The walk will be led by Blue Badge Guide Tom Bunting, who will explore the life and times of the monk who became Jersey’s patron saint and who gave the Island’s capital its name.
Although it appears that Helier mainly lived on a rock – now joined to Elizabeth Castle – for many years it seems he was well travelled before his rather gruesome demise, referred to in the walk’s title – The Headless Monk.
‘The walk starts at the Town Hall at 10.30am and takes in the Parade Gardens and the Waterfront, where you can see the Hermitage – which was just a bare rock when Helier was there,’ said Mr Bunting.
‘We’ll also visit the Town Church where there is an image of him. It’s the only one I know of him in town, other than one on the Jubilee monument at the end of Broad Street opposite the toad.
‘Helier sat on a rock for 15 years and did very little. We don’t have a lot on him, but I’ll talk about what we know about St Helier’s life, who he was and what he did. I’ll also reveal a lot of other things that were going on at the time in the Island in the 500s.’
Organised by the Jersey Tourist Guides Association, the free town walks take place every Thursday until 28 October and are led by different guides. Next week Melanie Cavey will lead walkers on a tour of key sites around St Helier’s Harbour area. All the walks start and finish at the Town Hall. They begin at 10.30am and are suitable for all abilities.
The walks can be booked online by visiting eventbrite.com and searching for ‘free st helier’ or by emailing tom.bunting@localdial.com.
This year’s annual pilgrimage, which was due to take place on Sunday, has been cancelled due to the pandemic.
