Distance: about 11km
Time: about 2:30
Walk Leader: Felix
Hax-Xluq Chapel
Il-Kappella ta’ San Niklaw
Tal Providenza
Laferla Cross, known as Is-Salib ta' L-Gholja
The way of the Cross
Sammy explaining the features of the area
Tal Lunzjata, a disused chapel, near the Cross.
Inscription on a statue at the bottom of the hill leading to the Laferla Cross
L-erwieh tal purgatorju
| Current Application Status | |
| Case Status: | This application has been passed to a case officer to assess the development proposal in terms of the Structure Plan and other established policies. |
| Application Details | |
| Case Number: | PA/07534/07 |
| Location of development: | Site at, Ix-Xatt Ta' Santa Marija, Mellieha |
| Description of works: | Construction of boathouses. |
| Applicant: | Mr Albert Mizzi |
| Architect: | Mintoff, Dr. Edwin |
| Reception date: | 11 December 2007 |
| Initial Processing | |
| Validation Date: | 06 March 2008 |
| Target Date: | 17 December 2008 |
| Application Type: | Outline development permission |
| Case Category: | Outside Scheme |
| Date Published in Newspapers: | 10 October 2009 |
| Representation Expiry Date: | 25 October 2009 |
| The period for Representations is 15 days. However the Authority reserves the right to reduce the representation period for special cases | |
Although it was classified as a very difficult walk, more than 40 members started this walk from the Gharghur Parish Church. After passing through a footpath, we headed towards the troglodyte settlement of Ghar San Brinkat and continued rambling along two of Gharghur's most beautiful valleys, Wied il-Faham & Wied id-Dis.
We then crossed il-Wied ta’ Santa Marija taz-Zellieqa, and returned back to our starting point.
Walk Leader: Simon
Duration: 3 ¼ hours including breaks (0830-1145)
Distance: 10 km (circular),
Reaching Gharghur Heights
Ghar San Brinkat
Rambling under the Victoria Lines...
…and along the Great Fault
A well-deserved rest
On the ridge of Wied il-Faham
Wied il-Faham
A relatively new memorial plaque in Wied il-Faham
Wied id-Dis
All Maltese, not just the Ramblers’ Association of Malta (RAM), must have been elated at the news of Parliamentary Secretary Dr Jason Azzopardi’s historic breakthrough in reclaiming a sizeable tract of relatively unspoiled land, including over 4km of shoreline, in the region of Fomm ir-Rih. What had been in private hands for over 300 years is now public property enjoyable by all the Maltese as well as by tourists. All this thanks to the P.S.’s unstinting leadership of his dedicated team of researchers at the Lands Department.
RAM thanks Dr Azzopardi also for kindly acknowledging our Association’s pivotal role in the genesis of this initiative. In July 2008 RAM held a protest march from Bahrija to Fomm ir-Rih to highlight the difficulty of access to the bay and other irregularities taking place there.
Following this, RAM met the PS, during which he read with great interest the documentation we produced on this matter and listened to our complaints regarding the problem of access to the shoreline in various places. There was no hesitation on his part to decide that these matters had to be seen to. We note with satisfaction that he has widened his action to encompass the whole area around Fomm ir-Rih Bay. This must have entailed considerable research in deeds going back three centuries.
Dr Azzopardi has not only enforced the public’s right of access to the Fomm ir-Rih bay and foreshore, but is planning to enforce the access route “discovered” and highlighted by RAM in the 1980s contracts between the government and the owners of the land.
RAM therefore expresses its appreciation of Dr Azzopardi’s belief in our Association and the cooperation he has always offered to us. We are delighted at his success in following the process through and thank him for returning this land to the Maltese people.
Joseph Agius
PRO
Ramblers’ Association of Malta
The foreshore outlined in yellow shows the land the government has repossessed after 300 years.
Huge tracts of land snaking along the coast between Fomm ir-Riħ and Ġnejna have been reclaimed by the government after more than 300 years in private hands.
The stretch of nearly 60,000 square metres - which makes up almost 20 per cent of the island's territory (this is a very obvious mistake on the part of the author) - is now public land and parts will become accessible for leisurely walks.
Parliamentary Secretary Jason Azzopardi told The Sunday Times that deeds of transfer in Latin, dating as far back as 1695, had to be consulted in this painstaking process to reclaim vast areas of foreshore.
The process started last year when the Ramblers' Association met Dr Azzopardi to discuss accessibility at Fomm ir-Riħ.
Dr Azzopardi directed the Government Property Division to start registering the vast swathes of land in the area, which covered 200,000 square metres of pristine natural habitat. This spurred four families who own property in the area - including the foreshore - to come forward waving centuries-old deeds proving they were the heirs.
A lawyer who was well-versed in property law and fluent in old Italian and Latin was engaged to go through the musty yellowing files stored at the Land Department and the Public Registry to establish who owned the land.
"It was a journey into the past and it was intriguing to come across the institute of the primo genito (showing how the title of the land was passed on to the firstborn)," Dr Azzopardi said.
Once it was proved the land was privately owned, Dr Azzopardi said he had no difficulty instructing the division to de-register the land, with the exception of the foreshore.
"Even if their title did cover the foreshore, I will not release it in favour of these families at the expense of the public," he said, adding that the discussions with the families involved were reasonable and cordial.
To be able to repossess the foreshore and establish which parts it covered, Roman law had to be consulted. This stipulates that the foreshore is the part of the coast covered by the largest wave in the worst winter storm.
The families relented and now more than 4.3 kilometres of coastline is registered as public property.
Dr Azzopardi said that just some days ago, the division held talks with the landowners to secure a safer public passage to the bay at Fomm ir-Riħ to replace the current one that forces people to meander through steep clay slopes.
If the Malta Environment and Planning Authority gives the green light, the idea is to install a simple stone staircase, with minimal intervention to the area. A route leading to the southern part of the bay, which is inaccessible, is also being proposed.
"We want to ensure full access rights to the public as soon as possible," Dr Azzopardi said.
About fifty ramblers turned up for today’s walk, the first one of this season, waiting impatiently at the starting point. We set off, passing along is-Sokkorsu, then headed towards our first chapel – tal-Lunzjata at Salini and the Ximenes Redoubt. After a short break near it-Torri tal-Ghallis, we headed inland towards Maghtab where we had another short rest near the chapel dedicated to Santa Marija. We reached another coastal tower built by De Redin, known as it-Torri ta’ Qalet Marku. On our way towards the Redoubt of Bahar ic-Caghaq, we visited another redoubt that is not immediately noticeable, as it is in a demolished state. Then we stopped by another chapel, dedicated to San Pietru is-Sajjied, this one in an almost derelict state.
At this point, some 35 ramblers decided to complete the whole circular walk…and returned to the starting point passing by another two interesting chapels: il-Kappella ta’ Santa Katerina ta’ Wied il-Ghasel and il-Kappella ta’ San Mikiel tas-Salini.
Walk Leader: Simon
Duration: 4 ¾ hours including breaks (0815-1300)
Distance: 16 km (circular), 9km (non circular)
Some photos below
Is-Salini
Salt Pans – Saline Nuove
A typical footpath
Heading towards Ghallis Tower
It-Torri tal-Ghallis
A typical milestone of the British Period, the letters PP signifying Private Property
Il-kappella ta’ Santa Marija tal-Maghtab
Heading towards Qalet Marku Tower
It-Torri ta’ Qalet Marku
A lone fisherman with the redoubt in at the background
