Dave Byrnes

Round Ireland - 2016

Overview Planned Schedule Map Diary Pictures

Day:	075
Date:	Tuesday, 7 June 2016
Start:	Ballycastle
Finish:	Glenariff Forest Park
Daily Kilometres:	30
Total Kilometres:	2071
Weather:	Heavy overcast, humid, rain showers, thunderstorms in the afternoon
Accommodation:	Riverside B&B, Cushendall
Nutrition:	Breakfast: Full Irish Breakfast Lunch: Muesli bars, Snickers Bars and chocolate Dinner: Doner kebab, salad & chips, fruit trifle
Aches:	None
Highlight:	Remote and wild countryside on a stormy afternoon around Slieveanorra.
Lowlight:	Being eaten alive by bugs during my first break.
Pictures:	Here
GPS Track:	Here
Journal:	I had a 7am breakfast with the idea of giving myself plenty of hiking time. My plan A was to follow the Moyle Way south from Ballycastle until I reached the A43 main road, a distance of 30km, and to then catch either the 4:16pm or 6:16pm bus to Cushendall on the northwest coast where I had a B&B booked. Plan B was that if I felt good enough when I reached the A43, I could continue hiking another 12km to Cushendall which was just beyond the end of the Moyle Way and have less to do tomorrow. Barclay, the friendly and interested B&B owner, said he had hiked the Moyle Way many years ago and that it had a reputation for being very boggy. He also said that a recent hiker had told him there were a lot of trees down on the trail. I started walking at 8am and was soon out of town and on a forestry road climbing through Ballycastle Forest onto the shoulder of Knocklayd Mountain. It was very gloomy, humid and buggy and rain seemed imminent, but it was too warm to don my wet weather gear as a precaution. My trail wound around the side of the mountain with some hazy views back to the ocean and Rathlin Island, and then joined a rural back road for a few kilometres before entering another forest. I had my first break in light rain, but ended up cutting it short because I was being attached by swarms of midges. On resuming, the walking was initially easy, but then the Moyle Way turned onto a rough foot trail which became boggy and then entered an area where there were many trees down. It was slow going and for one 100 metre section I had to take my pack off and push it ahead of me through gaps in the fallen trees trying not to tear my raincover. The trail eventually emerged onto a farm road in a remote valley for a few kilometres and then returned to a rough forest trail. Progress was slow and the 4:16pm bus seemed an unlikely prospect. I took a second break where I emerged from the forest on a back road and then began a steady climb on a little-used stony road up Slieveanorra Mountain (561m) from the top of which I had good views across moorland and forests, despite the low cloud, rain and haze. Past the summit, the Moyle Way followed a faint trail across boggy moorland towards a distant forest. I was glad the previous week had been warm and dry, because the bogs were bad enough. In a wet period it would have been a real slog. Walking across the bogs, you are constantly trying to work out what will support your weight, and after a while you get pretty good at judging. The problem is, that you only have to be wrong 1% of the time, to go up to your calf in the slop, and the damage is done. Thunderstorms and rain became heavier during this slog and I vacillated about putting on my wet weather gear. As a compromise, I put my gaiters on which gave some protection against the bogs but also prevented the rain wetting my socks and the inside of my boots. Thunder was all around, and I was not keen to be on higher ground when lightning was striking, but didn't really have the option of slowing down (apparently three people were hit by lightning near Belfast during the same storms). Not for the first time during the day, markers were missing at key junctions, and after the bog this happened again. I made a turn that seemed required by the map to begin climbing up onto Trostan Mountain and was gratified to find a marker post a kilometre further on. With time being of the essence, I was trying to navigate very carefully, and was pleased to end the day without having gone off track. The climb up Trostan Mountain was virtually cross-country, boggy and slow work. I began to assume I would miss the 6:16pm bus (the last for the day) and have to hitch-hike to Cushendall. I became even more pessimistic when the trail entered a boggy forest after descending across the moorland. There were no markers for a long time in the dark forest and I just hoped that the very rough trail I was trying to follow was the right one. It was, and I eventually emerged onto farmland and then crossed a road that I knew was only a few kilometres before I reached the A43. I checked my watch and still figured I would be lucky to catch the bus, particulary since the ones I had caught so far always seemed to run a few minutes ahead of schedule. Anyway, I strode out, determined to give it my best shot, and reached the road at 6:13pm. I just had time to take the rain cover off my pack, about 30 seconds, when around the corner came the bus. I stuck my hand out, it stopped, and I bought a ticket to Cushendall. I could not believe my luck as I sat in the bus and enjoyed the drive. My B&B is in the middle of the village and I checked in, had a shower and got some dinner. It had been a long tiring day, but I had seen some great country and enjoyed the challenging trail.