The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

Travels with Clifford

As long-time followers of this blog may know, my youngest brother, Clifford, has both graced many photos and been behind the lens for quite a few more. Beginning with Maui in 1990, Clifford and I explored Belize in 1993, Wales with our dad in 2000, and coastal California and the Southwest US numerous times since 2007. More recently we traveled and hiked together in Tasmania and mainland Australia in 2017, Malta in 2018, Ireland in 2019, and Costa Rica in 2022. Clifford’s innate curiosity, far-reaching knowledge, boundless enthusiasm, and child-like sense of wonder for the natural world enriched my travels in so many ways. Here are some recent fond memories. . .

Posing with stringy bark eucalyptus, Franklin River Nature Trail, Tasmania, Australia, 2017
Scratching an alpha male Forester kangaroo, Tasmania
Smiling from inside a hollow eucalyptus, Notley Gorge, Tasmania
Investigating a termite mound, Bed Boyd National Park, New South Wales, Australia, 2017
Admiring the vista at Kalarranga Lookout, Finke Gorge National Park, Northern Territory, Australia, 2017
Enjoying the strata, Kings Canyon, Northern Territory
At a cliff-edge along the south coast of the island of Gozo, Malta, 2018
Kayaking on Dwejra Bay, Gozo
Admiring the cliffs from his kayak, Dwejra Bay
Looking up into the canopy from under a Dragon tree, San Diego Botanical Garden, 2022
Standing with an impressive yucca, San Diego Botanical Garden
Posing with an endangered Elephant tree at Torote Bowl, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California, 2022
Under California Fan Palms, Anza-Borrego
At the trailhead of the Domelands Loop, Coyote Mountains Wilderness, California, 2022
Making empanadas with Valerie, Guanacaste, Costa Rica, 2022
At Toroweap Overlook on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, Arizona, 2023
Smiling with our brother, Mark (c), and me, the Dingle Peninsula, Ireland, 2019

Clifford Blizard

1970-2024

Carpe Diem!

Kent Blizard, the Vagabond Hiker

Walking Ireland’s Dingle Peninsula

The Dingle Peninsula, County Kerry, in the southwest of Ireland, boasts some fine walks, both along the coast and inland. Although the Dingle Way garners most of the attention, some of the better (and more challenging) hikes are not on this popular route. Favored with good weather during our brief stay at an amazingly- sited Airbnb bungalow near Smerwick Harbor, we did three walks, one a leg stretcher along the beach from our bungalow while the other two were proper hikes. Enjoy the photos!

The red arrow points out the Atlantic Bay Rest, our eclectic Airbnb bungalow. Our semi-private sandy cove is to its right, Smerwick Beach and Harbor a bit farther along the coast to the left.
Steps led down to our cove beach
Along the Dingle Way near Smerwick Beach. On our first day we walked from our bungalow to the sandy beach, which stretches for miles with some intermittent rocky coast.
On the second day we hiked around the Three Sisters and the Sybil Headland, the most dramatic cliffs on the Dingle Peninsula. As the 179 km Dingle Way doesn’t follow this section of coast, we had the hike virtually to ourselves.
Maggie on the most northeasterly of the Three Sisters, Binn Diarmada, with my brother Mark in the background.
Looking back northeast to Binn Diarmada. The mountains in the background are on the other side of Smerwick Harbor on the Dingle Peninsula.
Vista as we headed southwest to Sybil Point (206 m)
View northeast from the derelict Sybil Point observation post. The building was originally from Napoleonic times, though most of the construction dates from from WW2.
The Blasket Islands from Sybil Point. Never having more than 200 inhabitants, Great Blasket was abandoned in 1953/4.
Another perspective of Sybil Point, taken during our later drive around Slea Head.
Our route from Conor Pass under Brandon Peak, just seen on the far right. On this final hike we ascended to the col, the low point on the left-hand ridge seen here, and then onto the ridge off the photo on the left. Although we did not attempt Brandon Peak, the circular hike still had more than 600 m elevation gain and loss over its 12 km length.
Looking north to Brandon Peak (840 m) and Mount Brandon behind (952 m) from the ridge above Conor Pass near the end of our hike.
Atmospheric view west across Brandon Bay from the spit North of Castlegregory. Brandon Peak and Mount Brandon are on the right here, hidden by clouds. I took this photo as we were driving off the Peninsula just ahead of storm clouds coming in from the Atlantic.

I updated my calendar through the third week of December with two additions. In October and early November I will finally do one of my long time bucket list items, Bhutan’s Snowman Trek. After that a month back in Lanzarote in the Canary Islands seemed in order. . .

Next week I am heading to Glencoe, Scotland for two weeks of hikes and scrambles in the Scottish Highlands. I will post some photos from that trip during the first week of June. Until then, get outdoors and enjoy the spring weather,

The Vagabond Hiker

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