Here is the challenge
The challenge is to climb to the highest point in all of the 32 counties of Ireland. Because some counties share the same highest point this means climbing to 27 points.
Some say it is actually 26 as Sligo and Leitrim share the same mountain but have different peaks, if you can work that one out, but it doesn’t matter, 26 or 27, its all very doable.
The highest peak is Carrauntoohil at 1,038 m, in the Kingdom of Kerry, while the lowest is in the Lake County of Westmeath, Mullaghmeen standing at 258 m.
With no football on due to the Covid bullshit, my weekends were totally bored. Nothing to look forward to at the end of the week, no trips to interesting, or uninteresting towns, for a match, I desperately needed something to fill the void.
By complete accident I stumbled upon Murray Nolan‘s excellent blog entitled “Walking Ireland’s County Tops” and I was intrigued. I hadn’t even knew this was a challenge and something people did. I loved the idea of it and rather instantly decided then and there that I would try it. It was perfect, I love the great outdoors, like walking, and don’t mind a bit of physical hardship, and I get to see and wander around Ireland, what’s not to like. Stuff the fucking football, over privileged nancy boys, this is great.
I wasn’t worried about the physical side to it. Although I am overweight, I am pretty healthy, and well used to going on long walks, and even now and again I do the odd, very odd, 10k run, and living in Switzerland I have been up and down plenty of mountains, real mountains compared to the hills we have in Ireland. So all in all no bother to me!
What am I expecting…… well I honestly think it will be a piece of cake, we really don’t have “Mountains” in Ireland, not really, and I don’t expect any issues in that regards. I see people on online groups in Facebook (Hiking Ireland) going on about hiking poles and crampons but fuck that shit, pretentious cunts. Also had many people on that Group going on about how we need to stick to the 5k or 10k Covid limit, or whatever, bunch of ninnies. This is the great outdoors, free as a bird and all that. FFS.
I am guessing as it is Ireland, it will be wet, windy, muddy and miserable. Not seeing many nice hot summer days at all. Also I am thinking there will be a lot of boggy land, and some peaks might be hard to find, especially the smaller peaks that people generally don’t tend to go to. I can imagine there will be a lot of bumpy back roads and getting lost down country lanes, but anyway lets see.
I also expect to have a great time meeting many cool people along the way, and see some amazing scenery of Ireland. While doing the County Peak Challenge I hope to learn a bit about the towns and county’s local history too, if possible from guides or locals.
These are the 32 counties in Ireland, but in the case of 10 counties, marked with (‡), the highest point is shared between two counties, so there are only 27 distinct Irish county high points.
The four Irish provincial tops, referred to as province high points, are also listed.
Irish County and Provincial Tops | |||||
| Rank Table | Name | Parent range/Area | County | Height (m) | |
| 1 | Carrauntoohil Highest in Munster | MacGillycuddy’s Reeks | Kerry | 1,039 | |
| 2 | Lugnaquilla Highest in Leinster | Wicklow Mountains | Wicklow | 925 | |
| 3 | Galtymore‡ | Galty Mountains | Limerick | 918 | |
| 3 | Galtymore‡ | Galty Mountains | Tipperary | 918 | |
| 5 | Slieve Donard Highest in Ulster | Mourne Mountains | Down | 850 | |
| 6 | Mweelrea Highest in Connacht | Mweelrea Mountains | Mayo | 814 | |
| 7 | Mount Leinster‡ | Blackstairs Mountains | Carlow | 794 | |
| 7 | Mount Leinster‡ | Blackstairs Mountains | Wexford | 794 | |
| 9 | Knockmealdown | Knockmealdown Mountains | Waterford | 792 | |
| 10 | Kippure | Dublin/Wicklow Mountains | Dublin | 757 | |
| 11 | Errigal | Derryveagh Mountains | Donegal | 751 | |
| 12 | Benbaun | Twelve Bens | Galway | 729 | |
| 13 | Knockboy | Shehy Mountains | Cork | 706 | |
| 14 | Sawel‡ | Sperrin Mountains | Derry | 678 | |
| 15 | Sawel‡ | Sperrin Mountains | Tyrone | 678 | |
| 16 | Cuilcagh‡ | Breifne Mountains | Cavan | 665 | |
| 17 | Cuilcagh‡ | Breifne Mountains | Fermanagh | 665 | |
| 18 | Truskmore | Dartry Mountains | Sligo | 647 | |
| 19 | Truskmore SE Cairn | Dartry Mountains | Leitrim | 631 | |
| 20 | Slieve Foye | Cooley Mountains | Louth | 589 | |
| 21 | Slieve Gullion | Cooley Mountains | Armagh | 573 | |
| 22 | Trostan | Antrim Hills | Antrim | 550 | |
| 23 | Moylussa | Slieve Bernagh | Clare | 532 | |
| 24 | Arderin‡ | Slieve Bloom | Laois | 527 | |
| 25 | Arderin‡ | Slieve Bloom | Offaly | 527 | |
| 26 | Brandon Hill | South Midlands (Brandon Hill) | Kilkenny | 515 | |
| 27 | Seltannasaggart | Arigna Mountains | Roscommon | 428 | |
| 28 | Cupidstown Hill | Wicklow Mountains | Kildare | 379 | |
| 29 | Slieve Beagh | Fermanagh/ S. Tyrone | Monaghan | 373 | |
| 30 | Carn Clonhugh (Corn Hill) | North Midlands | Longford | 278 | DONE |
| 31 | Slieve na Calliagh | North Midlands | Meath | 276 | DONE |
| 32 | Mullaghmeen | North Midlands | Westmeath | 258 | DONE |
1: Mullaghmeen: Westmeath
So I started at the smallest, and why not, no point in killing myself, right!
