Approval granted for new €100k Ballyhaise walking route

Approval has been granted for a new six-kilometre €100,000 walking route centred around Ballyhaise village.

The proposed path will use a combination of new riverside walkway, existing public roads and footpaths, and existing farm and forest paths adjacent to the Annalee River and taking-in Oakwood Forest.

The project came before the elected members of Bailieborough-Cootehill Municipal District at their recently bi-monthly meeting for Part 8 approval.

Senior Executive Engineer, Derry Scanlon, explained to councillors that the trail loop will be 5.3km in length, with an additional 0.7km of path linking with the amenity car park opposite Ballyhaise College which is also set to be upgraded.

The route will be further enhanced using interpretative panels, signage and way-markers, and pass through the areas of Drumully, Elteen, Drumcrow, and Townparks.

A new footpath will be constructed along the R212-1 Clones Road as far as the Road Bridge at the Annalee River, through the woods and along a farm lane westward to where it joins with the L5552-0 ‘The Bog Road’ at a point known as the ‘Wash Bank’. Here there will be an option to take the shorter route bank to the Town Square, or to continue along to Oakwood Forest where there will be a carved timber information panel to match the existing gateway signs entering the village.

Other proposed features of the path are that it will be at least three metres wide where possible to facilitate social distancing, the provision of an accessible ramp to the nearby Church of Ireland, and an upgrade to the footpath at Ballyhaise Square.

Mr Scanlon said Ballyhaise did not have an established trail at present, and once developed, the new amenity route will add to the what is a growing network of similar walks across the county that are free and accessible to the public.

The new Ballyhaise walk is being developed in conjunction with Teagasc and Coillte, and Mr Scanlon said: “The trail should work well with the work already being done on the Active Travel Scheme.”

He confirmed that work on the walking trail will be completed, and the route opened to the public in 2022, as the funding allocated to the project needs to be used in this calendar year.

The plans were formally proposed by Fianna Fáil’s Aiden Fitzpatrick, and seconded by Fine Gael’s Carmel Brady.

Sinn Féin’s Paddy McDonald said it was “great to see” the cooperation of local bodies in helping deliver a project such as the Ballyhaise walking route. “It’s a job well done.”

Cllr Brady said it was wonderful that the people of Ballyhaise would have a walking route of their “own” of which to be proud.