As It Should Be

Today we're deep in the Wicklow Mountains in the beautiful and remote Glenmalure valley, southwest of Glendalough.  The longest glacier valley in the British Isles, Glenmalure is extremely rugged and wild, and was the scene of several battles over the centuries.

Gaelic clansmen defeated an English force here in 1272.  Another led by King Richard II passed through here in 1399 in pursuit of Art Mor McMorrough but were continually harassed by the clansmen who simply disappeared into the deep forests.  Eventually, the King's knights and foot soldiers, decimated and starving, made their way to Arklow where ships awaited to take them and their doomed monarch back to England.

So we make our way past the last outpost of civilisation, The Glenmalure Lodge, and head straight through the Drumgoff crossroads and continue along the lane, savouring the breathtaking scenery on either side of the valley all the way to the dead end at Barravore.  All further progress is entirely on foot, and this is as it should be!