Speaker Ed Heather-Hayes - The Fife Pilgrim Way

Tue, Oct 2nd 2018 at 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm



President John Spittal had his hands full dealing with a myriad of activities, beginning with his introduction of guests Jane Allan and prospective new member Izzie Douglas.

There was huge applause for the next item, the award by the Rotary District hierarchy of the Regular Publication Trophy to Grace Morris. Grace has for many years compiled and published “KilrymontKlips”, a monthly round-up in story and pictures of the Club’s activities and associated items. This was indeed the fifth occasion Grace has accepted this award for her sterling work.

Then followed an important part of the Club’s annual fundraising, the draw of the lottery connected with the forthcoming Kingsbarns Charity Golf Day. Organiser George Donaldson reported the sale of tickets had raised the superb sum of £1800, before the draw took place and the first eight winners announced. First prize was the gift of a fourball tee time at Kingsbarns Links, which has a value of £1000.

Next to take the floor was Ed Heather-Hayes, Development Manager of the Fife Coast and Countryside Trust and who is at the helm of the new project to construct the Fife Pilgrim Way.

Ed told the members the project had begun in 2012 and has since become a major part of the Trust’s work and is due for completion and opening in March next year.

The project aims to recreate as accurately as is possible the classic route followed by pilgrims from the 11th to 16th centuries. Untold thousands of pilgrims made what was an arduous journey, which attracted them from all over Britain and many parts of Europe.

It begins in the Culross/North Queensferry area, where Queen Margaret first endowed the Queen’s Ferry which would ship pilgrims across the River Forth. The route then heads to Dunfermline and the site of the shrine to St Margaret, before coursing through inland Fife for 64 miles to conclude at St Andrews Cathedral and the last resting place of St Andrew.

The Pilgrim Way is a partnership of many organisations and landowners, including Fife Council, Fife Tourism and SNH and has benefited from some National Lottery Funding.

A host of volunteers, including Ramblers’ Association members, community organisations, schoolchildren and students from Fife College, have assisted in some of the construction projects. These have created new fencing, gates and footbridges and has opened up and upgraded original core paths which have remained unused for some 500 years.

A large number of signposts directing walkers the length of the route have already been put in place across The Kingdom and a number of them can be seen along the Lade Braes Walk in St Andrews.

Ed also said that the project would be a vital tourism factor for Fife. A number of the original Pilgrim Way rest and refreshment stops have been identified and some will be renovated for modern use. It is forecast that within four years around 200,000 visitors per year will use the route and be “walking in the footsteps of medieval pilgrims”. 

This should also contribute some £3 million annually to the Fife economy.

Will Aitken gave the vote of thanks for an informative talk on a great project. He indicated the club members may well be interested in volunteering their help and possibly be involved in tree planting along the new Pilgrim Way.

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