Happy New Year Everyone. I hope everyone had a happy Xmas and wish you all a healthy and prosperous 2026.
At the end of 2024 I didn’t set any goals for the year ahead but ended up hitting a good many milestones regardless, almost 5000km cycling for the year, starting the Audax RRTY 100 challenge, completing the Festive 500 and ticking off a good few summits on my various Mountain lists. We had a great family holiday in Spain at the end of August and Catriona and myself had a really enjoyable long-weekend visit to the Xmas markets in Budapest at the start of December.
For 2026 I’m not setting any massive goals either but there are things I’d like to do this year. I definitely want to keep up the progress I’ve made cycling this year. I want to finish the RRTY 100 but I’m also determined to get back to full Audax long-distance cycling. In 2016 I completed the Audax Ireland Four Provinces Challenge and I’d like to do that again 10 years later for 2026.
I’ve identified four events I’d like to do for the Challenge. The first of these is on Saturday March 21st so that gives me 11 weeks to train for it.
All four events have been chosen to hit the four Provinces but also to find events with as little climbing as possible. The first goal is to get fit enough for March and then I’ll see how the rest go.
I want to keep ticking off my mountain lists but this year I’d like to get a better mix of solo hiking as well as walking with the Club. In 2024 I only managed two solo hikes in Ireland plus one on holiday in Spain.
I did no camping in 2025 at all, partly due to the lack of solo hiking and an increase in cycling. However, a big part of that is nervousness about solo camping. I have all the gear so no excuses. I’m not setting any big goals here either but I want to get one camp done by Easter and then set a new goal after that.
I think the main thing is to have a number of plans to keep me focused for the year and to give me something to work towards. It’s also important not to set overwhelming and unrealistic goals that only end up demotivating. Anyway, here’s to a great 2026.
It’s Sunday afternoon and the Club Sportive has been postponed for two weeks due to the shitty weather that has hit us this weekend. Yesterday was rain and today it’s wind with more rain on the way. With dangerous gusts and some exposed sections on the route the hard but sensible decision was taken to postpone. It puts some pressure on other plans I have for September but at least I’ll have 2 weeks to work off the holiday excesses.
I’m not ready to start thinking about or preparing to return to work tomorrow so continuing with this update is the best way to avoid both! Part I is here if you missed it.
Work
3 days ago I passed my 1 year anniversary in my new job, although still calling it new feels a bit weird at this stage. I guess the significant change from customer facing retail to sales rep brought so many new experiences and challenges that it definitely does still feel new at times.
It took me a while to get comfortable in my new position and there have been a lot of changes in the company just in the last year but I really do feel that I’ve found a niche that fits me. Despite a period of “imposter syndrome” and a very challenging retail environment I’ve settled well and have grown in confidence, especially over the last 3-4 months.
A large part of this is the respect and value that is given by those that I work with both at my own level and above. It’s a welcoming and supportive environment to work in and I really didn’t realise just how bad my previous working environment was. Just as that had a very negative impact on my mental health this new environment has helped me leave that behind and begin to move on.
Closing a number of big hotel contracts and developing new leads within the hospitality sector has contributed significantly to my standing within the company, has proven my value to both my managers and myself and has given me confidence that I am good at this job.
I’ve been asked a number of times recently how I’m feeling about the job and changing away from working in shops. Although there are things that I do miss about shop working I can honestly say that I’m very happy with the change and don’t see myself going back.
Family
I’ve spoken here and on Facebook a number of times about my Great Aunt Ruby. Unfortunately, Ruby’s time was finally up and she passed away in March. At the time of her death she was the oldest living person in Ireland at 109 years old. She had gained a lot of celebrity in the last few years and there was a lot of attention for her funeral. It seemed as if Donegal had taken her as their own and so many people in our home village and beyond simply called her Aunt Ruby.
While her death was very sad her wake and funeral were a celebration of a full life, lived to the max and a lady that touched so many lives with her kind nature. She was always full of stories so it was very fitting to hear so many people bring their own stories of her. She had friends across all ages and generations and it made me proud to call her family ❤️
Within our own home it has been a pretty busy Summer. Owen finished his first year of college at Letterkenny ATU and has been working most of the Summer. It’s been a lot of hours and early starts for him but it did allow him to buy his own car at the beginning of July and to rebuild a solid savings account!
Conor started working earlier this year too at my brother’s coffee van in Castlefinn. It’s been mostly weekends with some extra shifts over the Summer and has given him an extra confidence and a huge injection of independence with his own money. He’s also started driving lessons with the aim of getting his license maybe by the end of the year depending on the waiting lists.
