Friends of Mount Athos Footpaths Project
For over twenty-five years, MAFA’s sister organization in the United Kingdom, the Friends of Mount Athos (FoMA), has undertaken a project to clear, restore, maintain, and map the ancient footpaths of Mount Athos. Until the advent of roadways in the 1950s and 1960s, these footpaths were the only land-based connections among the monasteries. Consequently, pilgrims, monks, and mules transporting goods used the footpaths extensively. Sadly, in modern times new roadways resulted in loss or destruction of many paths, and pilgrims traveling by minibus no longer linger amidst the wildflowers, forests, and wildlife that make the Holy Mountain a natural wonder.
At the encouragement of His Majesty King Charles III when he was Prince of Wales, FoMA undertook in 2001 to encourage renewed use of the footpaths. FoMA’s footpath-clearing pilgrimage was thus born, and you can find more information about it here: https://www.athosfriends.org/footpath_clearing_project/. Each year, typically in May, a group of some 25 to 30 path clearers visits the Holy Mountain, removes debris and overgrowth, installs signage on the paths, and updates FoMA’s extensive library of footpath descriptions. (link: https://www.athosfriends.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/footpath_conditions_en.pdf). These efforts have yielded remarkable results, with more and more pilgrims choosing to walk while visiting the Holy Mountain.
In 2024 MAFA agreed to support FoMA’s footpath project financially. Your support will help ensure the footpaths of the Holy Mountain remain viable for generations to come, and that future pilgrims travel among the monasteries the same way pilgrims did in ancient times – on foot.
Help preserve the sacred footpaths of Mount Athos. Your gift supports the restoration of these historic trails, ensuring future generations of pilgrims can experience the Holy Mountain as pilgrims have for centuries—on foot.