National Famine Way Commemorative Walk to pass through Meath
The National Famine Way Commemorative Walk passes along the banks of the Royal Canal through Meath next week en route to the final destination of Dublin.
The walkers will arrive into Hill of Down at 4pm on Thursday, 23rd May for a short stop and finish up in Longwood at 5pm for the day having completed a gruelling 30km walk from Mullingar.
On Friday (24th May), the walk will start off from Longwood and continue to Maynooth- a distance of 28km.
The walkers will depart Longwood at 9am, joined by children from St Nicholas NS for the first few kilometres. The group will arrive in Enfield at around 11.30am and children from the local St Mary's NS will join in there for part of the walk.
Everyone is welcome to the welcome and departure events along the route or to join in for some of the walk.
The Commemorative Walk takes place over six days from Monday 20th to Saturday 25th May. It will be led by the Ambassador of Ireland to Canada, Eamonn McKee and representatives of the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail to mark the launch of the Global Irish Famine Way.
The Commemorative Walk is free, accessible and open to everyone in the six counties it passes through to join in. Starting at the National Famine Museum/Strokestown Park in Roscommon, it follows the National Famine Way for 165km to EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin’s Docklands.
Strokestown Park House is the starting point for the walk itself on Monday 20th May. It begins with a dramatic re-enactment of the events in 1847 which prompted the foundation of the trail and will include traditional musicians, school children and walkers dressed in famine costume.
Members of the Tighe family, whose ancestors were evicted, will read the names of the 1,490 tenants forced to leave their homes in Strokestown, march to Dublin and emigrate to Canada on the worst of the infamous coffin ships. Only half of the emigrants survived. Their names are etched on a commemorative glass wall outside the National Famine Museum.
The National Famine Way is a collaboration between Waterways Ireland, the Irish Heritage Trust and the county councils along the route.
The symbol of the National Famine Way is a pair of children’s shoes displayed at the National Famine Museum. The trail is waymarked by bronze replicas crafted by artist Alannah O'Kelly as a poignant reminder of the journey the 1,490 souls made.
Ambassador McKee, the Liverpool Irish Famine Way walkers and children from local schools along the route will carry a symbolic pair as they make this evocative pilgrimage.
Caroilín Callery, National Famine Way, said: “We are getting close now to the 2024 commemorative walk - the first since the trail was officially launched in 2019. I am very much looking forward to doing it for the 5th time as it is always a thought provoking and enriching experience. This time, it is all the more special as it being led by the visionary Ambassador Eamonn Mc Kee who has been a driving force behind the development into the Global Irish Famine Way.
“Our emigrants did not stop in the Quays in Dublin- their journeys spread far and wide around the world and it is only fitting to tell the second part of their stories as they carved out new lives on foreign shores and had worldwide influence over the decades and centuries to follow which is still being felt worldwide today. And we can see and feel that in the huge interest and warm welcome the Bronze Shoes have received already in this inaugural phase”.