Catherine near the top of a snowy Pen-y-Ghent

Long before the words ethical or eco started creeping into the tourism industry’s boardrooms, there was one man who was quietly laying the foundations of fairness in travel. Thomas Arthur Leonard (or TA as he was known)) founded HF Holidays in the UK a hundred years ago and, although his achievements have been relatively uncelebrated to date, the centenary of an organisation which still remains the only UK holiday provider that is a truly co-operative society, gives us a good opportunity to take stock of this pioneering philanthropist’s achievements (www.hfholidays.co.uk).

I found there was no better way to get to grips with his greatness than by hiking up to the top of Pen-y-Ghent, one of the three peaks of the UK’s Yorkshire Dales, on an unseasonably freezing day. So cold, in fact, that I was sure the HF Holiday guides would cancel the walk, with snow flurries concealing the summit. But no, they are made of stern stuff at HF Holidays. This organisation was created in 1913, after all, seeking to, against all odds, get people into the outdoors so that they could still enjoy the landscapes all around them, in spite of a growing sense of worldwide angst. And also, to do so on the cheap. Leonard had already created the Cooperative Holiday Association in 1894, but feeling that this had been swamped by the middle class, he created the Holiday Fellowship (HF), a Society which sought to provide basic, accessible walking holidays at in the UK and abroad. In the 1930′s he also helped create the Youth Hostels Association, keeping rambling real for generations to come.

Although HF has moved on from single sex bunk rooms to superbly equipped country manors, such as Newfield House in Malhamdale, Yorkshire, the base for my Yorkshire Dales walking break, there is still one core ethos of this walking society which has stuck with HF Holidays. All their guides, or ‘leaders’ as they call them are volunteers. Or good fellows, Leonard might have called them in his day.  Many of them have grown up with families who went on HF walking holidays, and now they want to share the love. They are all passionate about walking, cycling as well as a plethora of other outdoor activities.  They are also all warm, generous people who celebrate the notion of ‘fellowship’ without being in your face, let’s all hold hands and thank God for life sort of people. In fact, if I could sum these guys up, they are what you imagine the perfect grandparents to be and, if I could, I  would like to adopt each and every one of the guys who led us around the Yorkshire Dales for that role in my children’s lives.

Newfield Hall, Malhamdale Photo Credit: HF Holiday

So, as much as this centenary is about celebrating the achievements of TA Leonard, it is his legacy that lives on through people which what makes HF a very special company to holiday with, if outdoor activities are your thing. And of course, their walking leaders are hard core, which you need in the middle of the Yorkshire Dales, Snowdonia or Glencoe, just to give you that added incentive to climb the next stretch which, in our case, we couldn’t actually see because of snow. But on we trekked, feeling with every step that we were in very safe hands, the route being judged with expertise along the way.  We took a steep, slow climb up to the peak, but due to the extreme and icy conditions our leader guided us down a gentler route down Pen-y-Ghent.

The rather stark, boy scout feel that HF Holidays had in the past has gone a little softer round the edges in modern times,  however, as we all jumped into the swimming pool at Newfield House on our return, pampered ourselves with a little pilates, and massaged those well stretched muscles with a petit Pino Grigio by the fire. Not sure if that would have passed TA Leonard’s middle class radar, really. Not to mention the fine selection of packed lunches, with poached salmon sandwiches and fine local cheese.

International walking holidays was also part of TA Leonard’s vision and this has now become the biggest growth area for the organisation. An organisation which is still, by the way, a truly cooperative and non-profit organisation. You can sign up to be a member and shareholder, attend the AGMs and have your say in how they move things forward in a world that is being swamped by 1 billion travellers, the majority of whom are still being seduced by pure profit driven travel. HF Holidays also realises that it needs to sustain its set up for the next generation, and so it has created a young person’s membership which adults can sign up to on behalf of anyone under 16. Too cool for school, really.

Double ladder stile on Pen y Ghent – in summer. Photo: HF Holidays

Another development is the (great value) Freedom Break, whereby you just use one of HF’s accommodations as a base for independent walking, but get full board accommodation, an OS Map and plenty of detailed information on best trails etc. These are just applicable to a certain number of UK locations at the moment, however, such as the Isle of Wight (superb coastal walking just a couple of hours from London), the Cornish Coast Path or the Lake District.  However, I was glad to be in the safe hands of a group and our superbly informative and affable guide, Mervyn Flecknoe, as we climbed up Pen-y-Ghent.  As we took our final steps down from the peak, we strode  across some massive flagstones made from local limestone. For an organisation that proudly promotes ‘Leave No Trace’ as part of its outdoor ethic, this is one impressive exception. Because, although they don’t shout about their conservation and care practices at HF Holidays, there is a lot going on behind the scenes. These flagstones, which prevent erosion caused in hiking hot spots, were funded by HF’s Pathways Fund, a charity which guests can donate to, and which not only works with leading conservations charities to protect landscape but also provides assisted holidays to those who could not otherwise afford one. Like I said – Foundations of fairness. For a hundred years. Fair play, HF, and happy birthday.

For more details of HF Holidays, including walking, cycling and outdoor activity holidays in varied locations from Barbados to the Brecon Beacons, or Kenmare to Kenya, see www.hfholidays.co.uk. Or follow them on Twitter @hfholidays or on Facebook (HF Holidays).

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Catherine donning D1, before her son pinches it from her

We Irish have to live with the rain. We cycle through it, walk through it, canoe through it and party through it. That is not to say that we don’t get miserable about it too, sometimes. We do. So the more people out there who help us catch a glimpse of that rainbow just bursting to come out from behind those clouds, the better. And Georgia Scott is one of those. She has designed a quirky range of rain gear, mostly for cycling, but they are so cool, you could wear them most places really.

I opted for the D1 high visibility vest, as I my current one that looks like I just stepped off a building site just doesn’t really do anything for my middle aged crisis. Nor, it would seem for my ten year old’s who hates wearing his high vis vest, as he says it looks like ‘ a kid on a school trip’. So, he’s now pinching my new vest which is according to him,  ’totally sick and cool’ (‘sick’ is a compliment from anyone under about 21 these days by the way) and, according to me, based on a Mondrian design with olive green and bright green squares, intercut with silver ‘light up in the dark’ stripes.

