Day 38: Keel to Doogort, Bunacurry and back to Keel (13.3 miles)

Let me start this by saying that Achill Island is one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited. It seems to have about four different climates going on simultaneously and has some of the most stunning scenery I've ever seen. My plan was to do three walks here: the one I did yesterday; a short 5 mile walk to Keem Beach today and another long walk tomorrow from Achill Sound to the southern tip of the Island and around to the Minaun Cliffs. The only thing was that the walk yesterday, siphoned every ounce of energy I had. It wasn't a particularly long walk (13.3 miles) or difficult terrain - the issue was within me. As the day wore on I developed sharp migraine headaches that felt like someone was stabbing my optic nerves. As anyone who has ever had a migraine will testify, the effect is on the entire physiology. By the end I could barely lift my feet. When I woke this morning the headaches had, thankfully, gone but my body was still stiff and achy and my energy levels were virtually non-existent. I got myself ready to go walk but as morning turned into the afternoon and I still couldn't drag myself out on the road, I decided to take the day off. I packed up the van and went for lunch instead. Hauling myself in and out of the van was an effort but I needed food and I couldn't face cooking. I went to Gielty's near Keem, where I ordered a ham, cheese, tomato and onion toastie, a cup of tea and a plate of chips (fries for my US friends). I didn't realise that I'd effectively ordered a meal of refined carbs and caffeine until it arrived on my table, especially as the sandwich came with a side order of crisps (chips for my US friends!). I ate it all. And with every bite I felt more human again. Clearly I needed carbs! As the afternoon has gone on, my energy levels have gone back to normal again. I feel reset. So I am good to go tomorrow!

So let me tell you about yesterday's walk.  For a start it was very beautiful. Aside from the way I was feeling, it was actually a fairly perfect walk. Aside from the last 4 miles which were on a busy road I was on quiet boreens with gentle slopes that took me around some very large wee mountains and beautiful beaches.

I began the day right outside where Minty had spent the night on Keel Strand. It was a rather grey morning and the sea was rough but it was eerily beautiful.

When I turned away from the beach, the wee mountain I was to walk towards was barely visible under a thick duvet of cloud. It's name is Slievemore which translates as Big Mountain although at 750m it's a bit shy of being a mountain but it's the biggest of the numerous wee mountains on the island.

The road brought me right up to the base of Slievemore then it turned right and sensibly went around it.  I could now look to my right and see a lake and the sea in the distance. 

Nestled in the mountain were old abandoned houses almost reclaimed by the land.

I walked between Slievemore and Krinnuck, (which, at 268m was not nearly as imposing as its big brother but still I wouldn't have wanted to climb it) to Dugort and its golden, deserted beach.

 Rush hour in Dugort!

To my left the sea was bright blue and I could just about make out the Mullet Peninsula .

 
And the hills of the Ballycroy National Park straight ahead.

 Then another fantastic beach came into view.

I thought that I'd have no flowers to show you from this walk as the area between the wee mountains was very shaded and, although it was packed with every shade of green, very few shoots of colour could be seen. But as I left the beach and turned south the green was replaced by a large blanket bog and the flowers returned.  The first thing I noticed was that the heather was starting to bloom.

I'd seen a lot of pink bog orchids but this was the first violet coloured one I'd come across. I love the way the fibres from the bog cotton draped across it.

 It wasn't all flat bog - there was the odd lake too.

But the road was very long and by now I was fading.

When Keel finally came into view, I started to wonder if I'd actually get there.

But I did. Flat-footed, stiff and a little visually impaired, I made it back to Minty.  At this point I should probably rant about the showers and the "kitchen facilities" in the campsite but sure, feck it, I got washed and I got fed so I won't get petty. I'm leaving in the morning so hopefully wherever I land tomorrow won't involve having to buy tokens for using everything!


I may not have walked to Keem Beach but I did drive there last Friday when I visited before I went home for the weekend. So here are the photos I took. I wish I'd made it there today but at the very least I can share with you the pictures of the best beach I've seen so far.

Normal service will resume tomorrow!

Raising money for the RNLI on www.justgiving.com/Jane-Volker

Total mileage: 494.3 miles

A little poetry...

I'm back home in East Sussex for a couple of days to fill up on hugs from my family before marching forward. So with no walks to tell you about I thought I'd share a little bit of poetry.

My friend Mike Bell (who I first met way back in 1993) has Parkinson's Disease. This is a degenerative disease that doesn't discriminate about age, gender or race. Mike is my age and has a gorgeous wife and young family. Coping with the changes and all that entails for him and his family is an ever-changing journey that has at times been a challenge. Mike, in typical fashion, is doing whatever he can to raise awareness about this disease, as well as fundraising for research into finding a cure and making the prognosis for those who are diagnosed with it, better and more hopeful.

One of the myriad of things he's been doing is writing a poem a day for a whole year. The hope is that he can publish them and sell the anthology for Parkinson's UK. Mike has used this to work through his feelings about what is happening to him and those he loves but he has also found inspiration for some of his poems from local people (e.g. the lollipop lady and the kid's football coach) as well as more serious topics such as the refugee crisis. I'm very fortunate to have been the inspiration for two of his poems and I'd like to share them here today.

The Wild Atlantic Wanderer: For JV

Why walk such distances,
with only the weather
measuring your steps,
over The Downs,
as breaths are taken
in exertion and sights?

Why walk without
a destination,
but the next stride,
on loosened chalk paths,
side-stepping puddles.

