Two new walking routes near Ripon will be launched next month that could end up becoming part of a pilgrimage route to Spain.

The Fountains Ways, which are billed as “ancient paths for modern pilgrims”, are a collection of three pilgrimage walks, largely following established footpaths and linking historic churches.

One of them is Abbots’ Way, a nine-mile walk taking in the churches at Sawley, Studley, Winksley and Aldfield, which was launched in September.

The other two will be launched with an inaugural walk on Saturday, March 21.

Curlew Way is a seven-mile walk through Galphay including St Cuthbert’s and St Oswald’s in Winksley, and Fishers’ Way is a more strenuous seven-miler along the River Ure, passing St James’s and the Methodist church in Grewelthorpe, and St John’s in Mickley.

Revd Andrew Cromarty is an associate priest of the Fountains benefice, which includes seven churches across four parishes to the north and west of Ripon. He has also led the planning team for the Fountains Ways, and is expecting about 150 people to turn up for the launch.

He told the Stray Ferret:

The Camino Inglés – or English Way – is one of a number of ancient pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain, and was the traditional route to the city taken by pilgrims from northern Europe.

In the late 15th century, Pope Alexander VI officially declared Santiago to be one of the three great pilgrimage destinations of Christendom, along with Jerusalem and Rome.

In recent years, pilgrimage to Santiago – a name that means St James – has experienced a boom. In 2016, just over 277,000 pilgrims were accredited, but by 2024, that figure almost reached half a million, with pilgrims coming from all over Europe and North America.

Walkers who cover at least 100km of one of the pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela are eligible to receive the compostela, the official certificate issued by the Cathedral of Santiago that verifies completion of the pilgrimage.

There are two Camino Inglés routes in northern Spain. One, from Ferrol, covers 110km, but the other, from A Coruña, only covers 75km.

However, pilgrims can make up the remaining 25km by walking one of a number of approved routes in England, where they can get their credencial stamped, verifying the distance walked.

There are several pilgrimage routes in Britain that have been successfully linked by walkers with the Camino Inglés in Spain, the nearest one to us being the one that starts at Finchale Priory in County Durham and takes in the 7th-century Escomb Church, Durham Cathedral, Bishop Auckland and York.

That route currently stops at Hull, but there are plans to extend it south to join with St James' Way from Reading, where Reading Abbey was the centre of the cult of St James in pre-Reformation England, and on to the port of Southampton.

Rev Cromarty is hoping the new Fountains Ways can link in with the Finchale route – whose extension already passes through West Tanfield, Mickley and Ripon – and might become officially recognised as optional routes that can be followed in conjunction with the Camino Inglés in Spain.

He said:

The inaugural walks along Curlew Way and Fisher’s Way will start from St Andrew’s Church in Kirkby Malzeard on Saturday, March 21, when walkers will gather at 10am for a prayer and briefing.

They are both circular walks, so will end at the same church around 3.30pm, with refreshments and a short act of thanksgiving with the Bishop of Ripon, the Rt Revd Anna Eltringham.

Anyone wanting to take part in one of the walks should contact Karen Pickles at karenpickles@btinternet.com.