Purple Mountain and The Gap of Dunloe...Simple Joy

The East Reeks from Fossa

I went for a short outing on the hills today in the hope of getting some air into the lungs before a week of night-work. I wasn't expecting too much but it was a nice surprise to see a good dusting of snow covering the mountains down to around the 600mtr level as I drove back to Kerry. Things were looking promising weather wise as well so I found myself looking forward to the day immensely. I was pretty late leaving home so a big day wasn't really possible so I opted to climb Purple Mountain as this would offer great views (hopefully) and gives a reasonable workout. I parked my car at the bridge at the outlet of Black Lake and headed for the Chimneys. This gives a stiff 300mtr climb to start the day and soon cleared any cobwebs, but it also is the toughest part of the day and has the advantage of being done first and the expanding views are a good reason to stop and rest a while.
Once over the 400mtr contour the angle eases back and gentler slopes lead to Tomies North Top at 568mtrs. The views from here towards Tomies, Purple and across the chasm of the Gap towards The Reeks are always great but when the tops are capped in snow like today things looked pretty special indeed. I was thoroughly enjoying myself and the cold strong breeze only made things feel better.

 I reached the snow line as I started to climb the 200mtrs to the summit of Tomies and this made climbing the stony slopes a little tricky but it was soon past and I was being buffeted on the exposed summit. Now it was properly chilly so I put the head down and set off for Purple Mountain. It was exhilarating to be on the mountains today and all the more so as I seemed to have them all to myself. Once over the drag to Purple NE top all that remained was the final 140mtr climb to the long crest of Purple itself. Here the incomparable Black Valley came into view and seemed to beckon me on. I descended easily all the way to the Head of The Gap where I turned and walked the couple of miles back to my car. When the Gap is quiet like today it is always a joy to stroll through and it gave a gentle glorious end to the outing. Four wonderful hours spent in glorious surroundings. With a cold forecast for the next few days I hope to return real soon.  

Exploring the Eastern Knockmealdowns with Kevin. A Great Start To The New Year

January 1st 2018
With a new year beginning and having set new resolutions to eat better, exercise more and give up my many indulgences, one thing I don't plan to do without is having outings with the force of nature that is Kevin Ring. It had been too long since our last jaunt so it was great to catch up with him today and have the chance to get a good workout and some great conversation. We decided to use the two cars and do a linear route on the Knockmealdowns. The last time I was on this range was with Kevin about three years ago when we went for a hill run and I welcomed the chance to explore the range a little more. With that in mind we left one car at the carpark at the Glentaunemon Gap and we drove to Glentaunatinagh Bridge on the east side of Knocknafallia. In the spirit of exploration we decided to cross the road and climb Knocknanask (486mtrs) first and do a mini loop on that side of the road before crossing back and climbing Knockmeal (560mtrs). Once again it was something of a shock to re-discover the speed Kevin glides up a hill and some adjustments had to be made but we settled into a good routine and found a middle ground. The ground underfoot isn't as soft as the Galtees hereabouts and the heather is cropped short so it was a pleasure to be on. The wind was chill and strong and squalls were in the offing but for now we were able to enjoy nice views across the hills and onto the Comeraghs and the grey sea. Once on the first top I decided to jog the next downhill section and it felt great.

Yes I made it over the gate..too much sugar

We made short work of the eastern section before we crossed the road and set off up Knockmeal. A metaled roadway led easily up the hillside until we had to leave it and set off up directly for the summit through steep ground and long heather. Thankfully this was a fairly short section and we were soon on the easier ground on top. The ground may have been easier but the wind certainly wasn't and we were being buffeted sideways as we crossed towards Knocknafallia (668mtrs). Once on top we took shelter in the summit cairn and Kevin enjoyed a late breakfast/early lunch before we ran the next section again to the slopes below Knocknagnauv. Up again and another run to the base of the long slog to the summit of Knockmealdown itself which at 794mtrs is the highest in the range. A vicious shower of hail put paid to any conversation and our heads were kept bowed in an effort to avoid the icy missiles. Thankfully the squall passed before the summit and easier progress was enjoyed. The wind which had been hitting us from our right thus far now came straight from the left and made running the next section very tricky for my knee so I opted to walk instead. Sugarloaf was our final top before the steep drop back to the waiting car. It was further away than I had remembered and as we headed towards it we reminisced about the last time we were here when we ran from near Araglin all the way to Knockmealdown and back again ( https://howlingmist.blogspot.ie/2012/08/the-knockmealdown-mountains-run.html ).

Surprisingly expansive

Happy new year

On the way to Sugarloaf I had to have lunch and it was a short jaunt to the summit after that. We made quick work of the track to the roadway and our car and we arrived four hours after we had started. Not as herculean an effort as the run in 2012 but at around 14 kilometres and over 1100mtrs of ascent it was a decent effort as well. It gave up plenty of time to go for a coffee so we drove back to collect the other one and we set off back to Lismore where more chat was washed down by coffees and sweeties. Here's hoping that we have many more outings both long and short in the future..A great start to 2018.

Curve Gully on Carrauntoohil. Winter Grade1 Climb

I went back to The Reeks this morning in the hope of getting a winter route done. There had been a lot more snow on the Kerry mountains over the past few days than on The Galtees so I was hopeful that something might have been in condition. As is so often the case the weather hadn't played ball and heavy overnight rain had stripped much of the snow cover away and the temps were well above freezing as I left the car. Nevertheless I took an axe and crampons but ultimately they weren't needed. As things looked so stripped I had resigned myself to going up O'Sheas Gully to the summit of Carrauntoohil and come down the Devils Ladder. I'm still struggling a little with a lingering flu and I was puffing away as I walked into the Hags Glen. It is of course possible that my overdose of sugar hasn't helped matters either but the new year will put paid to all those excesses. I climbed up into the first level of Coumeenoughter where I reached the first of the slushy snow and things stayed just as soft when I reached the second level. I toyed with the idea of climbing the bottom section of Curve which was still nicely banked out but I feared it would have been a desperate wallow so I climbed into the third level and decided to join the gully higher up.

Most of the snow gone but still very pretty

High in the gully and looking very good. I was tempted to put on the crampons here

Looking down

Final slopes..a bit steeper that it looks here..About 40 degrees on top

A party of four were up ahead and I was hoping that I would be able to enjoy using their steps in the soft snow and indeed I was until I reached the first rocky step before the gully narrows. Here the rocks were covered in snow-ice and the party decided to stop and put on crampons. The snow-ice was pretty soft and was taking a good step so I left the hardware in the bag and continued on up. Things weren't as bad as I had feared and while I had to wallow the odd time, I was able to make more pleasant progress for the most part. Once I reached the final 100mtrs or so of the gully things were actually quite nice and I was even tempted to put on crampons for the final semi-icy difficult step. I got over it easily enough though and enjoyed the final few metres to the summit. It had felt like a proper winter outing with occasional spindrift slides and rime ice still clinging onto the frozen ground. If there is a frost tonight then tomorrow the conditions would be very nice indeed. The summit remained clear of cloud throughout the day and it was nice to be able to enjoy wintry views as I ate my lunch. I returned to my car via the Heavenly Gates and even though I ached a bit and was tired it felt great to have had a proper winter climb. Hopefully there is much more to come this winter (either here of abroad 😊 ).