It has also been a Summer of football as Owen continues to play with our local GAA Club Senior team. With the lack of a Minor team this year Conor has also been attending quite a bit of the training. He’s ineligible to play due to his age but he’s been welcomed to training. A minor setback in the middle of May saw him break his collar bone in a bad fall at training. He was laid up for 6 weeks which kept him off work but he’s recovered completely and was back training at the end of July.
And of course the big football story of the Summer was Donegal’s progress in the Championship this year. We spent a fair bit of time watching them conquer Ulster before progressing to the All Ireland Final before sadly being outmatched by Kerry. We watched some of the games at home, some in our local pub and even made it to Croke Park for the Semi Final.
Croke Park for the Semi Final Family gathering for the Final Anticipation and Excitement Heartbreak 💔
At the beginning of August Catriona and myself took a day to ourselves and headed on a great day trip to visit Gola Island off the West Coast of Donegal and we’re all just back from a great family holiday to Benalmádena in Spain 🇪🇸
Summit of Monte Calamorro (750m) reached by cable car Monday cocktails in Benalmádena marinaHeading out dolphin spotting on the Mediterranean Doing the tourist thing OverlookingBenalmádena from 600m in the Sierra de Torremolinos on a hike Visiting Frigiliana village on a day trip The amazing Cueva de Nerja The Balcony of Europe in Nerja on our final day Some Spanish highlights
Over the last couple of years I’ve very much neglected the outside of the house. Whatever motivation I could gather up was spent getting the boys to cut the grass and responding only to anything urgent that needed attention. The house really was showing significant signs of neglect! This Summer I spent a lot of time getting the driveway, kerbs, sides and back of the house tidied, weeded and powerwashed before painting the outside of the house itself. This occupied a lot of evenings and weekends over 4-6 weeks but the result is worth it with a house that I’m no longer ashamed to have visitors calling! A few other small jobs remain to be done indoors but it’s been a pleasant change to have some motivation to tackle these things again!
Longer ladder required to finish the front!
Cooper
In the style of Unironedman it seems to be de rigueur to finish with dogs…
It took from January to March to get over the loss of much loved Rosie who we had to put to sleep on NYE. Then we were joined by the madness that is Cooper!
When I told my friend Jim that we were adopting a Springer he sent me this video. It’s scarily accurate!
On our home check the lady from the Rescue told us adoption works on the 3 x 3s (3 days to decompress, 3 weeks to settle in and 3 months to feel at home). Cooper seemed to settle very quickly but it definitely took the 3 months for him to be at home. His energy, behaviour and lack of training was a definite challenge and it took a lot of work to calm him down enough to be able to get him to behave without upsetting the entire house. He’s still mad as a box of frogs but all the work has been worth it and he’s a part of the family now. Leaving him at a kennel for the week we were in Spain was surprisingly difficult!
I was going to start this blog update by saying I’ve neglected it quite a bit this year but to be honest I’ve found myself stepping away from all forms of social media and at the risk of sounding very pretentious, all forms of creativity. I’ve thought about blogging and YouTube quite a bit but the drive to put something in words or on film just hasn’t been there. I’ve also been less inclined to take and post photos this year which is a big change for me. The majority of photos that I have taken have stayed on my phone only.
Last year that would have worried me as over the last couple of years I’d been struggling mentally to get the motivation to get anything done. A large part of that was that I was desperately unhappy at work and that was affecting me mentally and bleeding into my daily life. The main symptom was an increasing lethargy and lack of drive to do anything.
Having changed jobs back in August last year I’ve now had a significant turnaround. 3 years of negativity will take some work to reverse completely but I’m definitely feeling much better than I did this time last year. I’m putting the lack of social media interaction down to the fact that I’m too busy enjoying the moment to be able to document it or even feel the need to.
Cycling
One of the very first changes was a renewed interest in cycling. I hadn’t turned a pedal in over 12 months when I started back briefly in April 2024 with a spurt of 5 short rides over a 3 week period.
Self motivation was desperately lacking though and I stopped again until September following a good start to my new job. I had a few solo short spins again before reconnecting with the Club and joining the Saturday morning Stabiliser Group in mid-October for my first Club spin since February 2023!
Very quickly this became a regular Saturday fixture and I was hitting the 50km marker by the end of October having originally thought that it would be a good aim for the end of the year!
