Downhill

Irwin H, and a friend of mine, John Kelly, went out on Wednesday evening with me, to put a few miles under the belt. This was a very enjoyable walk, starting at Castlerock Beach, and wending round some roads, through some woodland, past Mussenden Temple and the castle out there, with a great sunset to top the night, and then back to the beach.

This sheep took a good look at me!

(I wonder if anyone could tell me what breed it is )

Knocklayd

This morning I was accompanied by Irwin H and Irwin A, for a trudge up our local mount…near Ballycastle. It was almost reassuring to get drenched again, after quite a few pleasant, dry walks…we had just about forgotten what it was like to be soaked!

Here are the two Irwins for your viewing pleasure!

We are hoping to get as much hillwalking in as possible in the coming months…17 weeks will fly in!

I am trying a new tactic, to try to build some stamina, and leg strength…carrying a bit of weight in the rucksack. Along with a couple of litres of drinking water, I put a 5 litre jar in the backpack…this makes a serious difference.

I read an interview with Alan Hinkes where he was asked what training he recommended for the hills, and he reckoned putting rocks in your rucksack is great for building endurance. I figured it would be slightly cleaner and more user friendly to carry extra water (if I get really under pressure, I can always pour it out!)

Lets just say I was surprised how much difference 5 litres makes!

The Mourne International Walking Festival programme had this hike billed as 20k over 5 peaks with 1400m ascent. However things are not always as they seem.

The walk leader set a tight pace at the early stage of the walk, from Bloody Bridge to Chimney Rock Mountain, by which time everyone was well warmed up (to say the least), and then we were given the option of splitting up into 2 groups…a fast group (affectionately referred to as “the crazies” by the walk Leader, and a more normal paced group.

Challenge!

Well, I like a challenge, so I went for the first group, getting a little nervous when only around 15 headed off. Lets just say I didn’t get thinking much about the few photos I managed to find time to take! It was really good to push the boundaries a bit, great from a training point of view, and a great sense of achievement to almost stay with these folk, until the lunch stop on the summit of Rocky Mountain.

Here, after catching our breath, the other group caught up eventually and we were given another option. Rather than stay with the designated route along the Brandy Path to Commedagh, anyone interested could squeeze in Slieve Donard as well. The four of us thought we would go for it (even though we were pretty wrecked already!) and again only about 15 or 16 I think ventured for this. This was a real slog up Donard, not helped by the knowledge that it wasn’t the last peak!

We made it however, and after a brief breather on the summit, we headed down to the saddle, and up Slieve Commedagh, and the final major push. Conditions turned a bit wet up here, but we dried almost as quickly when the rain stopped, with the weather easing as we descended on to Shan Slieve, on down to the Donard Wood, and back to Newcastle.

The addition of Slieve Donard made it 6 peaks, with a total ascent of 1700m!  Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the UK, stands at 1344m, if that puts it into perspective.

A very tough, but satisfying day was capped very nicely by a visit to a great chippy on the way home!

Nicest chips I think I ever had!

As Glenn mentioned in a previous post, the staff at the Causeway Trust children’s ward really did help us to settle in well, and we were reassured again that Keren was in good hands. Even though we had the family room almost adjacent, with its’ sofa bed, we stayed in the ward room with Keren, with me in the hospital bed and Glenn in a reclining chair. We could hear every beep and noise that night as the nurses periodically came in to the room to check and feed Keren, and it was comforting to be close to her, and we felt as if we got a reasonable nights sleep.

Shopping for Keren!

Because Keren was always in the incubator at this stage, she had only needed to wear wee vests (also known as singlets across the pond!) and one of the nurses suggested the next morning, that we could take some time, and go and get her some babygrows/sleepsuits as she reckoned Keren might soon get out of the incubator! This was an amazing thought, as we didn’t think we would ever get to do this, and we didn’t expect her to be with us so long.

We, understandably, had reservations about both of us leaving her for so long, but we knew we had to trust God, and leave Keren in His hands, knowing that if anything happened when we were away, it was God’s will.

Ballymena, then was the destination for the clothes shopping for wee Keren, because, although it was farther away (meaning more time away), we knew there would be a better selection of clothes for tiny babies, as Keren was just over 4lb at this stage.

Thankfully, the first shop we tried (Mothercare) had everything we needed for her, so there was no time wasted looking around. We grabbed something to eat, and headed back down.

When we arrived back at the hospital, we were told that Keren had an apnoea while we were away, this is a “temporary absence or cessation of breathing”, but they said that she had responded well when they gave her some oxygen. Although we were shocked, we could breath a sigh of relief, that she had come through it, and we knew that it was in Gods’ plan that we were elsewhere at the time.

more to follow!

As you can see, we had a fantastic day…the weather simply could not have been better!

Thirsty work on the way up…and a well deserved rest at the top for the crowd from Aughnacloy!

Four of us just couldn’t resist the lure of another peak, when we had come so far, and had to take in Slieve Commedagh (767m), which is beside Donard (850m). This was a great addition to the day, and a chance to use the self-timer

That is Slieve Donard in the background.

