Friday May 15th

 Nephin Mountain, Co. Mayo

As this was the only dry day during our trip to Mayo, we resolved to climb Nephin, a familiar sight from Maurice's house. The first section through the woods was clear and we soon emerged onto the more stony and steep sections. 

The track to Nephin- above the woods

There were warnings that the going became more challenging and certainly, it was at times an effort to climb up the very rocky path.

The last rocky sections

Nonetheless, we kept going and reached the more grassy ground that led to the summit and the expansive views.

Nephin Summit

Letting the family know that we'd made it to the top

It felt pretty cold on the top. In many ways, the way down was more difficult as there was a long section of precipitous banks of heather to be negotiated.

A more amenable section of the descent

Maurice's place (centre) from the descent

After a long and careful descent the bottom was reached.

Our ascent was on the right, descent on the left flank

We went to Barrett's in Laherdane to claim our certificates and an ice cream. It was a fantastic thing to do and it felt like a real achievement.

A walk of (a mere!) 4.7 miles with a (monster!) 850m ascent.



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