Anyone ever climbed Croagh Patrick

alleepally

So today is the annual pilgrimage day at Croagh Patrick. I keep saying every year, I must go on that and then every year I never remember until after the event and it's been on the news.

Anyone ever embarked on the climb on this day? Did you get what you wanted from the pilgrimage? Would you do it again? Whatever thoughts, share if you wish.

Ajnag

Long story, Involved a big piss up and an even bigger hang over.
Anyway on the day in question, Told the friend's to on ahead, and Id stay in the bar at the bottom of the mountain for a few....
Two pints later I said fúck it, and started off up the mountain. Met the friends at the foot of the last part up, a few went on their way back down and 3 of us went up to the top. Now for the best part, caught the sunset on the top.
But now comes the worst part....Had to come down in the dark without a torch. DOH!!

It's worth the views, just dont go up too late in the day

NotMe

I've done it 4 or 5 times. Not as a 'pilgrimage' but just for the fun of climbing a mountain. I haven't tried it in my bare feet yet though.

Spider_Baby!

I did it with the family when i was a young one. The wind was so strong, i almost got blown off!!

alleepally

NotMe wrote:

I've done it 4 or 5 times. Not as a 'pilgrimage' but just for the fun of climbing a mountain. I haven't tried it in my bare feet yet though.

Bare feet would be a bit much. Only for hardcore rockers!

What's with the ' ' around pilgrimage

NotMe

alleepally wrote:

Bare feet would be a bit much. Only for hardcore rockers!

What's with the ' ' around pilgrimage

Well I didn't do it for any religious/spiritual reason.

alleepally

NotMe wrote:

Well I didn't do it for any religious/spiritual reason.

Yes, that was quite obvious by saying "Not as a pilgrimage but just for the fun of climbing a mountain". The ' ' looked odd in the sentence.

yop

Did it last nite, once did it blocked, good idea not!!

NotMe

alleepally wrote:

Yes, that was quite obvious by saying "Not as a pilgrimage but just for the fun of climbing a mountain". The ' ' looked odd in the sentence.

Yeah probably could have done without it.

No I imagine going up locked wouldn't be a good idea.. heh... especially on the way down.

How U Like That

went up it once in my bare feet took me 2hr15min came back down in my shoes though!

spiderlegs

It's a nice mountain to climb..not too hard...except for the last part when you're scramblin' up scree.That's the only hard part.It's nice to do though.I didn't do it as a pilgrimage or anything but there's lovely views and you do feel kinda proud comin' down from it....I dunno you get a real sense of achievement out of it and your legs will feel toned for days!!

kjt

I did it when I was around 14/15, I didnt think it was much of a hike.

It was fun though

wowy

Did it barefoot back in November 03. School sent some of us there on our 6th year retreat. Out of 10 of us in that group only 2 of us did it barefoot. Blister City USA, Population: My feet. However, the proud feeling of accomplishment at the top made up for that. Especially when the rest of them (who wore shoes) had to wait at the top for 45 minutes for me!!

How U Like That

my feet were grand afterwards just a bit swollen. I had no cuts or anything! the record time for going up and down it is either 42 or 46 minutes! that is fast considering most of the people I did it with made it up in about 50 minutes!

Flukey

I've never done it, but funnily enough, I was dreaming about it overnight. The view from the top, in my dream at least, was fantastic.

NotMe

The view from the top last time I was there was rain clouds. :rolleyes:

Sarky

Did it way back when, sort of a family day out. My parents couldn't manage the mountain itself, so it was just the kids and the dog.

We took what later turned out to be the really stupid dangerous route up, full of loose shingle. That was... unpleasent.

Great view from the top.

Badly Drunk Boy

I've nowt against pilgrimages or hardship, but does anyone not think that the barefoot thing is a bit dodgy these days? I might be scaremongering, but, if somebody with AIDS (for example) cut their feet on the rocks on the way up, it could easily be transmitted to the following barefoot pilgrims. Not very probable but definitely possible.

Third_Echelon

We were on holidays in Westport about 5 or 6 years ago and my mother wanted to do it, so she asked me to do the climb with her so I did.

It was a good climb alright. The only 'hard' part was near the end where it gets quite steep. The view from the top is amazing though...

