Climbing Tuathal's Sickle, or Mt. Carrantuohill, Ireland

Mt. Carrantuohill is the highest peak in Ireland and it is always nice to be able to say that you have climbed the highest peak in any given country. Already having Mt. Moldoveanu (the highest peak in Romania, in the Romanian Carpathians) under my belt, I figured Mt. Carrantuohill would be no problem at all. In reality, the hike itself was fine, but my lack of preparation turned the hike into much more of a challenge than it should have been.

I have family in County Kerry, south-western Ireland, and some of them also like to hike. My brother had already climbed this peak and assured me it was no big deal and that it should not be a problem. Unlike Colorado or Romania, there were wild animals to worry about and basically the peak had been climbed by so many people the trail was well worn and easy to follow. On all of these points he was completely correct. The one thing that everyone forgot to mention was how radically – and quickly – the weather could change up there. After all, it’s Ireland, not Tibet, and the mountain is only 1,038 metres high, how tough could it be?

I geared up as I usually do, and luckily did bring some extra all weather gear with me just in case, though at the base it was sunny, clear and warm; too warm in fact to justify wearing all my all-weather gear. So I set off wearing shorts, my books, and a fleece. Of course I had my Hydrapak ‘Morro’ 3 litre hydration pack as well. Although Ireland is not a dry place at any time of year, there also are not many wild sources for drinking water in the mountains. There are some glacial lakes and the like in other parts of the mountains, but not so much on this route. This hydration pack was designed more for cyclists in mind than hikers, but I have used it many times and it has met my needs just fine.

Anyway, off I went, up through Hag’s Glen (very scenic) and up the Devil’s Ladder, which is a steep bit along the way to the low point between Carrantuohill and the neighbouring mountain, Cnoc na Péiste. From there it is a steady assent up the northwest to the summit, which has this giant (five metre) cross atop it, which you can see from the top of the Devil’s Ladder. It provides a great goal marker that you can use to see the ‘finish line’ as it were. The real problem is that far too many people are doing this climb today and the trail was strewn with rubbish and water bottles and other litter, which was a shame. Another extra point for hydration packs – no rubbish bottles.

 The climb was easy enough, but just as I got toward the top, quite the storm rolled in off the bay (the north Atlantic) and it suddenly got very cold, very windy, and very wet. Luckily I had packed my all-weather gear, which – despite having one of my gloves fly away (adding to the rubbish), everything was good enough to get me down the mountain in one piece. Later I learned that there are usually a couple deaths a year of people climbing the mountain and then getting caught up in such storms without the right gear.