Waterford Scout County MPC 2007

The 13th Annual County Mountain Pursuit Challenge will be based in the southern side of the Comeragh Mountains from Friday the 21st of September to Sunday the 23rd September 2007. The route will take in the most notable peak of Seefin (726m) and will be based in the remarkable and mysterious valley of Coum Eag. Coum Eag translates literally as The Valley of Death but hopefully this being our 13th event and that translation will not put anyone off. Anyway we hope to have found both a good alder wand and a good druid to keep things in order. In a change from last year, this year we will be basing ourselves at the one basecamp (Coum Eag) for both nights and doing a day hike from there on the Saturday. As usual only scouts who are equipped and prepared for a full weekend on the mountains will be able to take part.

Above: Members of Sacred Heart on the summit of Galtymore on the County MPC 2006.

The start is close to Aughatriscar Bridge (S 294 053), which is very close to the village of Kilrossanty. Travelling from Waterford either turn on your Satnav or turn right off the N25 at Lemybrien and follow the signs for Kilrossanty past the Garda Station. From Kilrossanty follow the signs for the Comeragh Drive and take the second turn off to your left. After you turn up the road turn left at the first fork over a bridge and follow the forest road until you reach a wide bend. There is parking at this bend and although it is a quiet spot no valuables should be left in cars. Teams can present themselves for registration and gear check from 6.30pm. As there is a 2 kilometre walk and a 170m height gain to base camp at Coum Eag (S 286 042) teams must be at the start and ready to set off by 7.30pm at the latest (Remember it will be getting dark by then). The event will finish back at the cars at 12.00pm on Sunday the 23rd. All Venture Scouts from the county (St. Pauls, the Waterford Scout County Group, the Venturers from Middle Earth and anyone else out there) are as usual more then welcome to take part (once fully equipped).

Above: "Christoph and Ali a.k.a. Ian Leigh Grant" by Cian O'hOgartaigh - Best Photo in the Scout Category on the County MPC 2006.

The walk on Saturday will be a horseshoe and will take us from our base camp at Coum Eag (S 286 042) back to the start of the spur of Cuteen South before the enjoyable ascent up on to Farbreaga. On a clear day there are amazing views down to Dungarvan and of the whole Waterford coastline from here. From there we will cross the Barnamadra Gap past the standing stone and on up to the summit of Seefin. Next we will cross the Leacanthimlay bog to the edges of Coumfea and Coumtay before sweeping back down the ridge to the left of the Coumtay and back to the campsite. The route will be subject to change depending on conditions. There will hopefully be a small number of instructional bases on the day.

Above: Adventure Awaits... by Aidan Ennis - Best Photo in the Venturer/Leader Category on the County MPC 2006.

The area that we will be staying in this year is rich in folklore and history and you will see on the map that close to where we are camping there are many cairns, barrows, standing stones, ogham stones, holy wells, fortified houses and fulachta fia. Indeed the place is well known as containing a Door Between the Worlds and specifically a door into the Garden of the Tuatha de Danann. Where the lines between this world and the Other World are thin, strange things are known to happen especially to strange people (like us). We are asking scouts, venturers and leaders to write us a story set where we will be camping and hiking for the weekend and loosely based on some of the events and characters of the weekend. It will have to be in a folk story style and can either be told to us on the Saturday evening or written down and presented to the event organisers before 9.30am on the Sunday morning. It doesn't have to be long but it will have to be in the tradition of a folk story and stories in the Old Tongue will not be accepted. It can be a patrol/team effort but we will also accept stories from any individual. The stranger the better. We have no less than eight prizes from Altitude in Ballybricken to give away for the best stories. An example of a folk story from the Waterford area is given below.

Above: Unstoppable - after the descent from Galtymore on the County MPC 2006.

Tim Kelly, Tom Daly and the Spirit

Tim Kelly was coming one night from Dungarton at a late hour, the time that ghosts are usually out, up the glen called Poll Cam, when he suddenly spied a ghost*, a terrible tall one altogether, about ten feet, and says to himself, says he,- "Goodness gracious! I'm done for now; what will become of my wife and poor children? And only for his old mule, he couldn't get away from the ghost at all. When he was coming towards his house he had every shout, saying, - "Brighid! Open the door, Brighid!" And his wife opened the door and to her surprise in came Tim and the mule and all. And only for his wife closing the door, in was the ghost too. Tom Daly, called the "Cuinne,"** who had been with Tim, had disappeared from Tim as the ghost came down upon him, and was found the following morning after falling over the raised path through the Poll Cam. He had smashed his braces, but otherwise he was safe and sound. He came home saying, - "Dealing mother, I'm kilt after the night; 'tis I did see the sight, - ghosts and spirits around me all night, screeching and bawling! Put down a kettle o'tea and maybe it will revive me a little!"

* = This ghost is a manifestation of the spirit of a certain soldier in Cromwell's army who died in the Glen. ** = So called from his habit of sitting in the corners of cottages next to the hearth. "Cuinne" (pron. Coongey), means corner. Source: Waterford Folk-Tales, II; P. Ussher; Folklore, Vol. 25, No. 2 (Jun. 30, 1914), p. 227.

Above: The Coumtay valley as seen from its south facing cliffs.

Many thanks to Altitude for sponsoring the story telling event. We can thoroughly recommend them for hiking boots and socks, wetgear, fleeces and outdoor clothing, rucksacks and walking poles, maps and compasses, sleeping bags and thermarests, tents and every type of camping gear. Call into Eamon and the lads in the store or check out their website at www.altitude.ie.

Last year we did have a suitable stream but as we were all far too wet the duck race did not go ahead. Water levels permitting this year we will hold will the 5th Annual Regional Floating Object Race on the Sunday morning and teams are invited to enter either original plastic bottles or traditional plastic ducks. Ducks that do not float will not be allowed enter and the fastest two ducks will go on to represent us in the International Rubber Duck Championships in November. This year the event is taking place in the magnificent setting of the Morskie Oko valley in Poland.

Above: The winners of the 3rd Annual Regional Floating Object Race - the 8th Tramore.

There will be a gear check on Friday night and all the gear listed below will be required by everybody taking part in the event. Obviously everybody is responsible for bringing their own supply of food for the weekend. It is recommended that scouts operate in patrols of between 3 and 4 so that they can share tents, cooking equipment, first aid kit, maps and compasses. We will be strictly carrying out the gear check and will have no choice but to send home any scout, venture scout or leader without the minimum equipment. The gear check can also be downloaded in pdf format here.

Everybody is reminded that environmentally sound and responsible hiking is an absolute must for events of this type. The principles of Leave no Trace are a must for the weekend all participants should familiarise themselves with the 7 principles before the weekend. They are:

Any patrol that can name all 7 principles at check in on the Friday night will receive an immediate prize! You can visit the Irish website of Leave no Trace here.

The campsite we have chosen is superb but you will need to either bring water with you or collect some from the stream on the way which is about 300 metres from the campsite. Participants must avoid polluting this stream and should note that the area is used for sheep farming so the quality of the water cannot be guaranteed and all water should be boiled or treated before consumption. Check out this link to an article on Where to "Go" in the Great Outdoors - scouts should be familiar with these guidelines.

If you have any questions or require any assistance please do not hesitate to contact Paschal Guilfoyle, Eoin McMahon or Colm Ennis. To assist us in the event organisation, we would be grateful if you could give us approximate numbers by Sunday the 16th of September by phone to any of the above or by email to . We are looking forward to seeing you on what's going to be an excellent weekend and yet again we are guaranteeing good weather. See you there!

Above: Members of the 3rd Scouts on the summit of Galtymore (919m) on the County MPC 2006.