Start->CP1
We started in high spirits, heading out through town, passing some AON walkers. Kevin had the sensible idea of pacing ourselves, walking every now and then and particularly on the hills. Ballinascorney was as steep as last year, and the jellies at Checkpoint 0 (CP0) were a welcome sugar hit. The hardest part here was trying not to let a competitive mentality take over and keep pace with others or overtake them.
The route cut through a field at Athdown, lined with glowsticks to guide us. As we looked down into the darkness of the valley at Ballysmuttan, we got our first glimpse of trails of headlamps ahead twinkling in the darkness. Across the bridge and up again along winding country lanes to a campfire and a hot cup of tea at CP1. 30km done after 4:20.
CP1->CP2
We changed into our boots and headed into the hills in the pitch black. First was a logging road that felt much longer than the 2km it was. We went off-road along a trail into the bog, into a section we had recce-ed in Jaunary. However, when we emerged near the top of the pass, we were disoriented in the darkness. (Well, I was. Kevin actually knew exactly where we were!) After a bit of discussion about which way to go, we followed someone else who was moving with confidence.
This was open bogland - no landmarks to aim for in the impenetrable blackness and no paths to follow. We went in a straight line, following a bearing from our GPS. As we came over Billy Byrne's Gap into the next valley, we could see a constellation of lights in almost every direction, like stars in the night sky. Single lights and pairs, some on the east side of the glen, most on the west; people low down near the river, a group way up on the ridge coming off Mullaghcleevaun.
We were aiming to hit a forest road further south, and crossed a couple of small rivers along the way. When we got there the forest had been cleared, and we cut through the remains to land on the road for a couple of kilometres. We crossed the Wicklow Gap road to find CP2, and refuelled with porridge and tea there. At this point it was about 6:20 in the morning and fatigue was starting to set in - 43km completed in a little under 9 hours.
CP2->Art's Cross->finish
We had recce-ed the next section in August, so started with confidence, but I hit a dead end in the forest almost immediately. A sense of direction in the dark is tough! We followed a trail alongside a river as the sky began to lighten. The route we chose up to Art's Cross itself was steep and ook a lot of energy and much pausing to conquer. As we climbed, the forecast rain began to fall. I got my rain leggings on after we came over the brow of the hill, and the driving wind whipped the rain into our faces.
We collected our buffs at the cross and kept moving. We were once again crossing open bogland, we were against the wind and the rain was persistent. We had to shout to hear each other over the din of the wind and the rain hitting our hoods. We were headed for the next valley - it was bright enough to see the Three Lakes and keep them to our right and therefore easy to head in the right direction, but the terrain was undulating and we were scrambling up and down banks and skirting around large pools and avoiding holes.
Behind us we could see the mountain rescue folk descending from the mountain as well - when they caught up with us, it turned out they were sweeping the route and we were among the last people on this section. After a few kilometres we found the river we were aiming for, and followed its path down into Glenmalure valley - crossing back and forth to whichever side was most walkable.
Then we reached a surface that could loosely described as a road, and our DWMRT escort sent us on our way with some rough directions. It was about 13 hours since we'd started, so while it was nice to know we weren't going to get lost, it wasn't exactly easy going either. The rain was incessant still, and our feet were tender, the knees were sore and the legs were hanging off us. The water was streaming down the mountain along the hard surfaces and we splashed our way down to the valley floor. Then it was onto tarmac for a hard slog through the last five kilometres. Every rise in the road was a challenge, and the finish line was a very welcome sight. Kevin had the foresight and ingenuity to book a bosca beatha sauna right behind the finishing tent, and after spending twenty minutes peeling off our wet raingear, sodden boots and saturated clothes, the intense heat was an absolutely tonic.
Massive thanks to DWMRT for putting on such an event with positive volunteers throughout a gruelling route. This year was full of logistical obstacles for them, but they still made it happen. It's a challenging event for participants in various aspects - fitness, stamina, navigation, mental resilience, equipment choices - and it feels very satisfying to have completed it, even if we were among the last finishers!
Big thanks to the wives for minding the kids and letting us spend the night away together!
