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Monday, 29 June 2009

Weekend at Seneca Rocks

Filed under: Climbing,West Virginia — Tags: Conn's West, Seneca Rocks — George Privon @ 20:40

This past weekend Aleya and I went back to Seneca Rocks, this weekend to climb! It was Aleya’s first multi-pitch trad climbing experience. On Saturday we climbed Conn’s West then headed up to the summit to enjoy the view. We spent the afternoon relaxing and even checked out the swimming hole nearby. The evening was capped off with a nice sunset which illuminated the rock formation.

On Sunday we took it pretty easy, climbing the first pitch of Skyline Traverse, then rapping off. We filled out the rest of the day by walking through the visitor’s center in Seneca Rocks and then catching a movie in Harrisonburg.

Seneca Rocks on flickr

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Thursday, 25 June 2009

Hiking in the Monongahela National Forest

Filed under: Hiking,West Virginia — Tags: Otter Creek Wilderness, Seneca Rocks, Spruce Knob — George Privon @ 18:32

This past weekend Aleya, her dog, and I went to Northern West Virginia to do some backpacking. After a night of fairly intense rain we scaled this back to day hikes, basing our camp at Seneca Rocks . On Saturday we hiked to the North Summit of Seneca rocks and enjoyed the view of the valley. Later that afternoon we drove up to the top of Spruce Knob and hiked around the top.

On Sunday morning we headed to the area of our original objective, the Otter Creek Wilderness. We did about 4 miles on the Otter Creek Trail. The creek was fairly full, owing to the recent rain. It was nice hike, not too warm which was nice. Follow the link below to pictures from both days…

Monongahela National Forest – (20-21 June 2009) on Flickr

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Wednesday, 24 June 2009

Ireland Day 6: Gleninchaquin Park

Filed under: Hiking,Ireland — Tags: Gleninchaquin Park, Standing Stone, Stone Circle — George Privon @ 19:04

The following is an except from my trip journal during my 11 days in Ireland.

26 May 2009

Today was our day with a local guide. We met Paddy along the road just east of Tuosist. Tim continued on to run some errands while we hiked another section of the Beara Way.

We started through a sheep pasture, contending with the ever present mud. As we hiked in we started climbing up to a ride. Along the way we made frequent stops as Paddy pointed out local plants and flowers.

We crested the ridge in somewhat breezy and rainy conditions. It was worth every bit as we were treated to a spectacular view of the valley containing “Lough Inchiquin”. Paddy was born in a cottage at the end of the valley (1953) when there was no electricity or cars in the valley. He relayed stories of his youth as we hiked down the other side of the ridge.

Tim met us at the end of our hike, down in the valley. We took a short walk to a standing stone and a stone circle sitting at the NW end of Lough Inichiquin. Possibly serving an astronomical or ceremonial function, they were probably built ~6000 years ago! This particular one featured 5 stones and an impressive view of the lake and waterfall which feeds it.

Our last hiking stop of the day was Gleninchaquin Park. This gorgeous park is on the land owned by Paddy’s oldest brother and their father before him. There are 5 hiking trails in the park with a range of lengths and difficulties.

We ate lunch at the main park building before hiking to the base of the waterfall. We snapped a few group pictures below the falls before starting up a hike that would take us over the stream feeding the waterfall above us. Tim and Paddy filled us in on some local myths and stories regarding the area. One in particular about a giant who used one of the lakes as a bathtub. Him jumping into the lake is what resulted in all the drainages surrounding it.

After a decent ~200m climb, we got an excellent view of the lake feeding the waterfall: Cummeenaloughahun. We then crossed a bridge over the stream connecting the lake and waterfall. Shortly thereafter, Paddy showed us how to cut peat and lay it out to dry so it could be used as fuel during the winter. Most of us gave it a try and seemed to do ok at it.

We finished off the hiking portion of the day by descending back to the farm, with fantastic views the whole way down. The last section of the walk followed the creek in which Paddy and his brothers used to swim, and in which their mother used to wash clothes.

Our last stop with Paddy was naurally the Pub. We all had a nice pint of Murphy’s before bidding farewell. Then we piled back into the bus for the drive to Kenmare where we checked into “Virginia’s Guest House”.

All of the pictures from Day 6 are available here: Ireland Day 6: Gleninchaquin Park on flickr

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Wednesday, 17 June 2009

Ireland Day 5: Dunboy Castle & The Beara Peninsula

Filed under: Hiking,Ireland — Tags: Beara Peninsula, Beara Way, Dunboy Castle, Dursey Island — George Privon @ 22:40

The following is an except from my trip journal during my 11 days in Ireland.

