Saturday 4th February 2017 – Walk the Walls & Round the Bridges (8.2 miles)
Early start this morning travelling by train to the Maiden City. Dry, overcast & very cold as we headed towards the Waterside Greenway to take a nippy walk across the Peace Bridge. It was also full of Parkrun folk this morning making their way around the 5km course on both sides of the Lough.
Our first stop was the Guildhall and we got a bit side tracked making out way around the exhibition & learning all about the city. We eventually made our way onto the walls at Magazine Gate & started taking in the city.
As the morning developed the skies brightened and it was lovely to feel the heat of the sun as we dipped in & out of the cold shadows of the walls while taking in the years of history.
St. Columb’s Cathedral, dating back to 1633, looked very impressive in the winter sunshine, but it was biting cold out of that sunshine!
Just after midday we returned to the Guildhall Square and made our way towards Lough Foyle to walk the bridges. Lough Foyle is an amazing stretch of water & it was lovely to see so many people out enjoying the various parks & walkways as we made our way round.
It took about an hour to reach the Foyle Bridge before bracing ourselves, & holding onto our hats, to cross all 866m of it! Although it was a bit hairy holding on to the camera I was chuffed to capture the 13:30 train passing on the line below.
Then within about 45 minutes, with Lough Foyle always in sight, a good broad walkway lead us through a busy St Columb’s Park and back to a transformed Ebrington Square.
We warmed up with a well deserved coffee stop in a bustling ‘Ollies’ before heading back to the railway station for a short train journey home. An enjoyable walk, in the company of friends, notching up 8.2 miles – a fantastic way to spend a February day!
Walking Through 2017 and Beyond 