Crusade to save Mayo’s ‘broken’ holy mountain as pilgrims gather
Last year Wayne O’Connor climbed Croagh Patrick. Last week he climbed it again and observed a dangerous deterioration
CROAGH Patrick is a broken mountain. As thousands of pilgrims today embark on the first Reek Sunday climb in two years, conditions have never been as dangerous.
Last year’s pilgrimage was cancelled at the 11th hour because a freak storm, aligned with tricky conditions underfoot, made the ascent too treacherous.
Just 12 months on, and it is clear the mountain is in a poor and hazardous state.
Westport’s parish priest Fr Charlie McDonnell called the cancellation last year but it is John Cummins, the sacristan at St Patrick’s Oratory on the peak of the mountain, who is the real authority here.
He spent last night sleeping in the little chapel, doing all he can to make sure the pilgrimage goes off without a hitch.
It was the 48th year he had retreated to the sacred mountain in Mayo.
“Last year was the nicest night I spent here for years until about 10pm, and then the storm came in just like that,” he said, snapping his fingers.
“When we opened the door it took three of us to get it shut again because of the force of the storm.
“I hope I don’t see it again in my lifetime.”
John called Fr Charlie at 4.30am on the morning of last year’s planned pilgrimage to tell him it had to be called off. Now, he is worried about its long-term future.
I climbed to meet John at the top of Croagh Patrick last week. It is clear the trail conditions have worsened in the past 12 months.
Rescue call-outs to the mountain have risen by 30pc compared with last year, as falls and injuries increase. It is easy to see why. The path surface is made up of loose stones, and it is so worn in places that walkers spend more time looking for spots to avoid instead of places to plant their feet.
Last year, in the aftermath of the storm, we found a man in his 60s near the summit who was frozen solid with fear, sitting on the ‘bad bend’ where most accidents occur.
It was unclear if he was suffering from a bout of vertigo or overcome by fear of falling on his descent. A passer-by brought him to his feet and guided him down the mountain.
The ledge he was perched on has now been eroded away. The stones are looser and falling is more likely.
I arrive at the top and John is already there.
His phone is glued to his ear as he orchestrates a helicopter airlift to bring vestments, communion hosts and materials for today’s masses onto the top of the mountain.
“All the stuff is here now apart from a few boxes of candles and a few vestments. There’s a barrel of water for the tea too — that’s the most essential thing to come.
“It’ll probably be a bigger crowd this weekend. It’s a bank holiday and there was no mass last year so we have accounted for that.
“We have about 12,000 communion hosts. First mass is at 8am, last mass is at 2pm and there is a mass every half an hour.”
He makes the climb more than 200 times every year and has seen traffic increase rapidly.
More than 6,000 people joined him on the Reek over the June bank holiday weekend.
Much of the traffic is attrib-
‘I’d see it as a sacred site. If I had my way it would be preserved’
uted to changing lifestyles and a more progressive Irish culture. The mountain is increasingly used by participants in popular adventure races and charity climbs.
John recognises the greater good these people do but warns the mountain cannot cope with the added footfall.
“It cannot be stopped but I’d see it as a sacred site, so why use it as a sports place?
“They do awful damage because when they are running down they push all of the scree down ahead of them. They are against the clock and rushing down.
“If I had it my way the mountain would be preserved.”
Croagh Patrick’s dangers become apparent as we make our way back down and meet a child with an injured ankle who is being carried down by his father after a fall.
Locals formed a group last November after realising the mountain is reaching breaking point.
The community in Westport know action must be taken to protect the economic and cultural role Croagh Patrick holds.
A report carried out by Mountaineering Ireland found that upwards of €1.5m would have to be spent to preserve Ireland’s holy mountain.
Chaired by Martin Keating, Mayo County Council’s head of environment, the Croagh Patrick Stakeholders group aims to manage the impact of growing numbers of recreational users.
He said path works will have to be carried out to pre- vent access routes eroding away, citing work done on Kerry’s MacGillycuddy Reeks as a possible remedy.
“They use a very simple principle and that is keeping water off paths and people on them. That has to be applied in our situation.
“I don’t want to prejudge what will happen but there is a body of experienced people we want to engage with to get the best solution we can. “The cone (top section of the mountain) is going to present particular issues with the loose stone on it.” John thinks anything that can be done to protect the mountain should be considered. “If it keeps going this way it won’t survive. There is more erosion on the path every year. “Something will have to be done.”