
Cork City Walkers Visit Millstreet and Thoroughly Enjoy Clara Walk

Community website for Millstreet, Co. Cork, Ireland
Millstreet Hillwalkers telling their stories

The Irish Times today profiles the walk up Clara Mountain bringing in Mount Leader House and other items along the route:
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Reminders of the Anglo-Irish ascendancy are a compelling attraction on the way up Claragh Mountain.
THE GHOSTS of old estates with their haunting reminders of the Anglo-Irish ascendancy always provide a compelling attraction and I can mooch around them for hours, especially if they are not well frequented. Such is the case with the Mount Leader Estate through which the Duhallow Way provides access to Claragh Mountain (452m) whose profile provides such a fine backdrop to the town of Millstreet. [read more …] “Reminders of the Anglo-Irish ascendancy”
On Sunday evening, the Irish Mountain Running Association are holding the annual race up and down Clara Mountain from Millstreet.The entry fee is €10 and the race starts at 7pm. Registration is in the GAA Hall.
The race is basically an out and back route with a loop near the summit. It will be on trails and it could be described as very steep. Perhaps not everyone’s thing but some might be interested. Just don’t wear your best shoes 😉 [read more …] “Clara Mountain Run 2011”
Gordon O’Keeffe, one of the organisers of the Millstreet Walking Festival 2011 gives a talk about the Grade C walk on Saturday 9th of April. This is at the midway viewing point of the walk. It was the shortest walk, suitable for those who want an introduction to hillwalking. We went in our jeans and … read the full details on youTube.

Here we feature images from Sunday – mainly from Millstreet Country Park. As we left, the evening sun shone gloriously and we availed of the opportunity to capture some of the wonderful panoramic scenes from the Park as well as [read more …] “Part Two of Sunday’s Millstreet Walking Festival”

Sunday, 10th April 2011 we were at Millstreet Country Park for Day Two of the Millstreet Walking Festival. Here we feature Part One of a two part selection of pictures which we took on [read more …] “Millstreet Walking Festival – Sunday, 10th April 2011 – Part One”

Sincere thanks to one of the dedicated Organisers, Michael Thornton, for a splendid selection of images which he captured so well as he acted as “Sweeper” (the Guide who keeps to the rear of the Walking Group) on the most challenging of the three walks (Walk A) on both the Saturday and the Sunday. Here we share images from [read more …] “Michael Thornton’s Splendid Images of Saturday’s Walking Festival”

There was a superbly uplifting response to Millstreet’s first Walking Festival with organisers already considering another such Festival in the Autumn. Amongst those who enthusiastically participated in Saturday’s walk were Millstreet natives who are now living elsewhere including [read more …] “Visiting Walkers Hugely Impressed by Millstreet Walking Festival 2011”

The Organisers of Millstreet Walking Festival 2011 would have been very pleased to have had 150 participants at its very first festival. With some 200 registering this morning they must be quite thrilled with such a [read more …] “Some Two Hundred Energetic People Registered for the First Ever Millstreet Walking Festival This Morning”
Coming up next month is the all new Millstreet Walking Festival, which promises to bring a large number of walkers to the area over the weekend of the 9th/10th April. It promises to be a very enjoyable weekend with walks to suit everyone. Click on the images above to see the brochure which has the details of the festival (published this week), or view the brochure in its original pdf form: walking flyer.pdf
“Walking in the Heart of Munster” is a new walking brochure published by the people that promote Ballyhoura Country (the region around Kilmallock, Co.Limerick).
It’s nice to see that Clara Mountain has made it’s way into a five day walking tour of the region, alongside the Galty Mountains, Knockmealdown Mountains, and the Ballyhoura Mountains. More progress on our way to the walking festival which is coming this year to Millstreet.
Last Saturday’s Irish Independent featured the new walk around Clara Mountain as their “Walk of the Week”:
Millstreet sits at the feet of the mountains where the Boggeragh and Derrynasaggart ranges come together in the tumbled country of north Cork. It’s a neat, compact place with brightly coloured houses along the main street, some handsome neoclassical public buildings and a cheerful air of civic pride.
Just the place to host a superb walking festival — and that’s an ever-growing twinkle in the eye of Derry Sheehan, Michael Thornton and such hometown brethren who enjoy getting out and about in their native hills and countryside. [read more …] “Walk of the Week: Claragh Mountain”

