A Co Down novelist and award-winning poet and a former language teacher have become new pilgrim guides on the Saint Patrick’s Way in Downpatrick.
Tony Bailie and Mairead Sweeney will guide visitors on the pilgrim walk around sites associated with St Patrick in Co Down.
The walks are run by the Saint Patrick Centre in Downpatrick, where former Adoration Sisters Martina Purdy and Elaine Kelly are involved in leading several walking experiences as well as Irish language guide Jean O’Neill and Ardglass historian and author Duane Fitzsimons.
Dr Tim Campbell, director of Saint Patrick’s Centre, said interest in the guided walks, which take visitors along the 22km St Patrick's Way, visiting several locations, had proved "very popular".
"We are so delighted that the team of pilgrim guides is expanding to include Tony and Mairead - and to meet demand, as new routes on St Patrick’s Way are opening in Ardglass, Dundrum as well as Downpatrick and Newcastle," he said.
"We piloted Saint Patrick’s guided pilgrim walks last year and they were very popular."
Mr Bailie has had four novels and three collections of poetry published and until recently was a sub-editor with The Irish News. He continues to write a popular 'Take on Nature' column for the newspaper.
His most recent collection, Mountain Under Heaven, won the James Tate International Poetry Prize 2019. He lives in Downpatrick and has a close connection with the landscape of south Down and its history.
"When I first heard about the St Patrick Camino, I immediately thought this is something I would like to become involved in," he said.
"I was in the west of Ireland last year and I kept meeting people who had heard about them and were planning to come to Downpatrick to do the walks.
"So I think it has huge potential for tourism in this area and feel very privileged to be playing a part in it."
Ms Sweeney, who is originally from Fermanagh but has lived in Loughinisland for many years, is a member of the Northern Ireland Tourist Guiding Association.
"I have a real interest in Co Down and it’s fascinating that it is so closely linked with Saint Patrick," she said.
"St Patrick’s Way is a hidden gem and I really want to bring this to the attention of others.
"Combined with the beauty of the area, it is a really memorable experience to be on a guided walk because there’s so much to see and learn and appreciate.
"I look forward to welcoming people from the domestic and international market, guided in French and Spanish."
