Kia ora, Céad Mile Fáilte, Welcome to Walking to Donegal.

We are so glad you have found this space.

Introducing Jack and Sarah

Kia ora, we are Jack Doherty and Sarah Doherty, an uncle and a niece, descendants of Bernard Doherty. We live in Wellington, New Zealand.

Together we are collecting family stories so that our young ones , and those still to come, will know who they are and where they are from.

We are New Zealand-Irish or Irish-New Zealand, depending which hemisphere we are in!

Learn more about Jack here; learn more about Sarah here.

Why ‘Walking to Donegal’?

Discovering our roots, returning to the place of origin, finding ourselves is a journey.

Walking to Donegal is the symbolic name of that journey.

County Donegal, north-west Ireland – particularly the Inishowen Peninsula –  is where you will find the traditional lands of the O’Dochartaigh clann. It is remote, rugged and beautiful. The people have retained their language and culture in a unique and compelling way.

One day, in April 2017, Sarah was talking with Jack about her deep longing and homesickness for Donegal, even though she had only been there twice in her Life.

At that point Sarah knew she needed to go for a very long walk in Donegal but she couldn’t see how to make that happen.

Jack wisely suggested she think of it as walking to Donegal, and that way she was already on the way. And so … Walking to Donegal was born.

Jack and Sarah share a special bond and a deep love of their clan heritage and family stories. Together they are building this legacy, with the help of many.

Te reo Māori (Māori language)

We begin our journey in Aotearoa-New Zealand.

The Māori people of this land, or tangata whenua, have taught us a lot about identity and belonging.

We borrow concepts and language as we make sense of our own journeys.

We owe a debt of gratitude, and we repay that by using te reo Māori (Māori language) throughout this space.