Pilgrim Paths Of Ireland

Pilgrim Paths Ireland (PPI) is a non-denominational representative body for Ireland's medieval pilgrim paths. PPI was founded in 2013 to oversee the development and promotion of Ireland's medieval pilgrimage paths, and consists of 12 community groups supporting specific paths. PPI holds an annual ''National Pilgrimage Paths Week'' during Easter, and issues a ''National Pilgrimage Passport'' to finishers of the 5 main trails: Cnoc na dTobar, Cosán na Naomh, St. Finbarr's Pilgrim Path, St. Kevin’s Way, and Tochar Phádraig.

Background

In 1997, a ''Pilgrim Paths Project'' was started by the Irish Heritage Council focused on seven medieval routes of pilgrimage.

In 2013, Pilgrim Paths Ireland (PPI) was founded at a meeting in Nenagh "as an umbrella body for the volunteer groups promoting Ireland’s penitential trails".

Irish hillwalking guidebook author and journalist John G O'Dwyer, was elected Chairman and highlighted the "spiritual tourism" potential for Ireland.

On 19 April 2014, Ireland's first ''National Pilgrim Paths Day'' was held on various penitential trails across the country, attracting over 1,700 participants. On 4 April 2015, a second ''National Pilgrim Paths Day'' was held attracting over 3,000 participants. In 2016, the event was expanded to a ''National Pilgrim Paths Week'' to be held over the Easter festival; the following have been held:
* 2016 National Pilgrim Paths Week (22–29 March 2016).
* 2017 National Pilgrim Paths Week (11–17 April 2017).
* 2018 National Pilgrim Paths Week (31 March – 8 April 2018).
* 2019 National Pilgrim Paths Week (19–28 April 2019).
National Pilgrim Paths Week 2020, which was scheduled to take place from April 9 to 19, was cancelled due to the COVID pandemic in Ireland.

, PPI represents 12 community groups associated with Ireland's main penitential paths and is considered the national representative body.

Pilgrim Passport

During the Easter 2016 ''National Pilgrim Paths'' festival week, the PPI launched the ''National Pilgrim Passport''.

At the launch, the ''Irish Independent'' described it as the ''Celtic Camino'', and a "pedestrian version of the Wild Atlantic Way".

The passport covers 124 km of Ireland's most important medieval pilgrim paths, with stamping points arranged at the conclusion of each path so that walkers can "earn" their completed passport, in a similar manner to the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trails in Spain. On completion of all five paths, participants can apply for a ''Pilgrim Certificate'' (Irish: ''Teastas Oilithreachta''), from Ballintubber Abbey (which is at the start of the Tochar Phádraig pilgrimage route).

, the five routes included on the Pilgrim Passport are:

14 people were registered as finishers (Irish: ''Críochnóirí'') of the five above walks in 2016, 30 were registered in 2017, and 44 were registered in 2018.

On, 15 January 2017, Irish ultramarathon runner Susan Steele, became the first person to run all 5 paths of the Irish Pilgrim Journey, over a period of 5 consecutive days.

Members

Local penitential path organisations who are members of Pilgrim Paths Ireland are:

Books

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See also

* Lists of mountains in Ireland
*Lists of long-distance trails in the Republic of Ireland
*Camino de Santiago

References

External links

*
Passport for Ireland's Medieval Pilgrim Paths 2016
Collins Press (2016)
4 Of The Best Irish Pilgrim Trails I
Ordnance Survey Ireland (March 2016)
4 More Irish Pilgrim Trails Part II
Ordnance Survey Ireland (June 2016)
Walking the Pilgrim Paths of Ireland
Cicerone (2015)

{{Irish long-distance trails

History organisations based in the Republic of Ireland
Long-distance trails in the Republic of Ireland
Pilgrimage routes