Killarney Day 7: "Can I climb this mountain? I don't know."
We decided to
spend Easter Sunday holed up in our room, saving our energy for the immense
physical feat of today: climbing Torc Mountain. Though Torc is not the tallest
or the most laborious mountain to climb, it is difficult for a person like me,
who has never climbed a mountain in anything but a car. But we pushed on, and
man, were the views worth it. I felt on top of the world, literally and
metaphorically. 33,500 steps, 14 miles, and 130 flights of stairs later, I gladly
accepted the comfort of my warm hotel room. It has been quite the day!
As we approached
the waterfall, we could hear the water rushing. That is one of my favorite
sounds. The stream flowed past us and down into Muckross Lake, where we
explored the other day. The waterfall itself is a beautifully lopsided natural
structure, but the sound is what I liked the most. After some quick pictures,
we made the daunting climb up what felt like a sheer cliff wall of stairs.
Then, after we finished with those, it was what felt like a sheer cliff face
of muddy path. Then we did some more stairs, and a few more paths, and then we
arrived at the entrance to the (thankfully level) wildlife sanctuary. The hike
wasn’t too bad from there—a few more slight inclines before we got to the base
of the mountain itself. Yes, I went through all of those stairs, and we had not
even gotten to the real mountain yet. Ugh.
But in between
those hills and the base was the most amazing landscape I have ever seen. The
beige lumps of bog straw piled up over the distance, until they turned into
brown mountains across the way. We could see the snowy peaks of Mangerton
Mountain, the rocky neighbor of Torc. The river flowed through the bog land,
shining amazingly in the morning sun. Streams trickled across the path as they
made their way to the larger river, ultimately flowing down the mountain. This
was a whole new world that I was so glad I got to see.
About five
minutes later, we reached the base of the mountain. Here, our professor left us
to make it to the top. He said it would probably take around an hour and a
half, which sounded reasonable. And really, the top didn’t look too far away.
That is, until we started climbing. We alternated between regular rock “stairs”
(really just rocks that have been arranged in an inclined way to make the going
easier) and wooden railway sleepers repurposed as bog bridges. By covering the
wood in metal, the sleepers become blocks that let climbers avoid the muddy,
squishy, and dangerous boggy ground. They also provide a somewhat flat, uniform
surface. These were very helpful in getting all the way to the top, no matter
how much I hated walking on them by halfway through.
Yes, the journey
was long. Yes, it was difficult. Most things are, especially when mountain
climbing is involved. But I learned a lot about myself on the way up there. I
was determined to make it to the top, even if it meant running out of breath
before I got there, or stopping more than everyone else, or having sore feet by
the end of the day. I would not turn around and go back down, even though there
were multiple times when that would have been the easier option. I kept
chugging along, slowly but surely arriving at the top with my friends. Finally
climbing over the last switchback and seeing the three lakes of Killarney, the
grounds of Muckross House, Ross Castle, and the city center made the entire day
worth the trouble. Even the incoming rain couldn’t stop me from enjoying the incredible,
amazing, unforgettable feeling of making it to the top. Though I probably won’t
climb a mountain every day, I definitely won’t discount myself as much as I had
when I first thought about going. Nothing I feared would happen (ever occurred—I
wanted to get to the top, so that is what I did. It was as simple as that.
Registering
that rain would indeed come to us if we didn’t leave soon, we all quickly took
our photos, ate some snacks, drank some water, and made for the trail back
down. Though Diana and I had hung toward the back of the group on the way up,
we flew down the at high speed. We both have great balance and footing, so we
just left the rest of the gang and shot down in about 20 minutes flat. It was
great to jump through puddles, over rocks, and march back down those sleepers
that had felt so steep when we were going up. My knees will not like me in the
morning, but it was so fun to conquer coming back down.
Back at the
base, we began our long, long journey walking back to the hotel. We still had the
30-minute hike down to Muckross House, then an hour walk back to the hotel. We
ended up doing it all, but were very weary and just a tad bit tired when we
arrived safely back at hour hotel. We spent a lot of energy, we used a lot of
muscles. Our feet will probably hurt for a few days now. But we did it. There
is nothing in the world that can replace that feeling of perseverance and
accomplishment I had when scaling the last few bits of ascent. I am so glad I
pushed myself. I would have regretted not seeing what I saw, but more so, I
would have regretted not believing in myself. I will be on a cloud for a few
days, and I am completely okay with that.
Enjoy the pictures!
The view was 360 so it was impossible to get all of it, but I tried my best. It
was stunning, and I am so glad I can share them. To anyone thinking about
climbing a mountain in the near future—literally or symbolically—I will be the
first to cheer you on. But first, I am probably going to sleep for a while.
♥
photo credit Diana Cleveland
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