The high vis vest is called the D1 after the Dublin postcode, which lies just north of the river. This is just many areas which boast Georgian architecture that Dublin is famous for and so, rather cleverly, Georgia has named her company Georgia in Dublin. Simply stylish and cool, just like her range. Most of their products are designed to have at least two functions. The Dorothy Cover protects the contents of your bike basket from rain, wind, and stuff hopping out as you go over bumps  while also doubling as a drawstring bag to put your other rain wear, lights, hats, gloves etc. in. Similarly the Rainwrap can be worn over skirts and trousers keeping your legs dry while cycling and walking and it also doubles as a picnic blanket .

The Dublette jacket (also has hood) and Daisy basket cover

Georgia, who launched this company with her mother in 2009, told me that “We envisaged a range of clothing that women could wear both cycling and walking to work or to the theatre,  wherever, whatever the weather. We wanted to help elevate and celebrate the bike as a means of transport for women as well as men”.

All of Georgia’s products are designed and the prototypes made by them in Dublin. Sustainability is important to them and they use good quality cloth and collect used inner tubes from bike shops to make fasteners for the Dublette, the stunning, expandable waterproof jacket and soles for the Leggits, which are like something out of a theatrical costumier’s studio. But if you can’t be theatrical in Dublin, where can you be? Except Paris, New York, London, Milan, Berlin….the list goes on, and this Georgian show will travel, I have no doubt. The Leggits have already won an  iF International Design Award for design innovation and production quality at Eurobike 2011 and they won a Brand New Award at the Munich Bike Expo in 2011 for the Georgia in Dublin range. So, instead of letting it rain on your parade, check out Georgia, who will have you singing your way through it, and singing in style.

The Rainwrap by Georgia in Dublin

www.georgiaindublin.com - They also ship  internationally by the way!

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Galley Head lighthouse, Co Cork. Photo: Irish Landmark Trust

Sometimes the best things are on our doorstep and we just don’t even notice them. That’s what struck me when staying at the Galley Head Lighthouse in Cork recently. So many people I met who lived there said something along the lines of “Oh, I have always meant to stay there, but you know what it’s like when something is on your doorstep. You never get around to it”.  It’s hard to miss Galley Head lighthouse, however, its beautiful beam a familiar sight for many as it illuminates Clonakilty’s coast. I was joined there for a girly getaway by a Cork crony who knows every hidden cove and cranny here but she has never stepped inside the Galley’s gates. But when she, we, did we were blown away not just by the Atlantic surge which hit us with double strength out on this headland, but also by the simply gorgeous restoration of this important piece of Irish cultural heritage.

One of the bedrooms at Galley Head lightkeepers’ house. Photo: Irish Landmark Trust

Galley Head is a landmark and, therefore, it is pretty apt that it is one of the Irish Landmark Trust’s properties, a charity which has been restoring buildings of architectural importance with a view to renting them out as holiday accommodation for twenty one years now. During this time the Trust  has restored 24 buildings across Ireland including  a 15th century castle in Co Kilkenny that sleeps ten,  a castellated gatehouse just for two in Castletownroche and an 18th century wool merchant’s house right in the heart of Temple Bar, Dublin. So if ever there was a good year to be given the key to the door of one of these fine places, this is it. And their collection of amazing buildings is really worth visiting, all renovated with a classic design in keeping with the original architecture, and in to die for locations too. Galley Head being no exception.

There were no shops nearby, which gave us the perfect excuse to stock up on chorizo, red onion and puy lentil tarts, quinoa and couscous salads and a plethora of pastries, all washed down with organic wines from the superb Lettercollum Kitchen Project on Connelly Street, Clonakility before we arrived.  We were actually staying in one of the two lighthouse keeper’s houses, although if you are planning a bit of a party, they have adjoining doors so you can take over the whole place. And the minute we came inside, we knew this was a pretty special place.

Galley Head lighthouse is made even more special by the fact that the caretaker, Gerald Butler, who handed over the keys to us, had lived here for years before. He kindly lit the fire for us and told us that he had been a lightkeeper and that “my family served in the Irish Lights for over a hundred years. My father, Lawrence, joined in 1902 and when he was stationed on Eagle Island in 1945 he met the principal keeper’s daughter, Pauline, my mother. After they married, they came here to Galley Head in 1950, but then were stationed elsewhere for a few years, only to return in 1965 with fifteen kids in tow. Of which I was one. My brothers all went to sea with two of us joining The Irish Lights and I am now the attendant lightkeeper here as well as working with the Irish Landmark Trust”.

View from the sitting room at Galley Head Photo: Irish Landmark Trust

The Galley Head lighthouse was built between 1874-78 following the sinking of The Crescent City in 1871 when she struck Dhulic rock just off Galley Head. Although the lighthouse has gone from gas to paraffin and now to electricity, Galley Head, like all lighthouses, was assigned a ‘character’ long ago, Gerald told us. This one has five bulls eyes and a rotation which takes twenty seconds, which contrasts with Old Head Lighthouse at Kinsale which has two flashes every ten seconds, or The Fastnet which has one flash every five seconds. No two lights have the same character, he told us, and few characters could hold our attention on the subject of engineering quite as well as this one, I was thinking. My friend said later “His eyes are so blue, he looks like he just stepped out of some magical underwater wonderworld”. I was engrossed by his stories, however, and so was delighted to see that he has put them all in a book called simply The Lightkeeper, published earlier this year by The Liffey Press, (€16.95, www.theliffeypress.com).

As darkness fell and the fire roared in response to the intense Atlantic draft pulling the smoke out into the wilds, I started to probe Gerald on the more personal stuff which fascinated me. Like how on earth his mother had brought up fifteen of them in this house, and not live in constant fear of one of them falling off the cliffs. “Being born and reared at a lighthouse was great fun, with life being one big adventure really”, he told us. “However, it was not all fun and games, as we had to whitewash the entire station every spring. But in the summer holidays we would climb down the cliffs and go fishing and swimming off the rocks”.  I shuddered as I looked out at the rain which lashed down all around us, highlighted all the more by the dramatic twenty second character which beamed through it.

