Category Archives: Hiking

Stories about simple dayhikes that I’ve been on

Oct18

A walk out in nature – Glendalough!

Posted on by
Standard
A walk out in nature – Glendalough!

Monday, 22-June-2026


Midweek hikes are the best, aren’t they?

Dodging the crowds is obviously a bonus, but there’s just something extra-magical about being out in nature when most people are at work. It feels like I’m playing hooky, stealing a kiss, or any other metaphor for getting something special.

The hike itself was lovely – the weather was warm, hot even, and the sky was clear. Sunscreen was slathered on, though the omnipresent threat of rain here in Ireland was just over the horizon. I think we got a small spattering of rain near the beginning, but honestly I couldn’t tell you one way or the other.

What I can tell you was that this was a lovely escape from the city, and an escape from work. We cooked a hot lunch over a camp stove, we took our time, and we enjoyed the process. Heck, we ran barefoot through the grass a few times, and even played in the trees!

Sep21

Mother’s Day in New England – Part 3 in New Hampshire

Posted on by
Standard
Mother’s Day in New England – Part 3 in New Hampshire

Friday, 08-May-2026 through Wednesday, 13-May-2026

It’s been a bit since I’ve been out to New England – and what better reason to go back than to celebrate Mother’s Day? I’d been meaning to go back to visit my Mom and Grandma, and this was the perfect opportunity for not only a good family visit, but also for a bit of an escape from Ireland – a road trip, and catching up with friends…

Taking long walks along the river is nice. Catching up with old friends is nicer.

Finding an unexpected outhouse in the woods is… something. Not sure where to categorize that one, I’ll just leave it in the “TBD” category.


New Hampshire.

After New York, I drove East again, to visit my friend Brian at his new apartment. See, he’d come to visit me as soon as I moved to Oregon, and then again as soon as I moved to Ireland… and as he’s wont to remind me (very reasonably) I never did make it out to New York City to visit him while he was there.

I wasn’t going to let this new move of his pass me by. So I drove.

I drove through Vermont, stopping to grab some cheeses and syrup for Andrea and I.

I drove into New Hampshire, remembering the glorious halcyon days of my time driving up and down I-93, to and from the NUHOC Loj. We met at the Tilt’n Diner, that place from my own legends, and had a milkshake that felt like it came straight out of my memory… alongside a burger that was nearly (but not quite) as good as I remembered.

Then? We kept the theme. We relaxed. We went for a short walk (and then an ice cream) with my friend Michelle. We all relaxed and caught up. We drove down to see this new apartment. We went out for drinks, and I got absolutely fleeced by a fake promotion on martinis.

It was… calm. Quiet. It included a walk along the river in the morning, followed by a drive down into Boston in the early afternoon.

It was a good day, capping off a very good visit.

Aug28

Hiking Lugnaquilla

Posted on by
Standard

Saturday, 07-March-2026


Exploring! Hiking! The kind of thing that I started this blog specifically to write about!

You know? That thing that I’ve barely done since moving to the Island that “absolutely has amazing hiking, which is why I don’t have to even check it”? Yeah… Well, I’ve learned the error in the assumption / statement that I made back in 2023. I’ve learned it HARD.

I do still get out to some hiking, though – and this one was a great example.

A neighbor of ours invited me along to hike a nearby mountain, one of his favorites, nice and near the city. It was a perfect chance to get out of town, get to catch up with him, and to just decompress a little bit.

So… Here’s pictures of it. It was pretty!



Of course, I did need a minor reminder as to some of my concerns about staying in Ireland long-term, though. That there are some cultural differences, and that this hike, regardless of how pretty it was, was still very much not public space and was only available at the permit of the landowner.

I… uhh… I am not a fan of the sign at the entrance to the hike. But I won’t be going into that any further.


(Okay, I’ll go into it a little bit further. I looked it up, and this is just so incredibly illegal here in Ireland. While there are some instances where it could be legal (if the dog was repeatedly attacking sheep) they’re very few and far between. That being said… would the Gardaí actually prosecute someone?)