As the world continues on the post-festive slumber, the Christmas break is an ideal opportunity to get out, take in the scenery around us and fill our lungs with some fresh air to boot.
Very pleased with the return of its annual conference earlier this month, national chair of the Association of Farm and Forestry Contractors of Ireland (FCI) John Hughes looks forward to getting out on the hills as a way to spend quality time with family and friends.
Now a family tradition, he instigates a jaunt up local high point Brandon Hill on the Carlow-Kilkenny border every St Stephen’s Day.
If time allows, he tries to get a day out in the Blackstairs Mountains with friend Michael Monaghan, a tillage farmer from Old Leighlin and a “mine of information” when it comes to the Blackstairs and Mount Leinster area.
“He knows every rock and stone up there. He recently found a stick and notified the heritage office and they came, had a look at it and said it was a deer trap that is 5,000 years old.”
Not for the fainthearted
Coumshingaun is another favourite, but this walk comes with a warning from Hughes: “It is very dangerous in bad weather because there are a lot of cliffs on it and it is not a place to be going if you are not familiar with it.”
Coumshingaun is a popular spot due to the well photographed corrie lake, but to continue beyond the lake and up on to the high horseshoe circuit is “not for the fainthearted. Do not go on your own. It is only for very experienced people to go up. You could get a hail shower from the other side of the mountain and you could be frozen solid in no time,” warns Hughes.
Forest walks
The best way to get out walking is to go on a forest walk that will have clearly marked paths.
One walk that is popular and will reward you with views is to walk the Moylussa route; the highest point of Co Clare.
Easily accessibly from the M7, there is ample parking at Ballycuggaran forest car park, just outside Killaloe, on the road to Ogonnelloe.
For first-timers, the steep track may seem daunting, but pace yourself and know that at every junction, there are look-outs on to Lough Derg and the surrounding countryside.
The beauty of walking such routes is that you can go as far as you feel like going and they will be always there for a return visit.
If such a venture whets your appetite for more, joining a hill walking group will give you plenty of opportunity to explore our peaks while in the company of like-minded people. Hughes emphasises the beauty of hill walking clubs, as they have walks for all abilities.
Safety first
As for gear, at the very least, John carries the following: “I’ll make sure my own mobile phone will charge up fully as I am driving to the destination. There will be a high-capacity power bank with a cable to connect, a spare compass and spare map in my bag and I have another compass and map in a pouch that I carry around my neck for navigation.
"I have a whistle, spare gloves, spare hat and a spare torch, extra socks that can be used as mittens if needed, rain gear, spare food, one hot drink and a couple of bottles of liquid as well.
"I have a hill walking survival device called a kishu with me at all times in my bag. It’s a tent for two people, it weighs a few grams and I have thankfully never needed to use it and hopefully it will stay that way.”
And afterwards, with that feeling of accomplishment swilling about?
“After Coumshingaun, I will call into see my cousins the Greenes of Rathgormack; Matt is in the homeplace with his wife Barbara. We’ll have a cuppa and a catch-up,” says John.
For further information on parking at Ballycuggaran, follow this link: https://www.coillte.ie/site/ballycuggaran/.
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The Christmas traditions we treasure each year
As the world continues on the post-festive slumber, the Christmas break is an ideal opportunity to get out, take in the scenery around us and fill our lungs with some fresh air to boot.
Very pleased with the return of its annual conference earlier this month, national chair of the Association of Farm and Forestry Contractors of Ireland (FCI) John Hughes looks forward to getting out on the hills as a way to spend quality time with family and friends.
Now a family tradition, he instigates a jaunt up local high point Brandon Hill on the Carlow-Kilkenny border every St Stephen’s Day.
If time allows, he tries to get a day out in the Blackstairs Mountains with friend Michael Monaghan, a tillage farmer from Old Leighlin and a “mine of information” when it comes to the Blackstairs and Mount Leinster area.
“He knows every rock and stone up there. He recently found a stick and notified the heritage office and they came, had a look at it and said it was a deer trap that is 5,000 years old.”
Not for the fainthearted
Coumshingaun is another favourite, but this walk comes with a warning from Hughes: “It is very dangerous in bad weather because there are a lot of cliffs on it and it is not a place to be going if you are not familiar with it.”
Coumshingaun is a popular spot due to the well photographed corrie lake, but to continue beyond the lake and up on to the high horseshoe circuit is “not for the fainthearted. Do not go on your own. It is only for very experienced people to go up. You could get a hail shower from the other side of the mountain and you could be frozen solid in no time,” warns Hughes.
Forest walks
The best way to get out walking is to go on a forest walk that will have clearly marked paths.
One walk that is popular and will reward you with views is to walk the Moylussa route; the highest point of Co Clare.
Easily accessibly from the M7, there is ample parking at Ballycuggaran forest car park, just outside Killaloe, on the road to Ogonnelloe.
For first-timers, the steep track may seem daunting, but pace yourself and know that at every junction, there are look-outs on to Lough Derg and the surrounding countryside.
The beauty of walking such routes is that you can go as far as you feel like going and they will be always there for a return visit.
If such a venture whets your appetite for more, joining a hill walking group will give you plenty of opportunity to explore our peaks while in the company of like-minded people. Hughes emphasises the beauty of hill walking clubs, as they have walks for all abilities.
Safety first
As for gear, at the very least, John carries the following: “I’ll make sure my own mobile phone will charge up fully as I am driving to the destination. There will be a high-capacity power bank with a cable to connect, a spare compass and spare map in my bag and I have another compass and map in a pouch that I carry around my neck for navigation.
"I have a whistle, spare gloves, spare hat and a spare torch, extra socks that can be used as mittens if needed, rain gear, spare food, one hot drink and a couple of bottles of liquid as well.
"I have a hill walking survival device called a kishu with me at all times in my bag. It’s a tent for two people, it weighs a few grams and I have thankfully never needed to use it and hopefully it will stay that way.”
And afterwards, with that feeling of accomplishment swilling about?
“After Coumshingaun, I will call into see my cousins the Greenes of Rathgormack; Matt is in the homeplace with his wife Barbara. We’ll have a cuppa and a catch-up,” says John.
For further information on parking at Ballycuggaran, follow this link: https://www.coillte.ie/site/ballycuggaran/.
Read more
A maternity leave start your own business course led to livery yard success
The Christmas traditions we treasure each year
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