Gerald Butler, former lightkeeper and now caretaker at Galley Head Lighthouse

Galley Head lighthouse was fully automated in 1979, but Gerald’s parents stayed on as attendant keepers until his father died there in 1992, his mother continuing as attendant for another five years when she retired.  Gerald stepped into her shoes until the cottages finally closed in 2001 and now lives nearby. He said that he loves what The Landmark Trust has done with Galley Head and that there is life breathing through it all again. I love what they have done with it too – the comfy sofas and armchairs around the fire, an ottoman overlooking the lawns and light, shuttered windows, dark wooden floorboards and a functional kitchen. There is a plethora of sea themed paintings and a library with everything from shipping manuals to Irish poetry. Considering this place is so close to the elements, the Irish Landmark Trust has pulled off a cocoon like cosiness with a sense of ease.

The Irish Landmark Trust’s strapline is ‘Save, share and sustain. But they have forgotten one more’S’. Stories. Because the Trust is about so much more than buildings. Their charity preserves walls which tell so many stories like Gerald’s. Which is why they were wise not to bother putting tellies or other distractions at Galley Head.  All you need to do is tuck up in one of the enormous mahogany beds, looking straight out at the light and enjoy the stories. I fell asleep reading the comforting words of Pauline Butler who had penned some notes in the visitors’ book. It was almost as if I was one of her fifteen and she was telling me bedtime stories. “I never felt lonely here”, she said. “The lighthouse is alive, resembling a gracious old lady winking and blinking over us. Five blinks, every twenty seconds”.

For more details on Galley Head Lighthouse and the other Irish Landmark Trust properties, see irishlandmark.com . I also just found this gorgeous video which captures Galley Head perfectly. 

Catherine at Galley Head Lighthouse

To read more about Gerald Butler’s life as a lightkeeper, see his new book The Lightkeeper (The LIffey Press, €16.95 theliffeypress.com) and his blog www.thelightkeeper.ie

An edited version of this article was first published in Ireland’s Southern Star newspaper.

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Catherine on the Loop Head Cycle Way looking North towards Cliffs of Moher Photo: Catherine Mack

“Are you really earthy and wholesome then?” a colleague asked me recently. I told her I was about 65% earthy, but reassured her that “I’m not one for eating placentas, though. I have my limits”. I guess the fact that I took two days and three nights to take on the 65kms Loop Head Cycleway in County Clare (shannonregiontrails.ie), is synonymous with my wishy washy green side. Eco warriors would have packed tents into panniers and cycled it in a day. Whereas I booked into three different accommodations, ate a lot more than lentils boiled up on a calor gas, and finished it all off with a seaweed bath and a major pamper.

The Cycleway starts and ends in Kilkee, also home to The Kilkee Thalassotherapy Centre (kilkeethalasso.com), a seaweed bathhouse and treatment centre.  The Centre also has accommodation, so I booked in here for my last night, knowing  that if it poured the whole way round the Head, I would have that image to keep me going. The superbly helpful owner of the Centre, Eileen Mulcahy, not only allowed me to leave my car there, but also kindly arranged for a hired bike to be delivered. So, before I even straddled a saddle, I was already loving the Loop.

I set out along the North coast of the peninsula, my target for day one being the lighthouse at the tip, following a clifftop road, as magnificent as Moher at many points, but totally devoid of traffic.  After about 9kms of coastal cycling, I headed inland along gently undulating lanes as far as Cross, where I dropped my backpack at The Old School, an elegant conversion of a traditional schoolhouse which has been recently restored with love and pride by its owners (Tel:  + 353 (0) 65 6703666).

Amazing sunset at Loop Head lighthouse, looking back inland up the South side of the peninsula Photo: Catherine Mack

With a lighter load, I caught the sunset at the lighthouse, another 12kms from Cross following another quiet coastal path with some of the most incredible bays tucked away , such as at Bridges of Ross, a series of natural stone bridges sticking out into the sea.  My Loop love had been intensified by the fact that Ian Glendinning, owner of The Old School, had offered to pick me and my bike up at Keatings Pub in Kilbaha, just a couple of kilometres from the lighthouse, after dinner. Which was all too cool for school really.  Similarly, he dropped me back at the tip in the morning, so that I could continue where I left off, my School House packed lunch tucked into my pannier.

Bottlenose dolphins in Shannon Estuary off Loop Head (Credit Tim Stenton 8 (2)

It was a quick cycle along the calmer shores of the Shannon Estuary as far as Carrigaholt for more of a love in. I had booked in for an 11am dolphin watching outing and, within minutes on board Dolphinwatch’s boat Draíocht (dolphinwatch.ie),   our brilliant skipper and guide, Geoff and Susanne Magee, had spotted some bottlenose beauties. For an hour and a half, they jumped and soared into the air, as all our hearts leapt in unison.

Pure Camping, Querrin, Loop Head. Photo: Pure Camping

My second night tapped into my 65% green side, without a doubt. A bell tent, with wood burning stove, awaited me at Pure Camping in Querrin, a further 8K up the coast. As did their home made sauna , a brilliant construction in one corner of the camping field which I crawled into through a small tunnel and,  when I was cooked through, I ran straight to bed and fell asleep to the soporific sounds of canvas blowing in the sea breeze.

