Mayo walking festival to reach out to its loyal supporters worldwide on July 4
The organisers of Castlebar International Four Days Walks are holding a symbolic 10k walk on July 4.
The 53th anniversary of the event was due to be celebrated from July 2 to 5 next before being postponed due to Covid-19.
But a 10k event is now being staged on July 4 in celebration of an event that is such an integral part of the tourist season in the county town.
A statement issued by the festival outlined: "In about ten days’ time, the 53rd Castlebar International Four Days’ Walks should have been taking place.
"Unfortunately, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, we had to make the difficult decision to cancel the festival.
"Like many events all over the world, we made this decision in the interests of the health and safety of all our loyal supporters. Of course we very much look forward to welcoming you all back to Castlebar in the future.
"With this in mind, we have decided to mark the occasion – so, on Saturday July 4, a group of walkers from our organisation will have a social distanced, symbolic walk of 10km here in Castlebar. We will post photos on our social media for everyone to see.
"We are asking you to join us on July 4, wherever you are in the world, to have a 10km walk to remember Castlebar and all the wonderful years we have walked together.
"We ask you to post your photos on our Facebook page and tag as many people as possible.
"Anyone that does their own walk and posts their photos, will receive a “Certificate of Participation” in this special event.
"We realise that many of our walkers who have supported us throughout the years will be disappointed by the cancellation of the walks.
"We want you to know that, here in Castlebar, the organisers and volunteers and indeed the people of the town are also very sad.
"Of course the walking is important but most of all we will miss the talking and the story telling, not to mention the dancing!
"So, let’s celebrate the light at the end of this tunnel - put on your hi-vis vest, pack your lunch, and join us on Saturday, July 4, and raise a glass to walkers all over the world."