Urgent bid to tackle ‘erosion’ of the MacGillycuddy’s Reeks

The mountains of Kerry are changing and, in fact, some are eroding: thousands of walkers trampling paths along with climate change and huge numbers of sheep driving out the deer are all contributing to the dramatic developments.

In the month of August, alone, 5,000 people traversed one of four main pathways on the MacGillycuddy’s Reeks, the home of Ireland’s highest peaks.

A new survey on the mountains highlights a number of concerns. The survey was presented to councillors in Killarney by Patricia Deane, who is spearheading a pilot project for sustainable access on the privately owned mountains.

Working with the South Kerry Development Partnership and a forum representing landowners, some guides, and various State bodies she found half of all walkers are aged 36-50 and over three quarters are male.

“All the land on the Reeks is privately owned land. It is not national park but access is permitted,” Ms Deane said.

The 5,000 people count during August was at Cronin’s Yard, one of the main access points to Carrauntoohil, Ireland’s highest mountain. Huge numbers are also arriving, unannounced. A few weeks ago, a group of 300 arrived to walk for charity, said mountain walker and Fianna Fáil councillor John Joe Culloty.

Ms Deane said charity events and commercial guides operating without licence were a big problem for Reeks’ landowners.

In fact, she said, commercial guiding on the Reeks was a big bone of contention, with only some guides contributing to the maintenance of the amenities.

A “Friends of the Reeks” group has been set up to garner funds for the path repair. Twelve main paths, totalling 600km, have to be repaired as they are widening dangerously due to people walking on the sides.

“Path migration — people walking off the path is getting bigger. It must be stopped,” Ms Deane warned.

The forum has taken the unusual step of training locals to repair the paths voluntarily and it is working. The notorious Devil’s Ladder is, however, in “a terrible state”. It is only 600 metres in length but repair work is highly technical. “And it is a gully, so it is doable,” Ms Deane said.

Meanwhile, natural erosion continues and is exacerbated by the pressure of thousands of walkers.

Tough, no-nonsense signs have been erected and while they do not suggest walkers make funeral arrangements before they go up the mountain they are warned of fatal risks.

“People need to know they are entering a very dangerous area,” Ms Deane said.

Meanwhile, Cllr Culloty said the once peat-covered Mangerton Mountain, in Killarney National Park, is also crumbling at the top.

“It’s not all to do with walkers but a whole area of gravel has appeared that was never there before,” Cllr Culloty said. He believes climate change was a cause.

The Irish Deer Society claim huge numbers of sheep illegally grazing on foothills of the Killarney National Park are taking valuable and traditional grazing grounds for deer. The threat to the red deer, particularly this year, had also been compounded by illegal burning of gorse. The society is seeking to have 600 sheep removed.