Walk 20/2007 – the Dingle Peninsular, Ireland

Saturday 22nd September 2007

Whilst we enjoyed our first Irish breakfast of delicious Irish soda bread and cereals we were able to watch a visiting flock of sheep relax in the roadway outside of our hostel. The sheep were then later to enjoy their own breakfast of fuchsia heads from the hedgerows, most delicately bitten off by their black lips.

Today we embarked upon a long walk of 15 miles with an ascent up Mount Eagle. Mount Eagle was exposed and whilst high up the weather was very windy and cold with lots of grey sky and drizzle, as a result the views were not as clear as they could have been; however on descent the weather gradually improved with some sunny spells later. Large parts of the walk transverses across a hilly landscape ascending and descending at low levels, with a terrain of long grass and some bogginess. Plenty of blackberries, rosehips and wild flowers were seen thriving in the hedgerows and long grasses.

At other times during this walk there seemed to be an endless road travelled across the tarmac. Some disappointment was experienced as the Irish Tourist board has developed a tendency to redirect the footpaths away from the coastline and to use preferred re routing of tarmac roads with little scenery.

We had a chilly lunch stop half way down Mount Eagle, we all shared identical packed lunches provided by the hostel but enjoyed comparing flavours of our custard yoghurts! Entertainment over lunch included the spurting of orange juice all over Alan’s rucksack and bare shin as someone lost control of their straw (Ed – how can you lose control of a straw?). Also a plastic sandwich bag escaped out of someone’s hand and flew out of reach and continued to parachute its way across the landscape, we never witnessed it landing, perhaps it continued on the thermal pathway for the rest of the day! Towards the end of the days walking fatigue started to manifest for some and 4 hailed a ‘taxi’ home from the picturesque ‘Slea Head’. Cathy was described as a Nepalese Sherpa as she struggled to carry her heavyweight rucksack up the final ascents of the route.

On the Saturday night we all went into Dingle for a special ‘birthday eve’ meal. Tommy the Taxi driver took us on an overcrowded (Ed – who’s lap was it you were sitting on?) journey out to ‘The Old Smokehouse restaurant’. We all enjoyed a very fine meal and a glass or two of wine in the joint celebration of Judith’s and Tony’s birthdays. Our table was well placed and offered us front row seats to observe ‘the street party’ a welcome return for 6 local members of the successful County Kerry Gaelic football team. We concluded our night at Flaherty’s Bar, a typical Irish bar full of photographs and antiquities and where many locals were all drinking pints of Guinness – it was difficult to spot any other drink. A local group was also singing Irish folk songs with the fiddle, accordion and specialist percussion accompaniment.

Report – Cathy

Photos – Alan unless indicated otherwise

Walk rating – Excellent despite some road walking

Looking back to the Blasket Islands as we climb up Mount Eagle. (Graham)	Similar shot.
We start to gain more height. (Graham)	Another view on the way up.
And another.	Here we are at the top of Mount Eagle. (Judith)
Who is that strange man getting in on the picture?	We’re having a great time really.
That’s more like it.	Our meal at the Old Smoke House.