Even if you dont do it for religious aspects the climb itself is good fun...

Badly Drunk Boy

Nice one! I've said my only reason for not doing it...


But yeah, I'd say it'd be very cathartic....

shuushh

I've nowt against pilgrimages or hardship, but does anyone not think that the barefoot thing is a bit dodgy these days? I might be scaremongering, but, if somebody with AIDS (for example) cut their feet on the rocks on the way up, it could easily be transmitted to the following barefoot pilgrims. Not very probable but definitely possible.

one of the more amusing things ive read on boards

im gonna do this at some stage this summer

jammie

I have Cystic Fibrosis and got it into my head that I HAVE to climb croagh patrick, I climbed it last year, I ALMOST got to the top, was at the stage where your literally standing like your climbing up a wall, hated turning back but was so tired and it was very wet and cold, my lungs couldn't take anymore, my whole body was in pain was that bad when I arrived home I was crying, it didnt help me health wise but I am so proud I got as far as I did, dont know if many others cystic fibrosis sufferers haveclimbed it!! I broke my own little record!! Just thought I'd share

FX Meister

Cystic, Maybe you could do it next time with a car waiting at the top to take you down the other side instead of treking all the way back down.

I've done it a good few times but only on the pilgrimage day twice. On one of them I did it five times which was tough. I've also ran it on one occasion. Nephin is close by and a much nicer mountain to climb in my opinion.

jammie

Oh the climb down was a breeze and the climb up was fine until I got to the circle where they go round 3 times and pray, after that it was tough for me!! Next time I'll have a helicopter waiting!!!!!!!!!!!

FX Meister

Ok, no worries, I just thought it might help if you could give your full energy to gettting up and not have to worry about coming back down as it is possible to drive.

Talliesin

Went up on Monday, gorgeous views. Shame about the pilgrims coming up the day before and dumping bottles and wrappers and beer cans all over the place.

JoeSchmoe

climbed it on pilgrimage day when I was about 12 at some ridiculous of the morning, got 8am mass on the top!!!! nicest cup of tea and Classic bar I've ever had for breakfast ever though.

Climbed about halfway up last year on a gorgeous summers day, beautiful views, hangover prevented me from going to the top

Kernel

Talliesin wrote:

Went up on Monday, gorgeous views. Shame about the pilgrims coming up the day before and dumping bottles and wrappers and beer cans all over the place.

Hey pagan, how do you know it was good Christians throwing rubbish around? I never heard of any pilgrims drinking cans of beer around on the way up/down!

Talliesin

Kernel wrote:

Hey pagan, how do you know it was good Christians throwing rubbish around? I never heard of any pilgrims drinking cans of beer around on the way up/down!

There is rubbish thrown up there by a small minority of those who go up all year round. The day before being the day that 35,000 people went up it there was lots of rubbish.

Not a Christian/Pagan thing, just a litterbug and numbers thing.

Kernel

Talliesin wrote:

There is rubbish thrown up there by a small minority of those who go up all year round. The day before being the day that 35,000 people went up it there was lots of rubbish.

Not a Christian/Pagan thing, just a litterbug and numbers thing.

OK, we'll let you away with it. That litter was put there by Satanists, they're always trying to blacken our name.

Talliesin

Kernel wrote:

OK, we'll let you away with it. That litter was put there by Satanists, they're always trying to blacken our name.

Heh! No, I think it was probably mainly Christians and Pagans (I said pilgrims, I didn't say whether they were associating the mountain with St. Patrick or Crom Dubh). I certainly wasn't the only Pagan up there recently (sometimes you can tell) and while I'd love to be able to say a Pagan wouldn't litter at a sacred site, there's plenty of evidence that they often will

joejoem

Best to get up early, like 6am and make your way up. The first hour is a bit pissy and cold but then yu get the nice morning sunshine part, you make it to the top for a bit of lunch and then back down and its still bright. Run if you dare. Havent done it in a few years

dregin

Sarky wrote:

We took what later turned out to be the really stupid dangerous route up, full of loose shingle. That was... unpleasent.

Crap, there's an easier way? Some parts are **** scary, a load of shingle and then a nice cliff. Never realised there was an alternative router.

The views at the top are definitely worth it. Some serious effort went into getting that church up their I'd say.