Why walk from your fixed place,
packed-up, back-turned,
to be rained-on, blown,
to find loneliness,
to be met by hearth
and hearty places?
 

©Mike Bell Poems

And after reading my description of this walk HERE he wrote this gem...

Rathcormack to Rosses Point

Her grit-slipped
roads there,
on a tyre-trolled
headland,

of wind-quick
wounded-dunes,
she briefly sat
on a surf-piled mound.

©Mike Bell Poems

I just love them! Mike publishes his poems on his website www.mikebellpoems.com and I know that he'd love you to stop by and have a read of them from time to time.

If you fancy donating to Parkinson's UK, Mike jumped out of a plane today to raise funds. You can donate HERE.

Enjoy to poetry!

Day 37: Belmullet to Blacksod (12.8 miles)

I woke at about 5am because I think my body is so anxious to get going in the morning it just can't sleep. Or something. Who knows? I did try to go back to sleep but got up around 6, got myself ready and left the Lodge by 6:30. At 7am I was parked up, geared up and off on my way from Belmullet to Blacksod at the very southern tip of the Mullet Peninsula. The docks in Belmullet looked beautiful and tranquil in the early morning light.

As I headed south the mountains of Achill Island, where I'll be walking next week kept me company the whole way. Sometimes a little grey shadow in the distance; sometimes, when the sun came out and shone on them, they were towering green eruptions from a the jade and blue sea. The view changed second to second. Every time I tried to take a photo the moment I was trying to capture had already gone.

As usual the flowers along the way, both wild and cultivated brought cheer when the sky turned dark and the wind was cold.

This area is known for its turf - the black sod is what turf is often called - and these sods are cut from the bog, dried in the sun and then used as fuel. I saw several lumps of it on the ground as I walked.

And still the views would take your breath away every time you turned another bend.

Today was a first for me because in my long-running issues with finding a bathroom, I had to knock on someone's door today and ask to use the loo. I won't go into the details... ahem ... let's just say, there was a need, the need was urgent. I took the only step available. The people of the house were no doubt amused but they were also very friendly and accommodating and I am eternally grateful to them.  I am also giving up sausages as I'm beginning to think they are the culprit. Moving right along ...

The beaches were incredible.

The closer I got to Blacksod the more of Achill I could see and - it's really BIG. I think the three days I was allowing myself may have seriously underestimated how long it will take to explore.

I started to worry about how little traffic there was on the road as I approached the pier.  I'd taken as may pictures as I needed so I decided that even if I didn't reach the pier itself, I would stick my thumb out and hitch the next time I saw a car. It was literally the next minute when a car pulled out of a driveway and came towards me. I duly stuck my thumb out and they stopped.

It was a retired couple who were on their way to Binghamstown to get the paper. They wouldn't be going as far as Belmullet but they were certain that I'd be able to get a lift no bother from Binghamstown. I was delighted with that. The lady who was the front passenger was very interested in what I was doing and although they don't have internet themselves she'd get her daughter and son to look me up and follow my adventures. They were a lovely, lovely couple and were a little worried for me, hitching on the road by myself but as I told them, this is how I've met some of the kindest people on my journey. It's not an everyday event but it's actually been quite successful so far.

At Binghamstown I said my thank yous and goodbyes and moved a little in front of the car as I put my thumb out again to signal the passing cars.  The gentleman who'd been driving the car had gone to shop to get the paper but his wife had remained in the car and had watched as I was passed by several times.  When he returned to the car they pulled up in front of me and I waved thinking they were just going to say goodbye before turning around. The lady rolled down her window and said, "Well! I'm ashamed that all those cars have left you and didn't stop to give you a lift.  That's just awful! Get in! We'll take you the rest of the way. I'm ashamed that they'd pass you like that!"

I tried to excuse them saying they might have been turning in a bit or they might be nervous of picking up hitch-hikers but she was having none of it. She was quite cross with them and she was determined that I shouldn't be on my feet (which were quite achy, it's true), for another minute longer. And so I got a lift the whole way back to Minty from the kindest couple in Blacksod who just happened to be in the first car I saw when I made the decision to turn back.

I didn't make it to Deirbhile's Twist which is a series of standing stones in the shape of a swirling pattern on the sculpture trail. Yesterday afternoon I'd gone for a drive and took these pictures as I figured it would be too far to walk today. So far it's my favourite one. I loved that you could walk all around it and be part of it all.

This sculpture was only created a few years ago but it looks like it's been part of the landscape for millennia. When I got back to my hostel I was exhausted. I had some lunch and decided to have a shower and get changed. I sat on the bed to take off my shoes and ... woke up two hours later.  I had to drag myself out of bed. 5am wake-up calls take their toll!

I was invited out to dinner by Padriac from the RNLI Ballyglass Lifeboat Station as a little thank-you for the fundraising. I had a very enjoyable evening in Talbot's in Belmullet and a very nice meal too. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here in Belmullet meeting some of the staff and volunteers at the Inshore and Ballyglass stations. They have been so incredibly welcoming and supportive of me and I'd like to say a really big THANK YOU to them all.

Tomorrow I leave Belmullet. I've had a brilliant time here and I'll be sad to leave.  I especially like to thank Betty who owns and runs Kilcommon Lodge Hostel here in Pullathomas. She's been so kind and welcoming and I've had great time here with her this week.

Next week I'm moving south to Achill Island.  More adventure awaits!


Total mileage: 481 miles