My final cycle back to Kilkee was along tiny backroads which followed the wetlands of Poulnasherry Bay. This is a haven for birdlife, but Kilkee also has its own haven for human water lovers like me. The Pollack Holes are natural rock pools which you can swim in at low tide. I had put my togs in my bag just in case, as the Pollack Holes are not to be missed. “Just phone me when you are nearby, and I’ll run the seaweed bath for you”, Eileen had told me when I set off a couple of days earlier. Which I did, from the Diamond Rocks Café just beside the pools (diamondrockscafe.com) where other swimmers welcomed me to ‘the club’ and where I consumed a copious amount of choice carbs. From cake heaven to Bladderwrack bliss, my Loop was well and truly complete.
For more info see www.loophead.ie. An edited version of this article was first published in The Irish Times.

swimming at the Pollack Holes, Kilkee Photo: Catherine Mack

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Catherine on Pembrokeshire Coast Path between Whitesands and St Justinian’s Bay

It strikes me as somewhat ironic that the hedgerows which envelop me along this shady lane are called Pembrokeshire Banks. Because while the rest of the world’s banks fall into crisis and collapse, these ones are proffering a wealth of natural wonders. These traditional stone field boundaries, known locally as Cloddiau or Clawdd, unlike drystone walls, are bedecked with grass and wildflowers, thanks to the turf and soil stuffed in between the stones, providing not only a windbreaker and boundary, but also a haven of natural and indeed, rich,  habitats.

At the moment the bees are in full swing, drunk on the banks’ abundant foxgloves, poppies and ox-eye daisies which lead me down to my nearest beach of Aber Mawr. I am on a three day break from London living, with the aim of avoiding congestion, carbon and cooking, the first two through a growing commitment to being a greener traveller, the third through sheer laziness and a desire to fill every spare minute walking, leaving my work-obsessed mind free to wander too. By using Pembrokeshire’s Coastal Bus service to get me to and from different spots along the Path, I am able to leave the car at home, as I am certainly not going to be able to take on all 299 kms of it.  Even better, this bus scheme runs all year round, seven days a week, allowing you to wallow in Welsh wanderlust whenever you fancy (walkingpembrokeshire.co.uk).

I am basing myself at Preseli Venture Eco Lodge, a vibrant, family-run activity centre where I first stayed a couple of years ago. I was on a family kayaking and coasteering holiday that time, and as they welcome everyone here like long lost friends  I thought this would be the perfect base for a bit of solitary walking this time. They also serve vats of wonderful home cooked food all day, so I hit the roads with a belly full of breakfast, a packed lunch, in the knowledge that a big curry or casserole was waiting for me each night.

Preseli Eco Lodge – ideal base for hiking the Pembrokeshire Coast Path

So, having just arrived in on the lunchtime train to Fishguard and Goodwick, where Preseli met me at the station, I am able to fit in a three hour walk from Aber Mawr beach, just ten minutes’ walk from the lodge, heading south on the Coast Path to Trefin. I’m a little confused over the signage for a while – the Coast Path is a National Trail, the sign for which is an acorn. However, it is co-managed along long stretches by National Trust,  the sign for which is, bizarrely, an acorn. And when I digress from the sea and walk inland, I am spoilt for choice on this Wales wide web of inland pathways with signs using a walking person, yellow and white arrows, depending on their walking category (pembrokeshirecoast.org.uk). However, all all in all, there is little chance of getting lost.

I stick to the Coast Path, however, which lures me from one bay to another, urging me on to ‘just one more headland’ to see what riches lie beyond it.  The terrain varies from craggy, sandy or grassy, and most of the Path is separated from the sea by well managed bracken, gorse or hedging, with stomach churning ‘don’t look down’ moments few and far between.

At Trefin, a small village with the perfect hikers’ hangouts, a pub called The Ship Inn and a charming café called The Mill (with a well earned cream tea), I catch the  18.27 Strumble Shuttle bus back to Mathry, about twenty minutes’ walk from the Lodge, although when I get my bearings I learn to ask the bus driver to drop me further down the road at the crossroads at the bottom of Mathry Hill, a welcome saving of five minutes to my already tired legs.

I leave my big walk for Day Two, a 19 kms circular around the coves and cliffs which wrap themselves around St. David’s.  Too full from my excellent curry the night before, I decline breakfast, but welcome my packed lunch. I fill a flask of tea and a large water bottle and hit the roads, with nothing but the cacophony of Spring birdsong to accompany me as I hike up the hill to catch the 8am Strumble Shuttle again. Stand at the crossroads on the main road into St. David’s and stick out your hand when you see it coming. They do stop, really, although there is no official bus stop at this point, and they are more than helpful to vague looking, still half asleep, OS Map waving hikers like me.

Caerfai Bay

I don’t dally in St. David’s where, as the cathedral clock strikes nine, the temperatures are rising into their mid-twenties already. So, I head straight out along a narrow back road, tucked behind the ruins of the Bishop’s Palace, which turns out to be a heavenly route indeed to the impressive expanses of Whitesands Bay. Heading south again, the Coast Path overlooks Ramsay Island , a bird reserve and favourite hangout for seals,  dolphins and porpoises (ramseyisland.co.uk) although,  as I dip in and out of tiny uninhabited bays,  I only spot a few cliff climbers, kayakers and a couple of fishing boats.

Hiking it and bus-ing it along Pembrokeshire Coast path

In fact, the Path is never busy, except around  St Justinian’s Bay, with its ancient chapel and a stunning red and cream lifeboat station with funicular system designed to transport people and good up and down the cliff, or the turquoise inlet of Porth Clais with its ancient lime kilns built into the harbour walls (and a much needed coffee and ice cream kiosk). The only other company en route are a few smiling hikers and the choughs, cormorants and stonechats all in nesting frenzies at this time of year. I keep an eye out for dolphins and seals, but they aren’t playing today, despite this being one of their favourite hang outs. However, the solitude and solace to be found on this Path soothes my soul, dolphins or no dolphins.

I time my exit from the Path at Caerfai Bay perfectly, fitting in a quick snack at the delightful Caerfai Organic Farm shop just before it closes. Owned by Christine and Wyn Evans, Wyn talks to me about his renewable energy schemes created long before green became the new black. He is totally fired up about how we all have a responsibility to do our bit if we are going to reverse the impacts of climate change. I listen and learn from this knowledgeable man, and when I look back along the Coast Path which swivels in and out of his land, I realise that these farmers who work so generously with National Trust and National Parks to preserve this natural wealth so that we and future generations can all enjoy it, are all doing more ‘bits’ than most of us put together, and I vow to return with my family and take a longer stay at his campsite or cottages.

