Ireland - Croagh Patrick

Nestled west of Westport on the west coast of Ireland in County Mayo, Croagh Patrick, or Mount Patrick, stands 762m high (~2500ft). It's a pilgrimage site, as Saint Patrick is reputed to have climbed it and stayed there for 40 days and 40 nights without food or water. Normally people are advised that it takes 3.5 hours to go up and down - and it might, if you stick to the gravel side of the path. But gravel is slippery...

I went along the rocks - big ones embedded in the ground, or smaller ones intricated in each other. With long legs, I could hop from one to another at a fair pace without feeling tired; I did stuff like this all the time when doing orienteering as a youth, except on mini-cliffsides of maybe 10 m, not 100m at a time...

The last bit has a grade that must be close to 40 degrees! It was tough going up, and more treacherous going down.

I went up in 65 minutes, rested 20 minutes, and went down in 50, resting another 20. My excuse is that I had other places to be after. :) At the top, my batteries died, and I had forgotten my spares, so I could only get a few seconds' worth of videos at a time, and no pictures.

No, I am NOT going up another time to take pictures. :)

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Ireland
• Croagh
• Patrick

[NiallOT]

It is quite the experience! Definitely worth it, but do allow three hours as they say. :)

[moparmonster1965]

Very cool. I hope to do the same when I get there.