‘Last bit of trail' in Fore gets funding for its completion

“The last wee bit of the trail, that’s all we needed done, I’m not asking for much,” said Cllr Frank McDermott, when another round of funding was announced to the councillors, and on Friday he got the news the money was there for it.

Over the last decade, an off-road looped walk has been built in the valley of Fore.

It goes through the largest Benedictine Monastic remains in the world, along past a motte and bailey and through a little orchard that was once the home of Cllr McDermott’s mother.

“It took many years of hard work, negotiating and funding to get us where we are today,” said Cllr McDermott. “And it niggled that the loop was incomplete that there was just this couple of metres without a path to make the pedestrian safe from the road.”

On Friday 5 last, it was announced as part of a significant town and village funding scheme that Fore would receive the €52,000 needed to complete the looped walk.

It is a stretch of road from the Eucharistic Congress avenue of trees up to the small gate that once marked the boreen to Frank’s childhood home. The looped walk in Fore was recognised with a national heritage award in 2017 and was the location for the successful Pride of Place entry last summer.

The looped walk in Fore registered 14,000 visitors over six months and will play a key part in the new tourism hub being developed for north Westmeath.

Cllr Una D’Arcy said: “The completion of the looped walk in Fore, and the significant continuing investment and development and the announcement of the first stage of a walking and cycling route in Castlepollard receiving €100,000 in funding shows that we are serious about creating a significant tourism package here in north Westmeath that promote our beautiful natural heritage.

“This news comes just at the right time and will be celebrated by the newly formed north Westmeath Tourism Grouping – who are meeting again this Tuesday, October 9, in Hotel Castlepollard – where we are receiving presentations from Ronan Casey of The Living Bog project, Tríona Finnen, Parks and Wildlife ranger, and Basil Mannion, Community Waters officer for Westmeath.”

“We intend to make north Westmeath the success story for tourism and amenity in 2019 and this funding is the start of many great developments coming down the line.”