Yes in the Midlands of Ireland, the heart of the country, in Westmeath, handily enough for me starting out, the lowest of all the county tops! The Lake County’s top is in Mullaghmeen Forest, North of Westmeath.
I got my first county top achieved
Review of Mullaghmeen Forest
Reviewed February 5, 2021
Luckily there was a break in the weather and we finally got a good day for a change. I wanted to start the County Top Challenge and I read that Westmeath’s highest peak was in Mullaghmeen, through the Forest. It is 258 metres so its actually the lowest county top in Ireland. A good one to start with I think!
The morning was lovely, and the walk through the forest was very relaxing. I brought the son and he loved it, a nice and gentle walk through the forest, with the sun shining through the trees, and the pathway very easy to navigate. We started out on the red route, which is the easiest and shortest of the three routes. It takes you through the forest in a loop back to the car park. The white loop is the longest, and goes right around the forest, and by all accounts is a long walk. The blue walk is the route you need if you want to do the county top, as it leads straight to the summit. I took this one after I was told by some locals that this is the one to take if you need to see the peak. Initially I had started out on the red route so it was lucky I had met some people who put me right.
I went up the peak myself, up a small gravel path that leads right to the top. Up there I got to see the surrounding hills and lakes (Lough Lene) of North Westmeath. On a lovely day with a clear blue sky it was a lovely scene in the fresh air, reinvigorating.
I joined the gang back at the red route, they took a break waiting for me near the famine grave garden.
Overall we spent about an hour and a bit and it was a very enjoyable time walking through the forest. And I got my first county top achieved. One down, 25 more to do! (some counties share peaks!)
2: Slieve na Calliagh: Meath
After Westmeath, next up was the Royal County of Meath, another handy low top, visiting Slieve na Calliagh (Loughcrew)
Visited the passage tomb in Loughcrew, had not known about it before but was well impressed that this old, about 5000 years old, structure was preserved on the hill for all to see. Unfortunately the inside of the tomb was closed for the day for upkeep, but still a free walk around the site where I was well able to take in the splendor and significance of this ancient irish site.
A bit of a steep walk up to it though, up a little hill, but it is well worth it though as not only do you get to see the passage tomb but also to take in the amazing views from atop. Plenty of lovely green fields on show, and a lot of white dots (sheep) can be seen far off in the distance.
Went on a lovely summer’s day and was very enjoyable. Also was amazed at how busy it was, with a lot of tourists up and down the hill while I was there, busloads of them of all age groups.
Interesting and worth a look.
3: Corn Hill: Longford
Another county top off the list, onto the magnificent number of three now with Longford’s highest peak gone.
Coming from the Esker direction, it was a nice walk through some quiet country roads, with the phone/electricity mast, where the peak is, in clear view from miles around, a good pointer.
The walkway was well laid out, a good loop around which takes about 3 k and I didn’t do as I was there for one thing and one thing only, to scale the heights of the county top.
The actual county peak is behind the closed gate to the mast and its building, to the right of where you can find a pathway, which you follow for a teeny bit until you get to the side of the building where near the long grass you can catch a glimpse of the stone marker which tells you the exact peak location. Need to be a little alert to it.
