Three Estates Walking Festival

The streets of Caledon resounded to the sound of walking feet as over 300 people from all parts of Ireland converged there during European Heritage Open Days over the week-end of 8th & 9th September. The beautifully restored Courthouse provided the venue for registration. From here the keen walkers were guided through the wonderful estate lands of Tynan Abbey, Caledon and Castle Leslie.

On Saturday morning 115 people walked from Caledon to the Tynan Abbey Estate where they had an opportunity to see the Well and Terrace crosses and the sad ruins of the once-magnificent Tynan Abbey. The return trek to Caledon village was via the towpaths of the former Ulster Canal through both the Tynan and Caledon estates.

After some welcome refreshments at the Caledon Arms Hotel, more walkers joined in for guided tours of Caledon Estate. Keith Willis, Kate Worthington and William Beattie acted as guides for the afternoon and treated those present to a lively walk and talk through the deer park with its herd of 300 red deer, the estate yards with their wonderful array of old farm implements, the ice house, gardeners cottages and the impressive pinetum containing majestic candelabrous firs and Ireland’s tallest tree at 54 metres in height. The walkers sampled some local apple varieties before returning to the village, past the magnificent castle and along the main driveway.

Sunday was the day for those with real stamina - a 15-mile walk from Caledon, taking in the Tynan Abbey and Caledon estates as before, with the addition of Castle Leslie Estate in the beautiful village of Glaslough. The weather was perfect for walking and allowed for a picnic stop at the Dredge Bridge over the River Blackwater en route. As evening approached, the walkers were enthralled with the sight of the fine horses sporting in the meadows against the breathtaking backdrop of Glaslough lake and Castle Leslie with its state of the art equestrian centre and newly restored Hunting Lodge.

The ramblers sampled some very welcome hospitality in the Oakland Recreation Centre in Glaslough. Here, Daphne Purdy, cross-border walks development officer with the Blackwater Regional Partnership, commented that this walking festival was the perfect example of cross-border community activity and co-operation. Not only did the walk itself physically cross the border and include the three counties of Armagh, Tyrone and Monaghan but volunteer walk leaders from all of the rambling clubs in the Blackwater partnership region had worked together to prepare for this walk and carried out their leadership duties as a team. Those participating in the walking festival had come from all parts of the region and from much further afield and many new friendships had been forged during the fifteen mile walk. This is the spirit that the Community Support programme supported by Border Action through the INTERREG 111A Programme for Ireland/Northern Ireland seeks to achieve.

Thanks were extended to the St John Ambulance personnel who had accompanied the walkers and to all who had contributed very generously to the Autism Initiatives charity. Special thanks were also extended to the owners, managers and staff of all three estates and other private lands to which the walkers had very generously been granted access for this unique event and for whom special accommodation works had been carried out.

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