I make my 17.45 bus from St David’s back to Mathry , with half an hour to spare looking round the Cathedral where, to my delight, the choir is rehearsing for Sunday service, the sopranos’ Amen bringing this already uplifting day to the perfect close.

My last day of walking takes me around Strumble Head, the most barren spot of the Coast Path so far, where wild ponies are let out to pasture in order to keep these remote rocky slopes and paths clear of bracken. An imposing white lighthouse issues warnings through the mist which, in turn, emits nourishing droplets on the yellow blankets of Kidney Vetch and Wild Primrose, peppered with purple wild Thyme, all around me. Suddenly, I spot a seal staring up at me, basking on the steps of this now unmanned lighthouse. It feels as if we are both staring at this marine magnificence all around us in unison and, as the hairs rise on the back of my neck in this quiet moment with nature, I realise that not only are Pembrokeshire’s banks rolling in it, but this highly protected Coastline is just one big bubbling vat of natural assets which is there for everyone to profit from.

The Strumble Shuttle bus, one of several excellent coastal services to help you around this stunning coastline

Catherine travelled to Pembrokeshire from London by train, travelling from London Paddington to Cardiff Central with First Great Western trains, and from Cardiff Central to Fishguard and Goodwick with Arriva Trains Wales. Return ticket from £74.50 if booked a month in advance. For more information on the Coastal Bus Service, with prices and timetables, see Pembrokeshire County Council

For accommodation at Preseli Venture Ecolodge and Adventure Centre, see  preseliventure.co.uk, Tel: +44 1348 837709. From £39 per night for lodge accommodation and breakfast including use of all lodge facilities, plus a range of breakfast choices including a cooked Welsh breakfast or  £59 for lodge accommodation and all meals. They also do a 5 days/6 nights walking package for £395 which includes all meals, info pack, free train station transfers if you are travelling by train, emergency back up support whilst out walking and a waterproof OS map

An edited version of this article by Catherine Mack was first published in Visit Pembrokeshire magazine.

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Lawrence McBride, founder Far and Wild on Derry-Londonderry’s city walls Photo credit: Far and Wild

I travelled around Inishowen Peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland with this company recently and was blown away not only by the fierce wind, but also by their fiercely committed approach to truly responsible tourism. I will be writing more about that trip anon, but in the meantime I have asked Lawrence McBride, founder of Far and Wild to write a guest post about their latest, very exciting project in Derry/Londonderry, just thirty miles from Inishowen. Over to Lawrence…..

If you asked someone where in the world would you find joyous chants  floating on the sea breeze up to ancient battlements,  while troops of cyclists prepare for a historic competitive Mountain Bike Challenge along historic ramparts, they would be unlikely to say Derry-Londonderry. But in fact this is indeed the location of a special cycling event, here in the  first UK City of Culture- Derry-Londonderry 2013, nestled on the political border in the far North West of Northern Ireland.

The Wild Walls Cycle event by local eco-adventure company Far and Wild on Sunday 12 May is a unique event in the City of Culture calendar, combining a healthy dose of competitive and non-competitive cycle events with the very real culture of our ‘post troubles’ civilisation.

The day will start with an urban cross-country mountain bike competition which will weave its way through the communities, both nationalist and unionist, that live around the City’s four hundred year old battlements, built originally as a garrison town by the Guilds of London. It was this London connection that led to the highly controversial addition of the pre-fix ‘London’ to the original Derry, from Doire – the Irish for ‘Oak Grove’.

A charity and family cycle will follow the main cross city cycle trail, making for an all inclusive day which will culminate in the first ever cycle ride down one section of the historic walls from the local Court House and past the Bogside. Young people in both nationalist Bogside and unionist Fountain communities will take part, bucking summer trends of simmering friction.

Discovering the North West of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland with Far and Wild Photo: Far and Wild

What has this all got to do with eco-tourism? Well the short answer is ‘Come and see’! The Wild Walls Cycle event can be booked here . Evidence argues that our foreign visitors are fascinated by the complexity of Irish and Ulster society, despite the nervousness of the traditional tourism industry.  With countryside to die for (no pun intended), perhaps the factors that have keep folk away for so long are ready to reveal their hidden treasures.

Contact Far and Wild on hello@farandwild.co.uk or +447775911198 for further information or check out what other eco events we have in store at  www.farandwild.co.uk.

(Far and Wild is a community interest company combining adventure with ecology- including historical interpretation or human ecology- in the stunning North West of Ireland, in both political jurisdictions).

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Matura beach – one of Trinidad’s top turtle nesting beaches

“They don’t like tourists in Trinidad, you know, but I’m sure it’ll be interesting anyway” a neighbouring passenger told me as he got off the London to Trinidad flight at its brief stopover in Tobago, leaving me somewhat speechless as I waited for the plane to prepare for take-off again to my final destination of Port of Spain, Trinidad’s capital. A few hours later I was sitting in a press conference with the Minister of Tourism for Trinidad and Tobago, and it was tempting to share this exchange with him, but I thought it might be best to go gently with four more days of the 14^th Annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development still to go.

The Honourable Stephen Cadiz is unlike many other tourism ministers, relaxed, in an open neck white linen shirt, personable, informal, and refreshingly honest about the challenges ahead in putting Trinidad on the tourist map. He confirmed what was immediately evident en route from the airport to the impressive Hyatt Regency Hotel, located on the water’s edge of Port of Spain. Trinidad is an industrial nation, with an economy based on years of exploiting oil and gas reserves. As we looked out at the bay, peppered with freight ships, Cadiz gave us the facts: “55 000 people are engaged in the manufacturing industry here, accounting for $1billion GDP. However, that accounts for only 5% of employment. And, at the moment, tourism still only provides 6% of GDP in Trinidad and Tobago.” He also stressed that, unlike other Caribbean countries, all inclusive enclave tourism is not the right direction for Trinidad, stating that “All-inclusive enclave can’t be sustainable. In Trinidad and Tobago 70 cents of the tourism Dollar remains on our islands. The average for the Caribbean is 55cents, some territories as bad as 10 cents. I want to be able to go to 80 cents on the dollar. Now you are talking true sustainability. And you can’t do that with the all-inclusive enclaves”.

