Slieve Foye

I have always wanted to visit the charming village of Carlingford, just over the border sitting on the south side of Carlingford Lough.

Today the group I hike with did a hike on Slieve Foye, which hovers over the village.

It was a lovely day and I enjoyed meeting many of my 20 fellow hikers.

I talked to Jeremy about agriculture policy in N.I.--he works for the ag department.

I talked to Andrew about his pet West Highland Terrier.

I talked to JoAnn about her favourite musicians. (In the photo below, there is a herd of horses, with Carlingford in the background--a bit hard to make out).

I talked to Patrick about his work on behalf of immigrants.

I talked to Brent about the Wimbledon final, which includes a fellow South African.

I talked to Denise about a recently divorced cousin who has moved in with her and who is showing no interest in moving out.

I talked to Mícheál about the challenges of hiking on such a hot day.

It was a very long and challenging hike and I appreciate having people to chat with to ignore the rubbery feeling overtaking my legs on the way down. This photo was taken near the top.

And this one was at the top.

This on the way down:

Where we met some blue sheep:

Zoom:

and back in the village.

It was a six-hour hike--nothing to joke about, as the terrain was often difficult.
One of the things about mom that annoys me is she asks me endless series of questions every day. Who is Marks and Spencers named for? How many buses are there to Derry every day? What do you do with rose hips? Is that the Irish Sea or the Atlantic Ocean (that question came up a half dozen times a day in Donegal). While I find the daily interrogation tiring, I think it has benefitted me in multiple ways, one of which is it made me a decent newspaper reporter. And a decent financial writer--you can’t write well if you don’t have your facts straight. It’s also made me comfortable talking to anyone about anything, which comes in handy on a hike with 20 people.
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