After an enforced break of two years due to Covid, Newton Stewart Walking Festival is back with a full programme of walks.
One of the longest-running and largest walking festivals in Scotland, the Newton Stewart event has run since 2003 and is organised on a purely volunteer basis. The week-long festival, from 6th to 12th May, is designed to offer unique walking opportunities for both local people and visitors with a view to promoting walking tourism in an area.
Routes offered this year stretch from Carsphairn in the north to Mull of Galloway in the South, from Balcary Bay near Auchencairn in the east to the Rhins Coastal path in the west. Many routes fall within the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere.
Chair Joan Mitchell said:
“We’re delighted that in May we will be able to welcome friends old and new to enjoy our great programme of over thirty walks and evening events. Our routes explore our hills, our coasts and some of the beautiful rivers of the south-west. Bookings so far have been incredibly positive.”
She added: “It is still a challenging time but I would like to pay tribute to the volunteer committee which has stuck tirelessly to the task, keeping in touch with our clients who are also friends, and to thank Wigtownshire Ramblers and Galloway Mountain Rescue for their continued support.”
This year festival has been possible due to the generous support of Kilgallioch Community Fund, Dumfries and Galloway Council, Galloway Glens Landscape Partnership and Wigtown Community Shop, as well as the ongoing support of Stewart R Cunningham Outdoor Centre and The Belted Galloway Visitor Centre.
The full programme is available on the festival’s website www.walkfestnewtonstewart.com. Bookings can be made online via the website. You can also keep up to date via the festival’s Facebook page.