Salybia Beach, Trinidad

Cadiz admitted that the time had come to move away from a non-renewable energy dependent economy and that, to date, their natural and cultural heritage reserves remain unexploited for tourism purposes. “At the moment, Tobago is our leisure market destination”, continued Cadiz “as a place for just chillin’ and sittin’ down on the beach. Then twenty miles away is this crazy place called Trinidad. We have our Carnival, of course, but now we have to start creating, branding and marketing an all- year-round product”.

When questioned about the tourism product potential in Trinidad, Cadiz referred to the ecotourism opportunities in the North, with hiking, waterfalls, cocoa plantations and fecund turtle nesting beaches. The South of the island is home to the 150 acre La Brea pitch lake, not your traditional tourist attraction, admittedly, but fascinating to many, as the largest natural deposit of asphalt in the world. The East coast boasts acres of coconut plantations and is home to a well-integrated cultural mix of Hindus and Catholics. From this, the country boasts a rich history of food, music and ritual which tourists relish every year at Carnival, but are not valued as fine, experiential products for the rest of the year. “Local people tell me that Trinidad can never build a tourism industry”, says Cadiz, “but I say absolutely we can. People have no idea of what they have here and that tourists want to see it. It’s about taking what we do naturally every day and making a tourism product out of it. This is where we have missed the boat”.

Tobago Cocoa Plantation

Over the next few days at the Conference, it was clear that Trinidad has not missed the boat, however, but was just starting to build it. An evening at the Phase 11 Panyard, home to the reigning champion of the island’s annual Panorama competition for steel pans, was our first immersion in community culture and tourism. This is just one of many community panyards throughout Trinidad, home of the steel pan, and it is impossible not to be totally enthralled by the beat of the island’s home grown sound and national instrument. Their rendition of Moon River, the smell of Doubles stalls wafting through the air, washed down with a Rum and LLB (Lemon and Lime and home-grown Angostura Bitters) cocktail, was the perfect cultural cocktail for any visitor to this welcoming neighbourhood. Closely followed by calypso performer, whose ingenious improvised song about sustainable tourism got the message across quicker than any Powerpoint or pie chart. I suggested to Minister Cadiz that he bring him to the World Travel Market. After all, Trinidad and Tobago is the home of Calypso, and if anything can make sustainability sexy, this Calypsonian can.

Trinidad and Tobago’s natural heritage is at its most harmonious on the turtle nesting beaches, however. Conservation and protection of these precious areas is currently in the hands of Turtle Village Trust, (TVT) an NGO specialising in turtle conservation. TVT acts as an umbrella group for all the community turtle conservation projects that have developed in Trinidad and Tobago over the last twenty years. Its Executive Director Dr. Allan Bachan presented at the Conference and described his organisation as “a unique model, where private, public sector and communities have come together to expand in the region. A region which has the highest number of sea turtles in the Western hemisphere”.

Turtle beaches have gone from having 2500 visitors in 2000 to over 21000 visitors today, and you can only visit them with a guide working for the Trust during the turtle season. During that time 80% of Trinidad and Tobago’s villagers are employed in turtle conservation and tourism. “But we need to balance development and conservation of national resources”, Bachan added, something which was more than evident at Matura Beach, which I visited a couple of days later. It was a daytime visit, and so there was no sign of the hundred or so leatherbacks which had visited this seven mile sandy stretch the night before. At Matura the beach is patrolled and protected by one of TVT’s community organisations, Nature Seekers and, under the wonderful guidance of Francis Superville(listen to my quick chat with him here) who has seen this community change from poachers to protectors over the last generation, we saw turtle trails and learned about their reforestation programme which ensures the sustainability of these swathes of Galba, Olivier and Lay Lay trees, to name but a few, which line the white sands of this luscious northern coastline.

The steel pans, Trinidad’s national instrument

What doesn’t line the sands in Trinidad and Tobago, however, is evidence of protection at government level. How much longer can local communities, paid by funds raised by an NGO from organisations like BP (ironically) be expected to work in good faith and for little money, just for the love of it? Matura Beach, as well as many others, has Environmental Sensitive Area status, but as yet there is no National Park in Trinidad or Tobago. This must surely be the first step in putting real faith into its sustainable tourism product, enabling not only a future for its flora and fauna, but a guaranteed income for those who have worked round the clock, and with little investment,  to keep the resources alive to date.

When I asked Minister Cadiz when Trinidad and Tobago might see a sustainable tourism policy put in place at government level, he said that a draft was due to go to stakeholders for consultation. I couldn’t help wondering if the likes of Francis at Matura Beach, Christiana Gabin, our seventy year old guide at the Tobago Cocoa Plantation, Kelly and Carl Fitzjames at Brasso Seco Paria Eco Community, Elton Pouchet of In Joy Tours who organised our memorable panyard excursion, Andrew Welch of Banwari Experience which leads tours crossing all cultural aspects of Trinidad and Tobago, Courtenay Rooks who not only leads hiking tours to Paria Springs but is also President of Trinidad and Tobago’s Tour Operators Association were on that list of stakeholders. I certainly hope so, because although none of these was presenting Powerpoints to the hundreds of international delegates visiting their country, they are all making their mark on the ground, for sure.

There is no question, however, that when chatting to these all these individuals working in Trinidad’s nascent tourism industry, be it at government or grassroots, there is a genuine commitment to sustainability. And, as for liking tourists, well, let’s look at their national food as the perfect analogy. Because just like the famous Double, Trinidadians wrapped us up tight in a warm and spicy cocoon of deliciousness for a few days, leaving a lingering taste and a thirst for more. And as long as the environmental and tourism authorities protect and value the ingredients and the chefs, this country will be cooking up an a la carte menu of locally produced sustainable and quality tourism products which will bring a smile to every guest’s face.