Another great day was had by all who came, very memorable and enjoyable (although there were a few stiff legs the next day…or two!)

It is now two years since Keren was here with us, at this time, then, she was five weeks old, and it hasn’t been easy to think about compiling a post, around this time of year, but we are working on it.

On a lighter note, my training for Kilimanjaro is still ticking away nicely! On May 3rd I had a new walking partner…Jed!

The weather was beautiful, the walkers were willing, and Knocklayde was beckoning! Now, I have taken grown men up this hill, and some have said “never again”, it can be a bit of a slog, if you are not used to it, but I thought I would give Jed a go up it! He is not long past his fifth birthday, so I thought we’ll go at his pace, stop for a break when he wants, and I was prepared to carry him, if need be. I had told him about it often enough, so he was excited about going.

As you can see…we made it!

What is not immediately apparent from the photograph, is that Jed walked the whole way! That is up and down again! He did really well! It got quite windy on the way down, and we had a lot of fun, with Jed barely able to stay on his feet!

We had great views of Rathlin Island, and Scotland, from the top, and as we were going through Ballycastle Forest, returning to the car, we saw some wild deer, which was a great treat for Jed (and me!)

I’ll have some more hill-walking posts soon!

Here are a few shots from what turned out to be a day with fantastic weather, and good company as well. We made exceptionally good time travelling down, and we had the rare opportunity of a café, to start the days walking from.

Great Start!

We commenced our walk from Meelmore Lodge, and their café was open when we arrived. Having 45 minutes before the walk was due to start, we didn’t need much encouragement to try out the local cuisine!

Verdict….Excellent start to the day, with real coffee, and a very tasty sausage & egg buttie!

As you can see, we had great weather, with dramatic clouds never far away, leaving you with the knowledge that conditions could change rapidly…reason enough to be prepared for the worst conditions.

The views were fantastic, can you spot James and Kenny waving?

What do you think of this Landrover Jed?

This belonged to the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team! Thankfully we didn’t require their services!

God willing, my next walk in the Mournes will be on May Day, where I will be supporting my companions for Kilimanjaro, as they raise money for the BCFC Academy, in Kitale, Kenya. Details can be found here, if you wish to join us!

It is a great way to spend the day!

Wet.

We parked at the parking area at the foot of Mount Errigal, and headed up the road, away from it, continuing on the road for some way, turning off the road to the left, onto a track which led us eventually to Altan Lough.

Very Wet.

Altan Lough is in a valley, and I am sure it is absolutely beautiful, in good weather. It has a sandy beach…quite unusual for a freshwater lough, and at the waters edge, stands the ruins of Altan Farm, which was a summer residence for Glenveagh Castle (so I am told).

Did I mention it was Wet?

We started up the first ascent…Beaghy, a mere 392m (but it gets there pretty fast!) and before long, we were wanting to stop for a breather or two. The standing joke is asking me if I want to stop to take any photos!

As we proceeded across and down, the weather got increasingly worse, and starting up the second hill, we all thought it wise to walk round the windward side, for safety.

Also Very Windy.

We managed to find a sheltered spot beside a small waterhole for lunch, and we were ready for it! Raymond’s lunch-box was much lighter after this!

After lunch, we decided to at least start up Errigal, and see how the weather developed, and to our surprise, it gradually improved, although as you can see the visibility wasn’t great!

As we kept trudging on, however…the weather continued to improve, presenting us with some stunning views. A really welcome change from the wind and rain!

Please click on the thumbnails to see larger versions, pressing the “Back” button to return here.

In the first of these three, I love the way the wind is coming up from the left side, leaving it clear, while the right side of the mountain is totally in cloud.

As you can see, we were well rewarded for slogging on through the dreadful weather…God was good to us.

I thought it was quite appropriate for us trekkers, and it looks intriguing.

I think we should land in Sandy Cove, and trek up through the Enchanted Forest to the Snowy Mountains. Go over to see the ruins, possibly and then make our way down to find the Buried Treasure (no point in carrying all that treasure, and spoiling a perfectly good walk!)

Sounds good to me!

Here is the first photo of the team all together… (click here to see it larger)

Irwin suggested that Slieveannee should be renamed “Mucktotheknee”, and you can see why, in the following photos!

And a couple for fun! Sorry Irwin…but it had to be done!

With many thanks to my very enthusiastic, and hard-working team of helpers (a few of whom who were not caught on camera), and a huge vote of appreciation to all who passed through the town, and gave so generously….we raised a fantastic £3,927…(which was then made up to £3,936!)

As if that wasn’t good enough…two individuals, separately, and unknown to each other, wanted us to reach the £4,000 mark! Resulting in a Grand Total of £4,075!

Bed Push…Ballymoney Team!

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the manager of Tesco’s, Ballymoney, who gave permission to collect there, and our baby-sitters who looked after Jed and Kezia so well !

Looks like I’ll have to stretch my original target of £4,000! Fantastic!