Croagh Patrick
Cruach Phádraig · Co. Mayo
Croagh Patrick — "the Reek" to Mayo people — is Ireland's holy mountain, a 764-metre quartzite cone rising straight from the shore of Clew Bay. Pilgrims have climbed it for well over a thousand years; tradition holds that St Patrick fasted on its summit for forty days in 441 AD, and long before Christianity the mountain was a place of Lughnasa harvest gatherings.
The pilgrimage
On Reek Sunday, the last Sunday of July, thousands of pilgrims climb the mountain, some barefoot, with Mass celebrated in the summit chapel. The rest of the year the mountain belongs to hillwalkers, who come for one of the finest viewpoints in Ireland: the whole of Clew Bay spread below, scattered with its famous drumlin islands — locals say one for every day of the year.
The climb
The standard route starts at Murrisk, beside the statue of St Patrick, and climbs steadily to the saddle before the final steep cone. Recent path-building work has greatly improved the badly eroded upper slopes, but the last section remains loose and sharp underfoot — proper footwear matters, and the round trip takes most people three to four hours.
Check the forecast before setting out: the summit is frequently in cloud, and the views are the point. Morning climbs beat both the crowds and the afternoon weather.
Getting there and nearby
Murrisk is on the R335 between Westport and Louisburgh, ten minutes from Westport town. Opposite the car park, the National Famine Memorial — a bronze coffin ship — stands by the shore near Murrisk Abbey. Westport itself, one of Ireland's most attractive planned towns, makes the natural base, and the Great Western Greenway cycle route runs from here towards Achill.
Where it is
53.7608°N, 9.6609°W
Nearby stops
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