Catherine and Francis Superville, turtle watching guide with Nature Seekers, Matura Beach, Trinidad

But will it make the hosts smile too? Can we make people actually like tourists? Tourism Minister Stephen Cadiz summed it up perfectly, saying “I don’t have to teach people how to smile here.  We do it naturally. One of the traits that Trinidad has is that we understand what it is to laugh at our own selves. We do that very easily….that is half the fight in building a tourism business – we, as a people, are who we are. What we don’t understand, is the value of what we have. Because that is what the real traveller wants to see. And that is what I am trying to explain to Trinidad and Tobago. Be natural.” For a full version of Catherine’s one to one interview with Minister Cadiz, click on Youtube screen below.

For more information on Trinidad and Tobago, see the official website. Go Trinidad and Tobago.  

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Martin McCrossan of Derry City Tours on The Peace Bridge, Derry/Londonderry or,as Martin says ‘Legenderry’

It is always uplifting to hear the sound of the organ playing when you enter a cathedral. But nothing was going to prepare me for what followed when I visited St Columb’s Church of Ireland Cathedral in Derry City last week. I was already ensconced in the guided tour of the city by Martin McCrossan of the eponymous guided tours company. He had come highly recommended as the man to get if you want to tour the city, and within minutes of walking the walls of this extraordinary city, crammed full of history and stories, I knew why people talked so highly of him.

Catherine and Franciscan Friar Alessandro Brustenghiin St Columb’s Cathedral, Derry/Londonderry

As part of his tour within the city walls (Derry is the most intact walled city in Europe, built 1613-19  by English settlers), Martin led me into the Cathedral. He was just telling me about the cannonball perched in the porch of the cathedral, which had been fired into the church during the infamous Siege of Derry in 1689, when the organ struck up. “That’ll be the Dean playing– he plays brilliantly. You want to hear his Danny Boy. Amazing.” Martin said, when suddenly the Dean, the Very Rev’d William Morton,  appeared and said “Hello there, Martin, good to see you. They chatted and Martin was curious to find out who was playing the organ, if it wasn’t the Dean. At this point, the Dean led us up the aisle to meet the source of this heavenly sound.

At the foot of the organ steps we were introduced to Father Paul Farren of Derry’s St Eugene’s Catholic Cathedral and a Franciscan friar, in full robes, who divulged the source. “That is Franciscan Friar Alessandro Brustenghi who is visiting us from Assisi. He loves to play the organ, so the Dean has kindly let us try it out”. It took a few seconds for me to click. Alessandro Brustenghi, the gifted and recently signed tenor, was playing up above, sending ethereal echoes all around this magnificent building. And we were his sole audience.

I was just managing to resist every urge to shout up a request for a quick Ave Maria, when the beautiful friar floated down the stairs and over to join us. The Dean introduced us, and we talked a little about music and his trip to Ireland. “I believe you play a mean Danny Boy” I said to the Dean, at which point the affable Martin persuaded him with a mere wink of the eye and a bit of Derry charm to go up and play it. I don’t think I ever heard a finer rendition, so how could I resist my chance to teach a famous friar the words? Father Farren joined in as we attempted the high notes together, and Allesandro smiled throughout.

John Kelly at Museum of Free Derry. John is not only the Education and Outreach Officer at the Museum but also the brother of Michael Kelly who was killed by British soldiers on Bloody Sunday 1972

I couldn’t help wishing the media was here to see this quiet act of reconciliation, but then I realised that just as these people of different denominations were standing side by side, connected by music and uplifted by song, so many more are doing the same in Derry all the time. Quietly, out of the public eye, because it is the right thing to do. Friar Allessandro wasn’t here for a big press event. He was here, according to Father Farren, to take part in the Pope Jean Paul Awards, which celebrate achievements among the young people of Ireland.

I had come to Derry as part of its City of Culture celebrations. But it’s only by walking with the likes of Martin McCrossan, or meeting the other people who live and work in this progressive city of reconciliation,  such as those who run the moving and fascinating Museum of Free Derry, that you will find the quiet corners of culture. Or just stop still in the city and listen for a while. Because you never know what voices you might hear.

Catherine stayed at one of Derry/Londonderry’s finest hotel, Beech Hill, with beautiful walking trails around the grounds, and an impressive policy of local food sourcing for their legendary ‘Legenderry’ menu. For lunch in the city centre, check out the very cool, and culturally connected Legenderry Warehouse No.1 Cafe (Irish stew a must).

Guided tours with Martin McCrossan and his team cost a mere £4. The best guided tour you will get for this money, anywhere. See www.derrycitytours.com for details. And absolutely don’t miss the Museum of Free Derry, as one of the most important museums representing civil rights in the world.

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Irish Ferries’ Ulysses coming into Dublin Port Photo: Irish Ferries

I have long been a fan of SailRail deals and wish there were a lot more of them. I have lost count of the amount of times I have travelled this way between London and Dublin, my two home towns, hopping on the 9.10 Virgin train at Euston and travelling direct to Holyhead, one of the most gorgeous routes which clings to the shores of North Wales, arriving at 12.50 in time to catch a variety of afternoon ferries. I am always in Dublin in time for tea and all for £38 single. A price that doesn’t go up during school holidays either. What’s not to love? For more information on how to book and what it costs, your absolute best and most up to date port of call is the inimitable Man in Seat 61.

So, I am forever trying to persuade my pals who are crossing the Irish Sea to do so using SailRail. It takes a bit of work, but they get there in the end and usually love it. The extra time to work of have family time together, no airport apprehension, no Ryanair rage and,of course, it’s cost. It’s a win win. At least, most of the time – until delays kick in and then the happy marriage of Sail and Rail starts to show a little need of counselling. The logistical love affair hangs by a thread when a third party is introduced. The car passenger. Because car drivers are always given precedence when it comes to ferry travel. They board first, they disembark first and they have access to better infrastructure in the ports. As a foot passenger I was always in the minority on these ferry crossings for years, struggling to find a bus to transport me from a ferry port to the city centre, or a car hire company which will deliver to the port without charging a huge supplement.

