Walk Waterford, an enjoyable outing on the Ardmore Cliff Walk

Waterford Sports Partnership (WSP) hosted the second walk in the Walk Waterford Spring series last Sunday 16th February in Ardmore along the beautiful Cliff Walk. Fifty enthusiastic walkers joined WSP staff and volunteers as they discovered all the Cliff Walk has to offer.

There was a welcome break from the recent bad weather and all the walkers enjoyed the breezy but dry conditions and an opportunity to get out and about again. While it was a little wet underfoot in places, the walkers came well prepared and made it around the 5km loop comfortably while enjoying offering spectacular views.

The cliff walk at Ardmore has an amazingly diverse range of flora, comprising of 113 species of wildflower, grasses and fern including orchids, wild thyme and blue scabious.  This walk is also a birdwatchers paradise and is home to a host of Coastal birds. Other birds such as Rock Pipits, Pheasant, Kestrel, Peregrine Falcons occupy the habitat.  It was great to see such a big crowd enjoying one of the most beautiful walks in the County.  A big thank you to our volunteer walk leaders, Paudie Flynn and Helen Padmore for their valuable help on the day.

The next walk is this coming Sunday 23rd February on the newly developed Anne Valley Walk in Dunhill. Participants are asked to meet at 10am in the second car park on the left hand side when entering Dunhill Village.  This is a lovely flat 4km walk which follows the Anne Valley River which flows through the Anne Valley and meanders past many beautiful ponds to reach Dunhill Castle 2km from the starting point. The walk is also a protected wildlife area and if you are lucky you may see some of the many protected wildlife species such as the Heron, Kingfisher, Otter and an amazing range of other fauna and flora. The newly developed path allows comfortable wheelchair and buggy access with no steep slopes. There are several bench seats along the walk where you can sit to relax and enjoy the peace of the valley while watching the wildlife.

All walkers will need suitable walking shoes (runners are ideal), warm clothing and a waterproof jacket. Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.

To find out more please contact: Pauline Cunningham, Sports Development Officer, Waterford Sports Partnership on 051 849855 /086 7837385.

Check out the full list of Walks here...

http://www.waterfordsportspartnership.ie/pdfs/springseries2014.pdf

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