Stage 25: Creeslough to Dunfanaghy: Sat 20 Oct 2018 (44.5k or 27.8miles)

Running around Ireland - strictly by the coast - and once a month since Feb 2017.
 
For this month's run, it was an another early start as Maureen and Brian drove with me to Donegal and dropped me off at Creeslough (‘Home of Bridie Gallagher’ as the sign with the bicycle says!). I hadn’t really heard much about the singer, Bridie Gallagher but apparently she still holds the record for the largest number of people in attendance at the Albert Hall when over 7,500 were there to hear her perform.

They’ll be cutting the corn in Creeslough today

I had heard of Creeslough through this song (also called "The Emigrant's Letter") which was written by the great Percy French. The idea for the song came from a remark French overheard during his voyage to Canada. One emigrant on board the ship was heard to say to his friend as they leaned over the rail of the ship: "Well Mick, they'll be cuttin' the corn in Creeslough the day." (already homesick before he even left Ireland!)

It’s a pleasant morning as I head north towards Dunfanaghy. Of course as usual I’m determined to stick strictly to the coast so after about 2km I take a right turn at Clonbeg Glebe, signposted to ‘Ards Friary’. I’m now in a peninsula called Ards or Ards Forest Park. I follow a quiet country road until I reach the Friary (Retreat and Conference Centre). There’s a church and grotto here and a nice grassy area by the shoreline which leads on to a coastal path. I get chatting to a young couple, Colette and Dan who are enjoying the nice Donegal weather.    



At Ards Friary

With Dan and Colette at Ards Friary (Ards Forest)



I follow the coastal walk after leaving the Friary. I pass a nice beach and then I climb a wee hill still following the path. On my right I see a lovely secluded beach (Lucky Shell Beach). A friend of mine, Melanie had told me about her ‘secret’ beach so I was glad to get someone to take a picture of me in front of it. I leave the path and head down onto Lucky Shell Beach itself and run to the far end.





 At the end of the beach I make my way roughly through the trees and eventually I do find a forest trail that takes me onto the north side of the peninsula. On this north side there’s even more beautiful trees and beaches and I’m beginning to feel like I’m on a tropical island. Even the weather is tropical for October!

 

Ards Forest – the Donegal Ards Peninsula!

In 1610 the Lord Deputy granted a substantial parcel of land to Turlough O’Boyle embracing 2,000 acres of the Ards Demesne. The proposal was approved on certain stipulations. One was that O’Boyle would desist from involvement in any rebellion. However, as early as 1641 a rebellion erupted in Fanad and yes, of course the O’Boyles being the O’Boyles couldn’t resist a good fight! This meant the immediate forfeiture of the land around the Ards Forest!

Still in Ards Forest, but now on the north side of the peninsula, I can clearly see the sandy shore across the bay on the next peninsula and I’m tempted to try to cross the ‘bay’ (or Back Strand) which would bring me to Marble Hill strand. I realise though that the tide is coming in (low tide was about 10.30 and its midday now).

Group of cubs walking along north shore of Ards Forest

 I head slightly inland and run through the forest and arrive at the Children’s Play Park. I try to follow a trail through the forest but I literally run around in a circle. Eventually I decide to take the main road out of Ards Forest. After a while I cross the Carrownamaddy river and I take a sharp right turn and run along a rough path, keeping the river on my right. Some of the path had eroded away in recent storms but I’m able to cross over.

Erosion washes path away!

 I decide (in my wisdom!) that I should try to get down on the shore so that I can get onto the ‘Back Strand’. My plan is to run along the Back Strand and follow the coastline all the way to Marble Hill strand. I struggle through some trees and eventually get down on the shoreline. This is a strange shore to be running on. It’s quite heavy sand and not exactly ‘sand for the feet of the runner’. Still it’s completely traffic (and people) free and in this perfect weather I have the lonely and lovely sound of the curlew to keep me company. I reckon Marble Hill Strand should be just around the corner, shouldn’t it? 

I would not recommend trying to get to Marble Hill beach this way – best to follow one of the minor roads rather than ‘rough it’ along the coast like I did. Anyway it seemed logical (at the time!) to follow the coastal route. That was until I started to notice the ‘Private Property’ signs as the bay opened up at Clonmass Point and Clonmass Isle!

So how can I get to Marble Hill Strand?

 In the end I had no choice, whether the owner liked it or not, but to cross over his fence. Now, from the hill top, I could see the lovely Marble Hill strand clearly below. I decided I’d better climb back outside over the fence again (relieved at not getting shot!) and followed what I thought might be a nice cliff top walk - except there was hardly room to walk along the cliff because the fence came right out to the edge. I slowly made my way down to Marble Hill Strand (holding onto the fence as I did!) and eventually made my way down to the beach - so relieved to be running on a flat surface again!  

I came around this cliff - barbed wire didn't help!

Time was moving on and I still had a long way to go! I needed cheering up and I was delighted and nicely surprised when Maureen and Brian met me on the beach.

I definitely needed a break and I was also thirsty and hungry. Luckily Maureen had some homemade buns in the car.

