The video has it all, my suffering and my joy. And drone flyovers of Slyggudal Pass at the end. But if you prefer written word, read on!
This was supposed to be a relaxing afternoon hike in the beautiful surroundings of the breast-like shape of the Paps mountains, with me immersed in the ancient Irish legends and contemplating the rituals of pre-Christian peoples. It ended up as the worst climb and descent I’ve experienced in SOTA activations so far, with me exhausted and soaking wet when I finally got back to my car…
The gravel road of the Slyggudal Pass is driveable, but not really meant for normal traffic. Technically at least parts of the route – reportedly long time ago called locally the “Old Bridle Path” – were declared public road in the 70s, but the road is very narrow and there are several cattle barriers along the way. When I drove from the southern side, all of them were open until the one at 52.01241, -9.24864 where I parked. There was a “No parking, private property” sign on the right side of the road, but there was some space on the left side too which I used. The area looked like a spot where farmers would turn their tractors so my guess is the “No parking” sign was to prevent cars obstructing the space on days when more visitors exploring the Slyggudal pass would be expected. But the drizzly Monday bank holiday afternooon wasn’t one of these. There were no other climbers or hikers around. There was one farmer in long green raincoat chasing his sheep, and we exchanged greetings. Later, when looking down from the slope, I saw an occasional tractor or pickup track passing through the spot, with farmers opening the gate and then closing it behind them, and I could hear the voices of shepherds calling as I was climbing, but there were no other interactions. In general, the Slyggudal Pass road should not be considered driveable; if you are planning your Paps climb from there, plan on parking at 52.00208, -9.24600 and adding 15 mins of walk to avoid potential clashes with farmers or finding yourself trapped by a locked gate.
Coming back to the parking spot at 52.01241, -9.24864, there is a fence running west and up the hill. AllTrails suggest a trail on the right (north) of the fence, and you should probably follow it. I made a mistake of backing off from that trail because it seemed impossible to walk – it is just a steep ground covered with thick heather. I should have continued up that difficult initial part, but instead I came back to where I started and followed the rubble stone path on the left (south) side of the fence. Which led me nowhere and I had to cross another fence and ended up on that same indiscernible heathery trail I backed off from. Arrrgh. By the time I saw my first false summit, I was tired and wet.
I made it to the top in wind, drizzle and cold. My plan was to record myself talking about the pre-Christian and even pre-Celtic, mystical significance of Dá Chích Anann, and their connection to the Beltane rituals and to the nearby “City” Cathair Crobh Dearg, take many drone shots of the Paps to add to the Wikipedia article I recently worked on, but none of these ideas materialized. I was soaking and miserable, so my only goal at that point was to activate the Paps East and find myself back in my car as soon as possible.
At least the activation was very successful! I spotted myself, the GSM coverage is excellent up there, and started on 20m. It was OK, I made a few contacts, but then followed the advice of my fellow Irish SOTA activators and switched to 40m — and it was fabulous! Many contacts, strong signal with very high audio quality! I haven’t heard people so clearly on HF since I started my SOTA adventure!
I went back to my car, this time following the AllTrail route — the trail which doesn’t really exist — and started changing to dry clothes. What a relief! Exactly every part of my attire was wet. I poured water out of my Salomon boots which were supposed to be tough mountain hiking and water-proof shoes. Then I flew the drone to review and record that initial steep heathery climb for whoever wants to attempt it in future, and also did a few flyovers of the Slyggudal Pass and the Shrone Lake (Lough Glannafreaghaun) which is so beautiful with its deep blue color against the Black Cliffs of the Paps East.
All in all, I was exhausted, and half-accomplished: I didn’t get to experience the views which inspired people as far back as in the Neolithic, but at the same time this was my most successful SOTA activation QSO-wise. I left the place with a strong commitment to re-visit it in May the following year, sometime around the Beltane celebrations, and record a video with somewhat more educational value – and with better views!
), so I wasn’t too worried.