Easter Saturday 2023, I left Daisy the Dacia in Mulranny (of the many spellings!) , while I walked up to the remains of the Old railway station, now a part of the Greenway (Green? More like grey asphalt).
Anyway I took up by the old water tower through a gate onto the Lookout Loop and within minutes was making elevation over the beautiful Clew Bay. Although my destination was Claggan MNET, I wanted to pick off the lower summits en route and make it a really fruitful walk so I went up to Dooghill and then on to Claggan MWT. The navigation was somewhat serpentine and I was moving slowly as I had 14kg on my back with plans to overnight on the hill, and being solo didn't want to go arse over head. The views up here are stupendous and even more so when you reach CMNET which squeaks in as an Arderin at 501m. You have the Nephin Begs, The Corranabinnia horseshoe, Clew Bay, The Reek and it's attendants, Islands' Clare and Achill and another under-rated gem unexplored by many, the Corraun sub-range.
By 19.00 hours I was at my objective surveying the area in an attempt to find a suitable pitch, knowing that the wind was to rise by morning. On the lip of the NE face I got a somewhat less level than desired spot, put up my tent, put on the stove and ate my supper, happy as only a man on a mountain can be.
I had a superb view over Lough Anaffrin and across the vast wetness of the bogs and lofty mountains, and happily retired to my sleeping bag. Sleep was somewhat hit and miss as wind and rain showers scudded over me that night, and I arose at 06.00 to a monochrome world of low cloud. My stove decided to misfire and I struck camp coffeeless, but nonetheless cheerful. It was a different place to the day before, the views were gone and I had to push hard into the unrelenting wind and murk to continue. It was a world of grey fog crossing the peat hags and navigation was tricky but I got to Maumthomas SWT . I had originally planned to go to it's NE summit too,but the weather was just way too nasty now. I followed the spur SE off the hill for my descent, it was generally easy going underfoot, here and there having to dodge the peat hags.
I was into the teeth of the wind here and was glad to eventually reach the turf cutters tracks and from there the 'Rocky Mountain' Trail (another somewhat misnamed way). By now the cloud was above me and I could see my start point ahead, so i dallied along a bit of the aforementioned and unaptly monikered 'Greenway' to get back to the start.
In conclusion, A great walk, and if you want solitude you will be unlikely to be disappointed.
Statistics for those interested - 20km with about 600m climb and it took me about 7 hours in total, but there again, i was heavily laden and I'm never a fast walker.
A 9/10 for me. Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/452/comment/23872/