Marble Hill Strand



 

 

 

 

 At least now I was able to run along a country road and so I continued    around the coast road until I come to Port Na Blaiche (port of the flowers). I kept running until I came to Dunfanaghy Golf Course and a ‘Tra’ sign pointing down to the beach. This sand was more like ‘sand for the feet of the runner’ and I ran along Dunfanaghy strand to the end and shortly arrived in the main street. I spotted Arnolds Hotel where I knew we were staying and resisted the temptation to finish here for today! I decided that I would continue up to Horn Head. After crossing Horn Head Bridge (just outside Dunfanaghy) I came to a junction and followed the sign Left to Horn Head, knowing that I could do a loop and return via the coast on the eastern side.

    It seemed to be one long climb up to Horn Head and at this stage I had no energy to run but at least it was a quick vertical walk to the top. The higher I climbed, the windier it got and when I eventually reached the little concrete hut at the top the wind was blowing from all angles.

Tory Island stood out in the distance – probably in mourning as Patsy Dan, the King of Tory, had just died yesterday. I didn’t delay too long at the top and started running down again. Shortly after leaving Horn Head I took a Left, following the Wild Atlantic Way sign.

 It was a bit further this way but the views over Sheephaven Bay were spectacular. It was a tough run today and I was relieved to arrive back in Dunfanaghy and finish Stage 25.The adventure continues! 

 

Total distance to date:  1,080k  (675 miles)  

Next Stage:  Dunfanaghy to Falcarragh. (I’m probably going to take a Winter break now until February 2019)

If you’d like to Donate to Clifton Special School, please see below.

https://mydonate.bt.com/events/cliftoncoastalrun/381290

Contact Gerry on gerryoboyle@outlook.com or 00 44 (0) 7725613308

 

Stage 24 of Coastal Run: Carrickart to Creeslough (via Rosguill Peninsula): Saturday 22 Sept 2018 (39.9k or 24.8 miles)
 

Running around Ireland - strictly by the coast - and once a month since Feb 2017.

I’m really enjoying researching and writing this blog as part of the coastal adventure. I’ve now completed over 1,000km since I left Omeath, Co. Louth last year with Helen and Sean. This month I found myself in a very remote part of Donegal in the Rosguill Peninsula where apparently, the last of the O’Boyles died in 1360, before the MacSweeneys of Scotland took over. So really, I’m just reclaiming the old O’Boyle land back again!  

Island Roy - first stop today!

  It’s a damp start to the day as I leave Carrickart just about 9.00 am. I can even count the nine church bells ringing in the distance as I’m leaving the village, heading north towards Island Roy.

View of Fanad and Blaney Bridge from Island Roy

Island Roy (Oilean Ruaidh)
Apparently on some maps Island Roy is not even shown and I must admit I’d never heard of it before. However I liked this wee island and I found it easily enough, sign-posted, just a mile or two north of Carrickart. So I cross a small bridge and arrive on Roy (or Oileán Ruaidh, meaning ‘red island’ due to the rusty colour of the vegetation). Apparently before the bridge/causeway was built to the island, children used get to school on the mainland by wading across on stilts at low tide.  (By the way, this is now the third island I’ve been too as part of my coastal run and I’m not including Island Magee in Co. Antrim - which isn’t actually an island!)

With Maura O'Neill who I met on Island Roy

On the island itself I get chatting to a lady (called Maura O’Neill) for a while. She tells me that it’s not possible to actually run around the whole island. I turn right anyway and run as far as I can until I come to a dead end (farm gates). Still there’s a lot to admire about Island Roy with magnificant views across the sea towards the Donegal hills and the new Blaney Bridge to Fanad is clearly visible.    

Immediately after leaving the island I take a sharp right turn and run along a slightly rocky shore. After a while I notice a grassy path up off the shore which is much better for running on. However, the path gets narrower and then comes to an abrupt end so I have to go back down on the shore again. I feel at this stage I must be close to Rosepenna, so I leave the shore again, passing through the garden of (an empty) holiday home and I arrive on a proper lane/boreen. I eventually come to Rosepenna pier and I take a sharp left turn just before the pier (on a better road now) and then a right turn at a T junction and I head north.

Singing Pub! Must come back here some time!

The rain has now stopped completely. It was never that wet to start with anyway and now the sun is coming out. It turns out to be another beautiful day in Donegal! It’s very quiet on these country roads. I pass the ‘Singing Pub’ (it would be nice to pay a visit sometime!)

My knee is still causing me problems and over the last week or so I’ve tried to rest it in preparation for today. In any case I don’t push it too hard today. (As I write this, a week later, the knee is still not really recovering!)

The sign towards the beach

So all is going well so far in Rosguill – no problems yet! I’m heading north but conscious that I should be closer to the sea. After passing the ‘Singing Pub’ and a ‘viewing point’ (lovely sight across to west Fanad), I see a sign to the right towards Tra na Rossan.

Tra na Rosann

 I decide to take this turn as I knew it would bring me closer to the coast. I really should have consulted my map at this stage! If I had, I would have noticed that Tra Rossan is actually on the west side of Rosguill.

