Evening treat with an Irish flavour for walkers and cyclists
Anyone into walking and cycling will find plenty to interest them at a meeting at the Community Centre on Monday 21 November.
Well-known Delaware Bay resident and owner-operator of “Walk the West of Ireland”, Rachel Ryan, will open the evening with a slide show and talk about her walking tours to that country.
After supper Greg Napp, on behalf of the Golden Bay Cycle and Walkway Society subcommittee, will present a PowerPoint display explaining the six routes researched for an extension of the walking and cycle track proposed between Boyle Street in Clifton and Golden Bay High School.
“I’ll be giving some background on the whole Motupipi cycleway/walkway project - where it came from, why we are putting it forward, the thinking around achieving an off-road link between Pohara/Clifton and Takaka, outline the various options of achieving it and also give a wider vision of a cycleway/walkway network throughout Golden Bay,” said Greg. “We will also show some pictures of the route and explain what our preferred option is, which we hope to take forward through the resource consent process.”
This will likely be a lively evening. Rachel Ryan is passionate about introducing New Zealanders to the authentic Irish experience.
“Over and over again, our walkers say it is the people, people, people that make their time in Ireland so special - they feel a special connection with the locals they meet on our 10-day trips. Not surprising, considering there are so many New Zealanders who have fairly recent family links with Ireland.”
Rachel incorporates her own illustrious Irish family into her tours, and they are proving a smash hit. Her brother Hugh is her co-driver, while his partner, Elin Payne, is a graduate chef from the esteemed Ballymaloe Cookery School in Cork, and prepares most of the food as tour progresses.
Usually incorporated into the itinerary (which centres on walking, sampling Irish culinary delights, music and dancing in equal measures) is a visit to the Ryan family estate, Scarteen, in County Limerick, where Rachel grew up. Her father, Thaddeus “Thady” Ryan, who retired to his wife Anne’s homeland of New Zealand in 1987, was legendary in the Irish fox-hunting scene and was influential in raising horse breeding standards in Ireland. He served as chef d’equipe of the Irish three-day eventing teams at the Tokyo and Mexico Olympic Games and often travelled for Ireland as its international sporting ambassador.
Says Rachel: “It gives me such pleasure to be able to introduce walkers to local people who are deeply connected to their place, live traditional music and dance, and of course spectacular mountain and coastal walking, where there few other tourists are to be seen! I’d like to extend a warm Irish invitation and welcome to all with an interest in things Irish: to an evening of spectacular slides and stories of walking in the West of Ireland with its verdant landscapes, ancient heritage, and rich local character.”
A treat for walkers and cyclists. Monday November 21 at the Community Centre, 7.30pm. Gold coin donation.
Gerard Hindmarsh