This year, despite a week here and there off the bike, I’ve made cycling a regular activity again and I’m enjoying it too. I’ve increased my distance to completing at least 100km most weeks and hitting the 100km marker at the really enjoyable Donegal Bay Sportive at Easter when a big group from the Club did various routes with many of the Stabiliser beginners completing 50km for the first time also.
For the May Bank Holiday there was an organised group spin from Ballybofey to Buncrana with the option to join depending on the distance you wanted to cycle. I joined in Raphoe for just shy of 90km.
The Club then rounded off the Summer with a fun day on Saturday last week. We bussed to Errigal and did a summit walk followed by dinner and drinks in Lettermacaward before returning to Ballybofey and more drinks before heading home at a very late (for me!) 1am. A great day of fun and laughter and a good physical challenge that was highly enjoyable.
In the last couple of years I’ve struggled to gel with the Club. It’s been mostly my own fault, being in a bad mindset and finding it difficult to connect with the other members, despite knowing some of them for a few years. Thankfully this year has been very different.
I’m not setting any massive records for the year but so far I’ve managed to clock up 2,650km for the year. It’s not a huge amount but considering 4-4,500km is average for me, that my biggest year was 8,000km and the combined total of 2022,2023 and 2024 was slightly over 2,400km I’m doing pretty well for 2025!
On Sunday the Club is running a Sportive again. There are two routes, 62km and 135km, and I’m planning for the longer route. I’ve been doing steady mileage over the last few weeks including two longer rides of 90km and 110km. I’m feeling in a good place for 135km but I’m currently in Spain for a very lazy family holiday and not sure how that will affect my fitness. We’re back home on Friday so I’ll take a short leg loosening spin on Saturday to see if that helps.
Increasing my distance like this and the subsequent increased fitness, has brought back a hunger for Audax. I’ve stayed in all the Audax Ireland WhatsApp groups so I haven’t really lost touch but it’s taken until now to really consider the daunting 200km distance once again.
The RRTY challenge (1 x 200km Audax event per month for 12 consecutive months) has had a new version launched for 2025 called RRTY 100. Basically it’s an introductory challenge for those looking to get into full-on Audax and consists of 1 x 100km Audax event per month for 12 months. I’m thinking of using that as a pathway back to Audax similar to how I used the Club Stabiliser Group to get me back cycling regularly. I’m not setting any great targets for next year but seeing as 2015 was my first ever Audax I’d quite like to get one done before the end of the year and I’m seriously considering giving the Four Provinces Challenge (see the link above) a go in 2026 as I did it previously in 2016.
To get the RRTY 100 completed I’m going to have to get at least one route published for Donegal. The nearest is currently in Sligo and the only one I’m currently aware of in development is a massive 1600m of climbing in 106km!
Hillwalking & Camping
My last solo hillwalk was in The Sperrins at Banagher Glen in the last of the Winter snow on 11th January. I’d earmarked that route for a period of snow and just managed to time it right although I did have a mild panic at the car park, deep in the Glen, when I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to get the car back back out in the compacted snow!
I haven’t given up on hillwalking though as I’ve been active with the Bluestack Ramblers Walking Club this year, completing 8 group walks from January to June with 3 in June alone. There were some great walks in there with Knockalla and the Aghlas definitely being my favourites.
I didn’t get out at all during July or August as the walks weren’t as interesting and I was busy with jobs around the house and cycling. As my cycling mileage increased my free time for hillwalking decreased and, if I’m being honest, I struggled to get enough fitness for cycling and hillwalking in the same weekend! However, I have two of interest in September that I’d like to do. They’re on the 7th and 14th which will hopefully allow me a chance to get an Audax 100 completed later in September to get the RRTY 100 started.
Another victim of cycling and the lack of solo hiking has been camping. Despite buying two new tents in the last 12 months my last wild camp was in April 2024 ! I simply haven’t had the time to give up two days for an overnighter and have had too many other things I wanted to do instead. I would like to get out and do something in the Bluestacks before the end of the year though, preferably in September or October. If nothing else I need to try out my new 2 person tent I bought specifically for Spring and Autumn camping! It was my Xmas present last year but I haven’t even managed to get it out of the box for a test pitch…
Of all my social media posting it’s YouTube that has taken the biggest hit this year. My last video release was in November last year. I did record my hike in Banagher Glen that I mentioned above, but somehow haven’t had the time or drive to get it edited and published. I’ve given it a go a couple of times and have it about 50% done so I probably will finish it eventually. However, I wasn’t really in a filming mood that day and it’s a bit disjointed. It could be a feeling that it’s not that great that’s as much to blame as lack of time for not getting it finished. I do enjoy filming and editing for YouTube though so I do see myself getting back to it, possibly with a return to solo hiking and camping but I’d like to start adding some cycling content also. That will involve some solo cycling as I don’t like to film with groups so might kick in if I start into Audax preparation…
More to come…
This is already too long so I’ll add the rest in the next couple of days.