25 May 2009

Today dawned quite wet and overcast. After another good, hearty breakfast we headed over to Dunboy Castle, or rather the ruins. Along the way we passed the rotting remains of a somewhat large ship. We also got to see a nearby mansion which was being renovated and turned into a 5 star hotel (before the money ran out).

The castle ruins were cool, you still see where the keep was. We walked around a bit, but were swarmed by midges.

We drove on towards the [[wikpedia:Beara Penninsula]]. The initial plan was to ride the cable car to Dursey Island and hike around. Unfortunately the cable car is out of commission for a few months. I think due to some cracks in the main cable. On our way to the end of the peninsula, and while we waited for the fog to clear, we visited the Lehanmore Ring Fort. This “fairy fort” was located in a sheep pasture and was probably a dwelling built by the Celtic people. They were probably used until the arrival of the Normans in the 12th century.

It was quite foggy and a bit eerie as we hiked to the fort. Just as we were about to leave, the fog started to lift and we discovered we were right on the ocean! Quite a cool sight.

We piled back onto the bus and drove to the end of the peninsula. Our replacement hike was a figure-8 along part of the Beara Way. We hiked through fields and pastures on our way up to the top of a hill overlooking the ocean. It was somewhat breezy on top, so we hiked down a bit before eating lunch.

We continued down after lunch and walked along the northern coast of the peninsula. We got close to the town of Garnish and stopped for tea, coffee, scones and cake. It was a nice break, although I found the Guinness Cake didn’t quite suit me as it was similar to a fruitcake.

The trail turned uphill again after we’d passed the harbor. The wind started to pick up, but given the typical local wind speed, it really couldn’t be called “windy”. We climbed up the rocky, marshy terrain until we topped out, this time rewarded with a fantastic view of the ocean to the North and West, and of Dursey Island to the south-west.

We capped off the night by having a pint of Murphy’s at McCarthy’s pub. It was a pub included in a book by Pete McCarthy, describing his travels through Ireland, stopping at any pub or bar called “McCarthy’s”.

All of the pictures from Day 5 are available here: Ireland Day 5: Dunboy Castle and the Beara Peninsula on flickr

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Saturday, 13 June 2009

Ireland Day 4: Cashel, Cahir & Castletownbere

Filed under: Ireland — Tags: Cahir, Cahir Castle, Cashel, Castletownbere, Rock of Cashel, Swiss Cottage — George Privon @ 19:23

The following is an except from my trip journal during my 11 days in Ireland.

24 May 2009

This was a transfer day with some scenic stops. Most of the group got up early for a pre-breakfast hike around town. The first stop was the ruins an Abby outside Cashel, now in the middle of a cow pasture. The area was quite cool. Next we walked by the Rock of Cashel and up to an overlook to get some pictures. Then we returned to the B&B for breakfast.

After fuieling ourselves for the morning and loading the bus, the whole group went to the Rock of Cashel. Originally a coronation site for a local Irish family, it was donated to the Church in the 11th century. There are currently 4 buildings: Cormac’s Chapel, a round tower, a cathedral, and a choral building. Cormac’s Chapel is the best example of its style of architecture and is somewhat preserved. The rest of the ruins were quite impressive as well.

Next we drove to Cahir to visit Cahir Castle. This castle was a built by a branch of the Butler family. Located on an island, it has quite formidable defenses and was only taken by force once. We had an interesting (and amusing) guided tour and learned about the history of the castle. It is quite well preserved and most of it is open. So, after the tour we explored the rest of the castle, including the keep and climbing up several of the walls.

The next stop was the “Swiss Cottage”. Located ~2 km from Cahir Castle, it was the getaway cottage for the Butler family in the 18th and 19th centuries. After falling into disrepair it was restored in the 1980s. We walked from the castle to the cottage and took a tour. It was a nice 4 room cottage, built at a time when it was fashionable for the wealthy to “play peasant”. Lavishly built and decorated, it was intended to look like a peasant’s cottage.

We walked back to the castle following the tour and ate lunch in the meadow outside the walls. We then got back onto the bus and took a long drive to the Beara Peninsula, with a quick stop along the way to stretch our legs.

Arriving in Castletownbere, we checked into the “Summer Hill” B&B. We then went to dinner at a restaurant in town. Our final stop for the night was at a local pub the next town over, where we enjoyed a beer, live music, and dancing. Everything from irish folk to Buddy Holly was played.