Walk on the mild side

Go Ireland:The number of walking festivals has grown at a fair clip so JOHN G O'DWYERrounds up some of his favourites

ON WEEKEND mornings it is now common to see rather incongruous groups assembling in rural towns and villages across Ireland. Their unusual attire suggests they’re not shoppers or churchgoers and neither are they sports fans. A closer glance reveals that they do have something in common. All are kitted out with boots and rucksacks, and many are prancing nervously about with the extravagant edginess of a pre-performance actor. At this stage the penny may clatter downwards – these people are mostly hillwalking ingénues awaiting a walking festival outing to the Irish uplands.

Once safely at the trailhead the group sets off awash with happy conversation and the infectious enthusiasm of children on a school outing. Walking uphill is, however, a tedious affair no matter how much we idealise it and soon bubbly conversation is replaced with heavy breathing. Varying fitness levels will now ensure that walkers are soon spread out like a giant hillside caterpillar and couples who began the walk romantically holding hands are now separated by a hundred metres.

If mist rolls in, however, people will instantly retreat towards the security of the leader with laggards miraculously catching up. And should the weather turn really foul there will now be some cranky questioning. Are we on the right route? Why aren’t we there yet? Did you get the weather forecast? Experienced leaders will accept this with equanimity, knowing that such interrogations arise from insecurity. The long upward ascent creates an understandable fear of failure leading to a natural human inclination to seek scapegoats – the leader, the weather, the pace.

Then suddenly the summit appears ahead and the mood is transformed.

Crankiness is forgotten as, gripped by summit fever, people rush for the top. A private Everest has been conquered and everyone now basks in the warm glow of success. There are handshakes all round and the romantic couples are now back arm-in-arm.

People gaze wonderingly at the scenery and marvel aloud as to why they have previously travelled so far when there is so much beauty right on their Irish doorstep.

The descent usually comes in a mellower mood. According to Shakespeare “one touch of nature makes the whole world kin” and people are now busy bonding. Little groups become locked in deep conversation. Each individual is now feeling more at peace, for there is incontrovertible evidence that exercising in the great outdoors not only brings measurable physical health benefits, it also ensures a psychological payback as well.

It all comes with walking festivals – initial nervousness, stunning scenery, special camaraderie, memorable moments, delicious tiredness and singular wellbeing. But the greatest value is that they allow us briefly forsake the world of choice, branded convenience, and motorised transport to enter a different world where the task facing us is simple and physical and comes without mental logjams. Travelling on foot we are reduced to our true significance and for a time we surrender our status and our images of 21st century success and see life in its true perspective.

So why not get your two feet working again at one of the walking festivals listed below? There are walks to suit all levels and each festival offers a unique window on a compelling aspect of the Irish countryside. Just press the pause button on your frenetic life, head off to the uplands and see the landscape come alive as a richly illustrated storybook.

1 Castlebar International Four Days Walks(June 30th to July 3rd): the people of Mayo have been given a wonderful geographic hand and they have become increasingly adept at playing it well, and this walking festival is a fine example of this.

Ireland’s longest established walking festival now attracts walkers from every corner of the world and there are walks to suit all levels of ability on a wide choice of routes. On each of the four festival days there are 10km, 20km and 40km walks, and a guided six-hour cross-country trek.

castlebar4dayswalks.com or tel 094-9024102.

2 Slieve Blooms Eco Walking Weekend(July 15th to 17th): the Irish mountain range carrying the most attractive moniker also offers some of our finest nature walking. These ancient mountains are now far too eroded to still possess the rugged five-star ridges of the younger mountains further west.

The compensation is the flora, fauna and the compelling ecology which is brought to life here by famously knowledgeable and experienced guides.

The festival offers special eco walks to some of the most famous scenic areas of the Slieve Blooms, including Glenbarrow, the Silver River, Lough Boora Nature Reserve and Kinney Woods.

slievebloom.ie or tel 086-2789147.

3 Achill Summer Walks Festival(August 27th to 29th): the ocean is the constant that has shaped Achill Island and it is never far away on a series of walks that take in the beating heart of this large island. There are mountains, hills, moorlands, memorable coastal views, a chance to sample the ever popular Great Western Greenway (now being extended to Achill) and an opportunity to visit scenic Achill Beg island.

The grade is mostly moderate/easy except for a self-guided walk where evidence of mountain skills must be provided.

achilltourism.com or tel 098-20705/20400.

4 Baltimore Walky Talky Autumn Festival(October 1st to 2nd): on this unique walking festival which cleverly combines walking with talking, local historians lead themed walks featuring local history, geology, archaeology, bird and marine wildlife and flowers.

You also get to enjoy the outstanding beauty of west Cork’s rugged coastline. Some walks are suitable for children and all-terrain buggies.

Proceeds are in aid of the Irish Heart Foundation and special offers are available for accommodation packages.

baltimore.ie or tel 028-20197.

5 Nire Valley Autumn Walking Festival(October 7th to 9th): Waterford's Nire Valley is a place where the Celtic Tiger failed to leave a calling card and remains a real-life monument from times when subsistence incomes were hard won from unforgiving mountainsides. Above this serene valley the lordly Comeragh Mountains provide a walking experience comparable with the best on offer anywhere in Ireland, while the people of the Nire are renowned for the warmth of their welcome.

This year’s extensive festival programme offers a wide range of outings ranging from the tough, seven-hour Lake Loop in the high Comeraghs to a relaxing one to two-hour trail walk through the Nire Valley.

nirevalley.com or tel Michael Wall at 086-7702544.

6 Upperchurch Walking Weekend(November 11th to 13th): communities, it is said, are a dense network of positive human interactions and nowhere is this more apparent than in the tiny elevated village of Upperchurch, Co Tipperary where an innovative approach to looped walking was originally piloted in Ireland.

Given freedom of access by 23 local farmers, the local community has reaped the benefits with the three-pub village consistently attracting walkers from across Ireland.

This year’s walking weekend offers outings varying from the tough and lengthy hills of Upperchurch day walk to nature trail rambles and, most intriguingly, a lowland mystery tour.

And if this isn’t enough there are also set dancing classes and Irish music sessions.

upperchurch.ie or tel 0504-54284.