Ireland day 1286. Sunday 06 April 2025- Slieve Foye 4 Recce

Today’s summary	Val was doing a shift at the museum so I used the day to drive up to Carlingford to recce a circular walk up Slieve Foye that I am leading for the Club next weekend. Went very well though very busy everywhere and hard to find a spot to park. Cold windy and misty on the top and lots of Storm Eowyn damage on the way back down. Returned to Malahide and Val was back soon after me. Chicken salad and “Mad Men” in the evening.
Today’s weather	Dry sunny and bright though cloudy on Slieve Foye. Strong south easterly wind. Appx 11c though more like 6 or 7c on the top.

Today’s overview location (The blue mark shows the location of my route)		Close-up location (The blue line shows where I walked) (Click button below to download GPX of today’s walk as recorded, or see interactive map at bottom with elevations corrected): Slieve Foye 4 recce

Commentary

Val was working at the museum today so it was a great opportunity for me to use the time to drive up to Carlingford to get back out into the Cooleys again. Three weekends in a row! I’m leading a walk up and around Slieve Foye for the Club next Saturday, so I needed to recce the route.

Carlingford was packed when I got there – the sunshine had really brought the crowds out. I had a bit of difficulty parking but eventually found a space on the roadside not too far from the town centre.

Once I got out of the town and into the open country, it quietened down a bit, though there were still more people out and about than is usual for these parts. The were also people with dogs (forbidden) and playing music from their smartphones (annoying) which took the edge off the solitude from time to time.

The going underfoot was easy. It wasn’t too boggy and not to come back with soaking feet was quite a novelty. Up on the top of the hill, the clouds had come down and the trig point was enveloped in swirling mist. It was also blowing a gale and feeling cold, so I didn’t hang around.

Surprisingly, considering how wet it usually is up here, there have been wildfires on the nearby Mournes, as a result of an extended period of dry weather. In fact I could see smoke billowing from the slopes of Slieve Donard as I drove up from the motorway. The Cooleys have escaped for now, probably because it rains so much.

From the summit, I headed north along a thin path following the ridge, and then eventually dropped down the Two Mile River to the forest car park. It was a bit sobering to see how the woodland had been devastated by the winter’s storms – Eowyn, most likely. There were broken and fallen trees everywhere and I think it will take some time to clear it all up.

From the car park I walked back to Carlingford along the “new” path that runs parallel to the road. I paused after a few minutes to enjoy my lunch from the comfort of a tree-stump. After lunch, it was only about 40 minutes’ further back to the car. I had finished well before 3pm, and at under 4 hours, the walk took nearly two hours less than when I had previously done it with the Club in 2023.

It was a straightforward drive back to Malahide and Val returned to the flat soon after me. I made myself a cup of tea and put my feet up for a few minutes. But Val, being made of sterner stuff, went off for a run so had to forego the tea.

The rest of the evening was spent as many in the recent past have been – and episode of “Mad Man” on Netflix, and roast chicken salad (supplemented with chips from “Beachcomber”) for dinner. So all in all, a much happier day for both of us today. It was nice to be back in a normal routine again, after the trials and tribulations of the last week.

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)


This satellite image, taken last Wednesday (2 April) illustrates what I call the “Curse of the Cooleys” perfectly. The whole of the British Isles is completely cloud free – except for a small white smudge under the “chin” of Northern Ireland. Yep. That’s the Cooleys	Setting out through the colourful streets of Carlingford this morning

In Queen Maeve’s Gap – about to leave the Táin Way and turn North up to the top of Slieve Foy – with its head in the clouds behind me	From the summit ridge, looking down to the Greenore Peninsula, on the horizon

Destruction in Storm Éowyn’s wake	Dropping back into Carlingford at the end of the walk. It’s a charming town – you can see why it’s so popular with visitors (which do I have to admit somewhat detract from the charm)

On the way out of Carlingford, looking up to Slieve Foye on the horizon