OUTDOORS Rediscover the Western Way

The long and winding road

Outdoor living

Ciara Moynihan

For fair-weather foot soldiers, the balmy easterlies that brought us last week’s warm sunshine reawakened thoughts of long, satisfying walks through forest, field and far-off hills. Many dusted down their hiking boots and headed for open country. For the more hardy annuals, whose hiking boots are used year-round, the summery turn was a reminder of how much more ground could be covered when there’s a stretch in the day.

Regardless of how quickly you wear out your soles, the pull of a way-marked route is universal. Way-marked walks have been a feature in Ireland for many years, and here on our doorstep lies one of the most beautiful: the 200km Western Way. Starting in Oughterard, Co Galway, and finishing in north Mayo’s Bonniconlon, the trail takes in some of the region’s most breathtaking views and iconic landscapes.

Entering Mayo at Aasleagh, near Leenane, it traverses the eastern slopes of Croagh Patrick before winding through Westport, Newport, the Nephin Mountains and the remote landscape of Bellacorick and Sheskin. From Ballycastle in north Mayo it follows the coastline through Killala to Ballina and on to Bonniconlon.

The trail is due to be relaunched at the Leenane Walking Festival, which takes place this weekend, May 1 to 3. But what’s to relaunch? Well, the South West Mayo Development Company and Forum Connemara Ltd have been working together through the Rural Recreation Programme to bring the Western Way ‘up to standard’. As part of this project new, accessible map boards have been erected at the start of each of the trail’s 13 sections, all sporting the new Western Way logo, in a bid to bring the trail back to life and easier for walkers to experience.

The logo itself features the beautiful evergreen St Dabeoc’s Heath, the upturned-urn-shaped flowers of which bloom from May to October, splashing dapples of purple-pink over the hills of north Connemara and south Mayo – and no where else in Ireland. Like the Camino, which features shells on its way markers, the St Dabeoc’s Heath logo will appear on the Western Way’s markers.

The new map boards and logo are the first steps in developing this long-distance walking trail, so that it can compete with more established trails, such as the Kerry and Wicklow Ways, and even Scotland’s West Highland Way.

Speaking to The Mayo News, Rural Recreation Officer Martin Dillane explains that a lot of work has been done on the trail itself too. “Over the last few years there’s been a lot of rerouting off the road … we’re all the time reducing the amount of trail that’s on the road. A huge section of Errif has gone off road now, for example, along the river banks, and new bridges have gone in.”

Would someone who walked the Western Way ten years ago notice much change? “There’s a huge difference, especially in the section from Leenaun to Westport – nearly all of that’s off road now, and it’s through really good scenery,” says Martin.

“There’s a section there, on the Westport side of Tawnyard near Drummin, where you can take either the road section or a cross-mountain section, which is really fantastic. We’re calling it ‘The Fair Weather Route’ – if the weather’s really good, you’d take this off-road section, and you’d come right up over the brow of a hill to look down at Lugacolliwee Lake. It’s really nice.”

Full circle

Martin, originally from Spiddal but now living in Newport, took over the role of Rural Recreation Officer a year ago. Like the Western Way itself, the road he took to the job was long and winding. “At 17 I left home in Galway and came up here; I took a year out from college – and I didn’t go back. I stayed with a relation of mine here in Mayo, down in Shramore, down in the hills,” he says with a smile. “I was farming for a couple of years there, then I got married, and I went into the building trade. I was a stone mason for about 15 years. About five years ago I went back to college and got a Community Development diploma, and then went for the Rural Development degree.

“I’m very involved in community work down in our own area in Newport, and I had been involved in walks maybe 15 or 20 years ago, helping to put the Letterkean Loop in place. I built the bothy that’s there at the start of the loop – I worked with Joe McDermott at the time and Jim Egan, who was in the council. So now it’s come full circle!”  

For Martin, his involvement with developing the Western Way has been an enriching experience. “This is a great project to be working on,” he says. “The trail has great potential, and we hope that in a few years it will become a busy visitors’ attraction alongside the Great Western Greenway.”

Another jewel in the crown for the west, and for those of us lucky enough to live here, another reason to stop letting those hiking boots gather dust.

The Western Way will be relaunched by archaeologist Michael Gibbons in Leenaun, in the car park opposite the Sheep and Wool Centre, on May 1 at 7pm. Refreshments will be served afterwards, and all are welcome. For more, visit www.leenanevillage.com or call Martin Dillane on 087 6578147.

Starting in the summer, the Living section will publish monthly guides, written by Martin, to the 13 sections of the Western Way, starting with the first, Oughterard to Maum.