A stairway to heaven; an escape route for Tom Barry’s flying column; and a monument to unrequited passion: here are trails with stories attached
Ireland has no truly pristine landscapes. Everywhere from brook to beach, mountain to marsh, hedge to heath is shaped in some way by human intervention. It is inescapable: wherever we wander, people have been there before, which means there are stories to uncover of heroism, endeavour, rebellion and sometimes tragedy. Below I have picked some of my favourite Irish walks that come with captivating tales of how human endeavour has shaped and sometimes been shaped by the Irish landscape.
Cuilcagh Mountain, straddling counties Cavan and Fermanagh, is rarely classed among Ireland’s show-pony uplands. Its unexceptional footfall was, however, damaging a Special Area of Conservation that protected a fragile upland bog. To combat this, a 450-step wooden stairway was proposed about a decade ago.
Your one-hour walk starts from the Causeway Visitor Centre and follows the clifftop above the Giant’s Causeway to reach the Chimney Tops viewpoint. Beneath lies poignant Port na Spaniagh, where the Spanish went to a watery graveBray Head, Valentia Island, Co Kerry. Photograph: Tom Archer/Tourism Ireland
Meanwhile, new techniques for water filtration rendered the Mourne Wall redundant, but it found another use. With the huge growth of hillwalking in the 1960s, the wall morphed into a valuable navigational guide for those ascending the highest peaks in the Mournes, while the Ben Crom Trail provides low-level access to the heart of the High Mournes.
The prosperous Davins of Carrick-on-Suir were alert to this and set up a successful river trading business. This allowed Maurice Davin the secure income to become a hugely successful athlete and achieve international fame by breaking several world records. He later attended the inaugural meeting of the GAA in Thurles and, as the highest-profile person present, became the first president of the new organisation.
Wolfe-Tone Tipperary Fermanagh Antrim Kerry Down Cork
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