Just for a change, I went for a walk in the woods. The difference was that I hadn't walked in these woods before. Today it was the Dúchas Nature Reserve at Clara, just off the road between Laragh and Rathdrum. A beautiful walk through a woodland made up of mostly native trees. I saw a lot of felled Larch, so there may be a bit of ethnic cleansing going on there.
The official blue route is 9.5km, but the small car parking space at the official start was full, so we parked down at the bridge beside the little white church and walked up along a section of the red route adding maybe an extra half km.
At all of the entrances there were signs saying no horses. That suited me fine, since I didn't have one with me and was highly unlikely to have had one with me since I don't own one. However, it got me to thinking, why would you ban horses from a National Park? I couldn't think of a reason, after all horses are organic and reasonably natural, why couldn't they come in? They are probably more environmentally friendly than people.
Ok, I'm not a fan of stepping in their manure and horsey types tend not to clean up after themselves. We brought our dog, but we clean up after her if we spot her making any deposits. But to be honest, horse manure despite its size is marginally less offensive than dog poo and has a more organic smell. Besides you can expect to come across such messes in the wild, or at least you should be able to cope with them.
However I did discover one significant difference between horses and dogs. Horses really chew up the softer footpaths in ways that humans and dogs don't. Unless we travel in much larger numbers. So I agree with the signs. Keep the horses out, or perhaps we could let them in but keep them off the pedestrian routes and that includes the roads.
So the walk was lovely, we even saw a few deer. Probably Sika Reds. I was behind Caroline and just got a glimpse as I came around a turn in the trail. Our beast Kerry didn't spot them, but moments later she picked up their scent and was off after them like a rocket. A small black rocket. Fortunately she does obey orders and like a truculent teen she slunk back to us.
The route we followed tracked the Avonmore river for about 3km or so and the sound of the river became our backing music for most of the route. That and the sounds of birds. The next three km was mostly uphill, not mad uphill, but a sustained gentle rise that got the heart pumping and the lungs going. It was grand. Really.
There was a kind of top section with a bit of up and down, nothing much, but there were some great views down to the river and further down the valley. At this time of the year, the woods were pretty bare, but I would imagine this walk is visually stunning in all seasons. Reminds me, the top section was a bit breezy and the wind was quite chilly. I had to put on a cap and zip up my shirt.
All in all, a walk well worth doing. There are two shorter routes for those with shorter legs.
I only spent about five minutes thinking about cigarettes and that was a conscious decision to review the situation. Most of the urges seem to have faded. Confrontation doesn't happen that often and so far there have been no murders. Irritations come as often as they ever do, that comes mostly from living, listening and observing. I have no immediate plans to become a hermit. Boredom is the other big trigger and I've found myself being a bit more proactive on that score.
So now that I am into week three I can say it is getting easier.
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