John O'Groats trail appoints first-ever manager
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The first-ever manager has been appointed to promote the John O'Groats Trail – the long-distance walking route that runs through Sutherland.
Kenneth McElroy will take up the new post from mid-September and is being charged with developing the 146-mile coastal trail which starts at Inverness and finishes at John O’Groats.
His appointment has been announced by the Friends of the John O’Groats Trail (JoGT) and comes after the organisation was awarded funding from the Caithness and North Sutherland Fund, the Beatrice Partnership Fund and the Caithness Beatrice Fund.
Trail founder and JoGT chairman Jay Wilson said that Mr Elroy’s appointment represented a big step forward for the organisation, a registered charity, and the trail.
“Kenneth is our first full-time employee and his arrival will give us the resources to engage more fully with communities and expand the appeal of the trail for locals and visitors alike," he said.
Thirty-three-year-old Mr McElroy graduated from the University of Glasgow with a degree in archaeology and has since worked in community development and the tourism sector in the North Highlands.
He has had previous roles with the Wild North Festival and tourism route North Coast 500 (NC500), in addition to his voluntary service as director with the Caithness Broch Project.
He said he was delighted to take the next step in his career with the John O’Groats trail and hoped to “do the area proud”.
“The trail offers so much, from fabulous views, whale-watching and of course unbeatable archaeological wonders, and the opportunity to develop this further is a real privilege,” he said.
“I’m a big believer in tourism – and especially slow tourism – as a regenerative, positive force for good, especially for an area like the Highlands.”
Thousands of visitors are thought to have enjoyed all or parts of the trail since its inception. For more information on the trail, visit: www.jogt.org.uk/