Starting my new job at the end of August came with an unexpected seven days of annual leave to use before the end of the year. Four of these are required for my first Xmas off since 2012 leaving three to be used elsewhere. I used one to make the Halloween Bank Holiday into a four-day weekend and used the other two this weekend to do the same.
My Friday off coincided with a friend Gary’s suggestion to attend a Mountaineering Ireland event in Dublin on Thursday evening to hear Demort Somers speak before being presented with the annual Lynam Award for his contribution to Irish Mountaineering. Dermot was part of the 1993 expedition which saw the first Irish person reach the summit of Everest. Although he spoke only a little about Everest he was very entertaining. I’m not a climber in any sense but it coincided nicely with a podcast I’ve been listening to in the last few weeks.
Gary and myself were very kindly hosted for the night by Miriam, another friend. She attended the event with us and our plan was to go for a day hike in the Wicklow Mountains on Friday. However, a low cloud forecast required a change of plans and we headed for the Dublin Mountains instead and visited a place I’ve been interested in visiting for a long time
Montpelier Hill (Irish: Cnoc Montpelier) is a 383-metre hill in County Dublin, Ireland.It is topped by the Hell Fire Club, the popular name given to the ruined building. This building – an occasional summer residence built in around 1725 by William Conolly – was originally called Mount Pelier and since its construction the hill has also gone by the same name.
Members of the Irish Hell Fire Club, which was active in the years 1735 to 1741, used Mount Pelier summer residence as a meeting place. Stories of wild behaviour and debauchery and occult practices and demonic manifestations have become part of the local lore over the years.
All of this was fuelled by possibly the best ever breakfast I’ve had, supplied by the East Village Coffee Shop in Clondalkin.
Close by the building at the summit there was a trig pillar which I dutifully tapped. Sadly it has been vandalised over the years with all the metalwork removed but the concrete pillar is still in decent shape.
Gary was a geocacher at one time and between the two of us we made a short diversion to grab a nearby cache that was close to the path, making for a trilogy of lists that got ticked off in one short visit.
Following a short diversion into a very picturesque Massey Estate we headed for Timbertrove which according to Miriam, has the best scones in Ireland. They are certainly among the biggest I’ve ever seen anyway!
One thing for sure, I didn’t go hungry on my mini trip to Dublin!
Thursday Evening Street Pizza
Saturday morning saw me joining the Club Stabiliser Group for the weekly ride. That’s six weeks out with this group now which is becoming a really good and very enjoyable routine again. Also my 5th ride over 50km which I didn’t expect to be coming close to this soon after starting cycling again at the beginning of September.
Coffee Stop
Sunday afternoon it was my turn to look after my Great Aunt Ruby while Mum and Dad had a few hours to themselves. I’ve spoken here about Ruby before but she is now the oldest living person in Ireland and it’s an honour to be able to spend time with her like this. Unsurprisingly, she is not the same lady at the end of the year that she was at the beginning but she still has moments to make me laugh.
NYE 2023
Today I had planned to cycle in the morning but Winter has come rushing in late but with a wicked bite. Temperatures hovering just above freezing created a fog thick enough to make it unsafe that didn’t lift until well after noon. By that stage I was too lazy, was settled in with the heating on and a really good book (The Reckoningby Jane Casey) with a few episodes of Justified to break up the day.
There’s something in me that tends to see days like today as a waste but I managed to ease the “guilt” with a bit of housework in the afternoon. Going back to work tomorrow I may appreciate the rest better in the morning.
Four days definitely is a good long weekend but it has felt a good bit longer in a positive way.
It’s a long time since I felt this glad to be finishing work and starting holidays! Off now until Thursday 4th of July with a weekend hiking and a family holiday in there #holidaymodeengaged
I really love this last week in January. Not only is January almost over and Spring almost here but it’s this week when I really feel the change in day length and that Winter is almost gone.
This last couple of days I’ve been able to see daylight as I’m leaving for work and it’s not quite dark when I’m locking up. Every day now we’re gaining an extra 3-4min of daylight and it shows 😍
For many Spring doesn’t start until March but I prefer the ancient Irish calendar with Spring starting with Imbolc on the 1st of February. Bring it on….
