Harbour walk blown away by support
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STRONG winds failed to blow the return of the Six Harbour Walk off course as hundreds from far and wide flocked to take part in the charity fund-raiser.
After a hiatus of a year due to landslips blocking sections of the route the event, which is run by the Rotary Club of Buckie, came back in style. It was to far exceed the expected number of participants, with 420 making their way over the 15-mile course rather than the 300 or so initially predicted by the organising team.
There was a new registration and finish point for this year's walk, the South and West Church hall providing the venue for the first time.
Communities came together to support the hardy souls raising money for charity through the trek, with bacon rolls on offer at Sandend, while teas and snacks were also provided at Cullen Sea School and in Findochty, courtesy of the gala committee.
One of those delighted with the day was Heather Pirie, who along with Andrew Murray is co-convener of the Six Harbour Walk.
"It went far better than we could've hoped and getting 420 people doing the walk on a day like this, which has been really windy and cold, is fantastic," she told the Advertiser.
"Everybody seemed to enjoy the new route which we had to put in place to get round the landslips between Sandend and Cullen, the feedback so far has been all positive.
"We had walkers taking part from quite far afield; I'd say over half of those participating were not from the local area.
"One of the aims we had for this year's Six Harbour Walk was to make it much more of an event for the wider community and I think we've achieved that. The communities the walk passes through seem to have embraced that, including the groups who provided refreshments for the walkers along the way.
"People have been very eager to help and the Six Harbour Walk team have all worked very hard to make it happen.
"We've a few things to look at and tweak for next year's walk but overall we're delighted. We're looking forward to next year's walk already."
Amid the celebrations there was a decidedly poignant tinge to the day for many of the event organisers as they remembered two of their number who are no longer here.
Last February saw former Six Harbour Walk convener Bill Greig, who had an infectious passion for the event, pass away suddenly while a month later Buckie Rotary stalwart Charles McKay sadly died.
The primary charities set to benefit from this year's walk are the Rotary's own Shelter Box initiative, Sue Ryder hospice and Clan Cancer Support in Elgin.
Groups of four or more doing the walk had the option of splitting their sponsorship money equally between the three Rotary-nominated charities and good causes of their own choosing.