Views are not so great at the peak as there are some trees obscuring. I suggest for the views go back to the gate to where the bench is and that’s where one can get good views of all the surrounding hills and counties. The clear day that was in it I was lucky to see Sligo and Benbulbin.
An easy enough route to the top, took less than 20 minutes from entrance. Nice views. now onto the next country peak..
Winterthur is a German speaking city in the Canton of Zürich in northern Switzerland. With over 110,000 residents it is the country’s sixth-largest city by population.
Zurich: Schnebelhorn, 1,292 metres, 4,239 feet
Once I got settled in, and after my pint of Smithwicks (was just ok!), ordered some food………..cheesy chips (the healthy option) , and a pint of Brew Dog Punk IPA, one of my favorites, poured lovely and cold………….with my dinner, it went down very well.
Ordered a Guinness, as you do, and a cheese burger for something to eat. Served with a smile, and the food came quick enough. Food served quick is always a bad sign, and to be honest the burger wasn’t the best, looked good but was a bit soggy and wasn’t as filling as it should have been. The Guinness was not the best too, but I’m not going to take marks off for that…..outside of Dublin its generally hit and miss….. I also ordered a Spitfire ale and it was fine.
Staff working hard, especially one Irish man who I assumed was the bar owner, but later found out he was just part of the staff, but boy was it impressive to see him work the tables, pull the pints, and generally work his ass off…..all with a smile and some good Swiss German to boot. Workers like that are diamonds…….
The club was founded in 1896 by students of the local school of engineering and following a fusion with two local teams, it was called Vereinigte Fussballclubs Winterthur between 1929 and 1946. They enjoyed their best success in the early part of the 20th century winning the Swiss Championship three times (in 1906, 1908 and 1917), before consecutive relegations in 1931 and 1934. They played in the lower leagues until regaining promotion to the Nationalliga B in 1950. They have since stayed in the second division for most of their history.
The club play at Stadion Schützenwiese, a short walk from the centre of Winterthur, since 1896. In the 1980s the ownership was transferred to Winterthur council as the club faced financial problems. The council are responsible for any maintenance and upkeep of the ground. While once boasting a capacity of 14,987 before 2009, the stadium now holds 8,550 seats, 1,900 of which are seated. The more hardcore supporters of the club stand at one end, which is known as the Bierkurve. Away supporters are housed at the opposite end of the stadium to the Bierkurve.
Finally managed to get some beers and took my place in the main stand, at the back……………..good views of ground, but I have to be honest, with all the supporters packed in, it was way overfull, and with supporters spilling onto the walk ways and exits it was potentially very dangerous as everyone was on top of each other on a steep stand…….
At half time, made my way to the area behind the goals where all the ultra fans hung out……….again packed, but not as steep or hazardous, and more fun as the songs were going and atmosphere a plenty.
Here is the video of my hike and visit to FC Winterhur 
During World War II , the abbey was taken over by the Nazis who had the temerity to melt the brewing vats, the bastards! Luckily possession was restored after the War, but unfortunately the monks had to start everything afresh again as so much was destroyed. 
Can come in 33l or 75l bottles, or on tap if you are lucky enough to be in Belgium, and only from about 20 or so elite hostelries after having met the brewery’s strict criteria! Named Cinq Cents in the 75l bottles 
The aroma has a very piercing smell, very strong on the nose, slightly citrusy and fruity esters, very strong, very yeasty with spicy hop aromas.
Bitter tastes, urgh. Hoppy bite, very much so. Over more sips it becomes more manageable but its not very nice, not one to enjoy. Fruity tastes found, orange peel and citrus. 
Can come in 33l or 75l bottles but not on tap. Known as Première in 0.75l bottles, “Red Cap” in 0.33l. Bottle conditioned, in that Chimay Rouge is a high fermentation beer that re-ferments in the bottle, “beer fermented in the bottle”.
Getting caramel and brown sugar especially in the aftertaste, it lingers and hangs around on the tastebuds. 
Chimay Bleue which in the large 75 cl bottle is called “Grande Réserve, bottle conditioned. 
Left the second one on the fridge for a bit to see if it made any difference to the pour. It did, much better on the pour, still though not getting the Chimay tulip glass full, which is a tad bit disappointing, and a much smaller head than the first bottle. Still creamy though and pitch black in colour. Looks very smart…
The yeast is also strong, hitting you near the end, bit light headed after these two bottles. I think if I had a good few of these in a pub I’d be off my head and I might even enjoy them! Very strong!