Anyway, in short, I got my bearings wrong. It took me a while to get down to Tra Rossan (it was a beautiful beach and I had it all to myself, so I don’t regret that part).

I'm trying to mark my first 1,000k (Tra na Rosann)

Proud of my selfie with Tra na Rosann in background

So as I stood there on the beach, I thought I was on the east coast of Rosguill but I was actually on the west coast.






Sometimes you forget it’s such a narrow peninsula and only about 2k can separate the west and east coast. I tried to turn left at Tra Rossan beach but there were cliffs and so I returned (back up the hill again) to the original sign I saw. Then I took a right turn, still thinking I was heading north on the east side of Rossguill (I was actually now following the coast road towards the west side!)

The quiet country road in Rosguill

Luckily for me it was a beautiful day. There were magnificant views across the sea and I could clearly see Horn Head and even Tory Island in the distance (probably about 25k away).

View of Tory Island on right - Horn Head on left

Anyway I kept running until I saw a road sign. (I notice all the road signs are in Irish but the names in the map are all in English, which can add to the confusion!)  I decided to stop and consult my map. I stood there for a few minutes (scratching my head!) and a man and his two dogs came out of his house. I get talking to this friendly man, his name is Kevin McBride and he tells me I’m only two miles north of Downings beach. This came as a bit of a shock as I thought I was very near Melmore Head at the top of Rosguill!

With Kevin McBride

Kevin's nice wee cottage

So I arrived shortly in Downings (quicker than I thought, having not covered all of Rossguill – I will go back though someday to complete the whole peninsula!)

At Downings, I followed the sign (right) for the pier and went down the steps to the wide expansive beach. I carried on running along the beach until it came to end at the golf course.

Downings Beach



Downings Beach - sand for feet of the runner!

There was a nice wide road and path to run on as I headed for Creeslough. Maybe I should have tried to get down onto the beach after the golf course (and continued along Tra More) but I stayed on the main road to Creeslough which wasn’t too busy. 

The O'Boyles causing trouble again!

 

View across bay to Doe Castle

As I got closer to Creeslough there were lovely views across to Doe Castle and shortly afterwards I crossed a very picturesque bridge over the river Lackagh (An Leacach)



Bridge over river Lackagh

I avoided the main road into Creeslough by following the Cycle signs (right turn towards Doe Castle). With Muckish Mountain standing tall behind it was a lovely quiet way to approach Creeslough and complete Stage 24. The adventure continues!



Muckish Mountain

Today's finish line!

Total distance to date: 1,023k or 639miles  
Next Stage: Saturday 20 Oct (Creeslough to Dunfanaghy)  

If you’d like to Donate to Clifton Special School, please see below.
https://mydonate.bt.com/events/cliftoncoastalrun/381290

Stage 24 (the bit I missed last month): Rosguill Peninsula to Melmore Hill (starting and finishing at Tra na Rosann): Sunday 21 Oct 2018 (9.6k or 6miles)

 
I convinced Maureen and Brian to go back to the scene of the crime! The crime was that I hadn’t complete Stage 24 properly last month. I missed a bit! This six mile stretch might not seem very long but it involved climbing three hills in a remote area ...with my son Brian... and Maureen did some of it too!

The day didn’t start well. It rained all morning and there was a particularly heavy shower as we left Arnolds Hotel in nearby Dunfanaghy. I wondered if Maureen and Brian would be able to tackle this walk (no I didn’t expect them to run it!).

Anyway we arrived at Tra na Rosann beach in Rosguill at about 11.15am. On the positive side I had detailed instructions about walking to Melmore Head. I had found this sheet (on the internet) outlining the route to take which proved invaluable. 

And so we walked along Tra na Rosann to the end of the beach (keeping the sea on our left on this occasion) and then began our climb. Our first hill, Crocknasleigh is the highest point in Rosguill.

We could clearly see the beach below us and with the sun coming out; Tory Island was stretching out in the distance. Maureen doesn’t quite make it to Crocknasleigh but Brian and I carry on up to the top.

We follow our instructions from the sheet, making our way to the next hill. It turns out Brian is quite fit and makes it up to the second hill/peak without too much difficulty.

However, getting down from this hill poses a problem. We can see Boyeeghter Strand below us but it’s quite a descent.

We slowly make our way down and then have a lovely flat grassy stretch to walk on with Melmore Lough on our right hand side.

We head over to Murder Hole Beach (nobody seems to know how it got its name!) Anyway, Brian is still in good form as we slide down the sand dunes onto the strand at Murder Hole.

 

It’s turned out to be another sunny day with no sign of any more rain. We find our way to the ‘old derelict farmhouse’ and climb our last hill, Melmore Hill and eventually come back to the large caravan park and follow the main road out of the park. I reckon Brian has done enough today – I’m so proud of him! Maureen comes to meet us at Melmore Caravan Park and I complete the loop on my own, running back along the main road to Tra na Rosann beach. Mission accomplished – Stage 24 completed in full!