The last 4-6 weeks have been a bit strange for me. Plenty has been happening and none of it bad but life has kind of just been ticking by. It’s like being a passenger on a boat that is drifting along in the current of a slow wide river. I’m not complaining about this as unlike other times I’ve been kind of enjoying it. I haven’t been idle through this time but for anyone reading this blog it would appear that I may have fallen asleep for the Summer!
As I say I haven’t been idle but neither have I been committed to anything in particular. I have been reading a lot, watching far too much YouTube, watching a reasonable amount of TV (probably too much of that too!), cycling a bit, walking a bit and making a couple of YouTube videos all around the normal rhythm of work and family life. I’ve been posting a bit on Instagram and Facebook but what I haven’t been doing is writing anything. Something about the last month or more hasn’t given me an urge to write, maybe it’s a seasonal thing and I’ve been too busy just getting on with stuff to write about it?
I’ve come up with an Audax challenge for 2023 that is motivating me to get back out on the bike on an almost regular basis. While still not at the level l need to be, I’ve cycled more in the last two months than the rest of the year to date and I’m still pedalling and even better I’m enjoying it again. I’m (im)patiently waiting for the 2023 Audax Ireland events calendar to be published to make my concrete plans and then I’ll have the details to share. In the meantime I’m enjoying being back on two wheels although it’s sobering when I ride through what used to be a regular training area and realise just how long it’s been since my last visit!
Despite a sustained period of dry and mostly settled weather I’ve had a messy start to my new membership of the walking club. I’d highlighted two walks I was keen to do and that fitted in among all the rest of my life perfectly. However, both of these ended up being hit by a short sharp weather warning and ended up postponed to a later date. However, the new calendar is now published and I have high hopes for October. Yellow warnings in that month are just regular Irish weather! In the meantime I’ve been occupying myself with some walks on the local roads and forest trails as well a trip to Killeter Forest to complete the second trail that caught my eye back in April of last year.
As well as working in between these more interesting activities I managed to get across to Scotland at the end of August for a long weekend to visit my best friend Jim and family. The last time we saw each other was March 2020 when we were in Switzerland and travelled home just before the start of the very first Covid lockdown. It’s been 2.5 years but feels like a lifetime. Like every good friendship it was as if it was just yesterday. I flew over on the Friday morning and left on the Monday morning and in between we had a very relaxing few days of catching up, meeting his new pup, walking and talking, eating and drinking. It was a great weekend and already seems like a year ago!
Heading towards the end of the month I’m full of plans – some fully formed and some still rattling around in Beta phase. This weekend I’m off for a long weekend due to the Queen’s funeral so I’m heading to the Mournes on Sunday evening for a long hike on Monday. I was planning to do this last weekend but again was smited by the weather gods who sent the tail-end of a hurricane across the country for the day! This has worked out for the better anyway, having two full days to use rather than a dash across the country after work on a Saturday evening. This will be a 16km walk with 1200m of climbing and I’m a bit nervous about that level of challenge in a day walk. To be honest I’m sleeping in the van on Sunday night and that also makes me nervous, much more so than sleeping in a tent in the mountains! However, it is an adventure, I’ve never walked in the Mournes before and I get to climb Slieve Donard, the highest summit in Ulster and one of the Irish Four Peaks.
I hope to film the walk as well as walk the walk but in the meantime here are two videos I published on YouTube recently
After a reasonably busy time at work and outside of work this last week has been a time of slowing down and taking things very easy.
As the cost of living increases and the news is full of dire warnings of inflation, energy hikes and possible food shortages it seems like everyone is hunkering down and keeping their cash close. This has resulted in a very, very quiet week at work. Speaking to reps this seems to be the story countrywide so nothing to worry about just yet. After all, living through the horrors of a war would be so much worse…
After an early spring and the tease of summer temperatures Mother Nature hit us a painful slap this week with a mid week storm and wintery conditions to top it off. Yesterday’s morning commute was in heavy snow showers with heavy hailstorms at various times through the day with a final serving of sub zero overnight temperatures. Apart from a beach walk on Sunday and one mid week trip to the woods to test drive a new pair of boots I’ve hardly been out the door. The little voice that had started longingly reminding me of warm evenings on the bike has slunk back into his corner and hidden under a mound of blankets. I think Wordle has been about as strenuous as it’s been all week…
The pause has resulted in lots of reading and I’m almost TV’d out. Tomorrow is the end of the week and some weirdos consider it the start of a new week. For me it’s a day off, I think I need to make use of it and maybe hit play again…
niall harran 