TWENTY-FOUR pilgrims walked 110 miles along the old paths of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich diocese, at least another 50 accompanied them for part of the way, and “loads joined in” for the last day’s walk and final Saturday-night barbecue, says Sarah Friswell, the visitors’ officer at St Edmundsbury Cathedral.

She was one of those who managed the entire pilgrimage “to celebrate the near-completion of the cathedral tower”.

There had been a tradition of shorter youth pilgrimages started by the Rt Revd Martin Shaw, who used to be Precentor at the Cathedral, but recently left to become the Bishop of Argyll & the Isles in Scotland .

But this year it was felt that there should be something bigger, lasting ten days, and Bishop Shaw came back to lead it.

They walked through as many parishes of the diocese as they could fit in, and bedded down overnight in parish halls, or stayed in the homes of parishioners, who were all wonderfully hospitable.

Only on one day did it rain unrelentingly, and “there was nowhere to hide: we just had to get on with it,” says Ms Friswell.

On the final Sunday morning they started at seven, the Bishop eating his breakfast on the way, and arrived to a fanfare and standing applause for the morning service in the Cathedral.