The walking/cycling trails of Inch Levels in South Inishowen are set to gain a promotional boost after being featured on a new Trail Gazers Project website.
The Trail Gazers Project has launched its brand new website allowing users to navigate their way along eight pilot trails across Europe from the touch of a button.
The new website, www.trailgazers.eu, was launched at a special virtual launch after the project’s monthly virtual communications meeting on Friday 5th June, with more than 40 delegates from across Europe.
Online launch of http://www.trailgazers.eu/
Speaking at the launch of this new website, Cathaoirleach of Donegal County Council Cllr. Nicholas Crossan said ‘This project will be a great asset for Inch Levels and the surrounding towns and villages in Inishowen going forward, as it will show how investment in our walking and cycling trails benefits local areas. I hope everyone gets behind this initiative and it will be a fantastic model for future investment in trails throughout the county.’
Trail Gazers is an EU funding project, led by Donegal County Council with partners from Portugal, Spain, France the UK and Ireland. The project is about exploring the impact of walking and recreational trails on sustaining rural communities and looks at innovative ways to enhance the impact of these facilities on people living in these areas.
Inch Levels is one of Ireland’s most significant wildfowl areas. The Inch Levels Wildfowl reserve has been in development in partnership with National Parks and Wildlife Service for over 10 years. Donegal County Council has been working in partnership with NPWS and local stakeholders throughout this time on developing the site as a must-see tourism atttaction. Currently the site has 8km of Walking/Cycling trails, a number of bird viewing hides, and car parking facilities.
Project Manager for Trail Gazers, Loretta McNicholas from Donegal County Council said: ‘Travel is now more about appreciating the way of life these hidden trails can offer, learning about local history, cultural and natural landscapes and embarking on voyages of self-discovery that will stay with the person long after the holiday has finished.’
Trail Gazers will work on the creation of new virtual tourism initiatives, which are more important now than ever. These will showcase all that the regions have to offer to wider audiences. Trail Gazers will also share and learn from partner experiences’ and knowledge to develop sustainable community trail management plans to protect the very assets that visitors come to see and protect our trails for future generations to enjoy.
I am delighted that people will now have an opportunity to peruse our website to learn more about our project and I would encourage people to join our Trail Gazers team to engage with the project.
Via the website you can learn a lot more about the project, look at best practices, meet all our partners, learn more about each pilot trail and lots more. You can virtually stroll from Inch Levels in Donegal to Plazaola in Navarra, Spain, from Chemin De Mémoires, Brittany, France to Taff Trail in South Wales. Or learn more about the La Caldera de Taburiente in the Canary Islands, or the beautiful Knocknarea/Killaspugbrone Loop in Sligo or even visit Portugal’s Sacred Mountain or Seven Hanging Valleys.
In concluding the launch, Loretta Mc Nicholas thanked the Interreg Atlantic Area Programme for funding the project, the Communication Lead NASUVINSA for championing and developing the site and the Trail Gazers Steering Committee for their ongoing support and guidance. She especially acknowledged the work of Mary Daly, Communications and Research Officer in bringing the site to life, through the supply of user-friendly content.
For more information on Trail Gazers visit www.trailgazers.eu
Trail Gazers project is co-financed by the Interreg Atlantic Area Programme through the European Regional Development Fund.
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