascertain their thoughts and suggestions in relation to the proposed project as well as to find out what aspects of the areas heritage interested them most.
The survey indicated an overwhelmingly positive response to the project proposal as well as an even greater interest in all aspects of the area’s heritage. The group then set about designing the interpretive panels based on all of the input from both the school children and from the visitor survey.
Each of the panels highlight aspects of the rich and diverse heritage of the area including its geology, archaeology, biodiversity, maritime history and cultural connections.
The RPCWG designed and produced all nine panels themselves using photographs donated by local photographer and bird enthusiast, Michael Bell and Stephen Farrell, who kindly gave us permission to use his spectacular photograph of the iconic Metal Man on two of the panels. Additional costs were funded by Tidy Towns and County Council funding.
The RPCWG will celebrate the official launch of the Rosses Point Coastal Way with the entire community of Rosses Point, including the children of SN Réalt na Mara, starting from below the Beach Stores building next to the Car Park near the First Beach in Rosses Point this Thursday the 21st of June at 7.30pm. Sligowalks.ie