Eamonn O’Keeffe actually won the short course version of Gael Force West which didn’t include Croagh Patrick, but all the others [read more …] “Millstreet at “Gaelforce West 2010””
Photos from the Paps (which are behind Rathmore) during the cold spell at the start of this year (Some photos by Denis). For details on how to do this walk from the southern side of the mountains, go to this webpage for details.
There were some turning heads in Millstreet yesterday on seeing a hiker walking through the town. Not that hikers are unusual at all around here, but the fact that he was accompanied by a dog and goat! All in a days walking for Nathan Kingerlee, or should I say a week and a half’s walking! They are walking the Blackwater Way (168km) in aid of Kerry Mountain Rescue, and passed through Millstreet yesterday on their way to Geararoe B&B on the Macroom road. In Millstreet:
… People seem to very much take it in their stride, when they see us coming; although we did get a couple of strange looks, one couple crossed the street to avoid us, and Bob gave a little old granny a bit of a fright when he went to say hello to her!…
He is writing a blog every day of the trip, and yesterday he featured his trip to Millstreet. It’s an interesting read, with some great pictures.
Read about of their planned trip across the Blackwater Way before they started.
Read about their day from Rathmore to Millstreet

Taken last week, before the heavier snowfalls of the weekend
MAHON FALLS
10 Oct 2009
Co. Waterford
by
Mary O’Mahony
Eileen asked us to take her on one last momentous walk before venturing to pastures new.
We have known each other, now, for almost 10 years so Denis and I wanted to make this different!
This, is a dedication to a true and valued friend, who has the courage to venture off to South Carolina, thus, improving career prospects and whatever else life holds in store.
The very beautiful Mahon Falls in Co. Waterford is our chosen ‘GIFT’
Blessed with the day we were! Days in July 2009 were not as good!! Seriously!
Sat. 10 Oct. 2009 we set out on what can only be called one hell of good Summer Day.
The River Mahon flows from the Comeragh Mountains in County Waterford and gathers
Force to create the Mahon Falls, a tall cascade on the Mahon River that empties from a mountain lake overlooking the southern coast.
Located off the N25 at Leamybrien, the Falls are located 20 kilometers from Waterford city. A cascade runs down the centre of a high and wide valley, populated with many types of vegetation, jutting rocks, and herds of domestic sheep and Goat’s.
It is deceivingly tall, and the valley deceivingly wide.
Mahon Falls can only be approached by car and accessed on foot.
The walk up the left hand side of the valley onto Comeragh Mountain Cnoc Na Phoebre (668m) itself is a hard slog .
Not so daunting? Is it? Early days yet.

Spectacular. Oh yeah

Our condolences go to the family of Paddy Mulcahy from Cork who died while out walking on Musheramore just above the Millstreet Country Park last Sunday September 13th during the recent fine spell. His son Thomás has written about this on his blog.
Paddy died suddenly on a lovely sunny September day in a beautiful spot called Musheramore, a small hill in northeast Cork, near Millstreet, while out hillwalking with his wife and friends.

There’s some very beautiful photography of the stone circle in the Millstreet Country Park by Ken Williams at this site , where he has this to say:
Every once in a while you come across a place that puts your head in a spin and in all the confusion you just want to laugh. This is a very odd place. Very, very odd. After seeing a handful of pics in a picture library of a stone circle with some unusual looking arrangements around it, there was nothing else to be done only track this strange place down and see it for myself …
You can read the rest of his article here: http://cianmcliam.smugmug.com/gallery/1537658
THE BLACK MARE ASCENT TO CARRAUNTOOHIL. 27th. Jun.’09
BY
Mary O’Mahony
This is a straight forward route to the summit but I think only on a fine day and with clear visibility! It begins with a walk up the concrete road, so named because it is literally concrete that you are climbing for the first 15 mins. There is an udnerlay of iron underneath this mass of concrete. Some call it the Hydro road. Same route, if you fancy doing the Coomloughra Horseshoe.
The Black Mare Ascent is a very steep climb through a wide gully,
Emerging within 100m of the summit.


The 952m mountain and it s dramatic sister the 840 Brandon Peak are flanked by water to the North, East and South. There are multiple approaches to the mountain. Brandon peak to the left above seems higher than Brandon itself. St. Brendan is the patron Saint of Kerry and so this mountain is named after him. We went by Faha, east of the mountain. Turn left on a minor road, where you can park beside renovated cottages.
Start 26.04.09 Finish 9th May 2009
DAY 1 – Kathmandu
KATHMANDU: Arrival in Kathmandu.
Kathmandu is a fascinating almost medieval city full of extraordinary temples, monuments, and colorful street life. There are endless small streets jam packed with stalls selling cloth, pots and pans, spices, souvenirs, saris and a myriad of other merchandise. Scooters carrying families of 5, bicycles, taxis and pedestrians all compete for space and there is always something to marvel at. It was a shock initially as we were being drive through the streets of Kathmandu from the airport I was not expecting the streets to be so small or the people either!