Catherine and family coming into Dublin Port by ferry

But things are changing. When I travel by train and ferry now, the numbers have increased ten fold at least. People have cottoned on for various reasons and fair play to the ferry and rail companies for keeping these deals going. But when you arrive into Holyhead with an hour to spare before the London train leaves the platform, and you are instructed to wait  for an hour watching car after car disembark, and your train leave the station (despite informing the crew that you have a SailRail ticket and would very much like to catch your train) this could be considered terms for divorce in my opinion. However, with a little mediation, and recognition of the needs of all parties involved, we could surely feel the Sail Rail love again? Stenaline, Irish Ferries, Virgin Trains, Arriva and the rest. Please take note and help put the Rail back into Sail so that we can all make this the marriage made in heaven that it deserves to be.

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Kevin Woods, The Leprechaun Whisperer on Slieve Foye Photo: Catherine Mack

It’s not every day you meet a Leprechaun Whisperer. And I thought it would be hard to suppress cynical smirks when I did, but when Kevin Woods of Carlingford, County Louth shook my hand firmly, looked me in the eye and gave me one of those smiles which emitted instant kindness and warmth, I could only mirror this and show respect and openness back.

As Kevin (or McCoillte as he is sometimes called) and I walked up Slieve Foye mountain together, I found myself wanting to believe that this was, as he told me, “the only place in Ireland where Leprechauns live”, not just because the affable Kevin has seen three Leprechauns in his life on this mountain but because this is, for me, one of the most magical spots in my home country of Ireland. Located right on the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, the Cooley Mountain range on the southern side of Carlingford Lough looking straight out over this dividing piece of water to the Mountains of Mourne in the North, an invisible border going with the flow between them, this small town holds a wealth of natural and cultural heritage in its pocket. Any sense of divide is hidden here and long may it continue – starting with my respect for Kevin’s beliefs in Leprechauns.

Leprechauns don’t appear to everyone, according to Kevin, and indeed he shared many people’s cynicism twenty odd years ago when local publican PJ O’Hare found a small suit and collection of tiny bones up on the mountain, as well as a few gold coins. Doubting their origin, Wood decided to make the most of the ‘find’ and organised a Leprechaun Hunt in his capacity as Regional Tourism Chairman at the time. It worked and the hunters came in hoardes but, as if to warn him that there were too many people on the mountain, the Leprechauns then appeared to Kevin on a walk in the hills one day.

I asked Kevin what they looked like as we continued our hike up along the Slieve Foye Loop. “They look just as you might imagine them – like in the cartoons really. That is how they appear to me, because they are spirits. They are about 18 inches tall, have top hats, green jackets, trousers and shoes which are pointed or round and always with gold buckles. They were cobblers because they spent so much time dancing, and so they wear out their shoes – which is why they became cobblers’.

Photo: Catherine Mack

Kevin certainly had the gift of storytelling as we continued up further into the Cooley Mountain range, a landscape where myths abound. Myths which tell of Greek-like transformations from human to animal form such as Donn Cúailnge, the Brown Bull of Cooley,  a human who had been turned into a bull and which then went on to become the focus of battles between Ulster and Connaught led by Queen Medb in these very mountains.

“I can see some sheep or goats grazing up there on the heathland “I said, soon to be corrected by Kevin who told me, quite nonchalantly, “One of those is the Ghost Horse of Mountain Park. There was a fella called Cocker Reilly – he was known as that because he was cock sure of everything. He used to come up by this part of the Mountain Park, passing a fairy mound every night. One night he relieved himself close to the fairy mound. When he woke up in the morning he couldn’t get out of bed, as he had two extra legs. They (the fairies) had turned him into a horse. He took off up into the hills and that’s who you can see there. You’ll often see him up there. ”

Kevin told these stories in such a matter of fact way that I just wanted to believe him. And so by the time we approached the Slate Rock, a massive ramp of granite which emerges from the hillside, and the place where he first saw the Leprechauns, I asked him if he thinks I will see them.  “It’s up to you, if you have the gift”, he said, “I am not sure whether you have the gift or not’. So, keeping my eyes and mind well open, Kevin went on to tell me more about his gift, which allows him not only to communicate with the Leprechaun’s chief elder, Corrig, learn about their history and lifestyles, but also brings him the ability to bring happiness to others and be happy for the rest of his life.

Carlingford and Slieve Foye Photo: Catherine Mack

One thing that makes me happy, however, is that Kevin spent nineteen years campaigning for this part of the Slieve Foye Mountain to be officially protected by the European Union, under the EU Habitats Directive to protect flora, fauna and wild animals. He won and in 2009, they received protection, with big brown EU signs up on the hill to prove it. I asked him how he managed to persuade the EU to protect something that was not actually in the physical world, and he said that the artefacts of the clothes and bones were proof enough.

As well as that,  the Leprechaun Hunt still happens in April every year which is “not to make money”, Kevin tells me, “but because for every person who stops believing, another Leprechaun spirit dies and so the Hunt increases the likelihood of more people believing.” (For more details see thelastleprechaunsofireland.com). As we headed back down the mountain towards Carlingford  town, with sadly no Leprechaun sightings to record this time, and headed for a drink in O’Hares, I couldn’t help wondering if I would be laughed at in the pub as they saw me walking in with Kevin, knowing that another tourist was ‘being had’. But no, we were met with joviality rather than jeers and welcomed in to this lovely local gathering spot. This gift of spreading happiness must be working, I thought to myself. I may have been tricked, or I might not have the gift, but there are few belief systems which make me smile as much as this one. And if Kevin’s gift is to continue spreading the word and happiness with it, who am I to argue? And anyway,  I don’t want a dead Leprechaun on my conscience. To be sure, to be sure.

Catherine cycling on Carlingford Lough near Greenore Photo Shay Larkin

For more information on The Last Leprechauns in Ireland, see thelastleprechaunsofireland.com. And click here for a podcast of Catherine’s walk and talk with the Leprechaun Whisperer. Or to go exploring the hiking trails of the Cooley Mountains see walkni.com and irishtrails.ie. In particular, check out The Tain Walking Festival 1-3 March 2103(carlingford.ie and discoverireland.com)

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