Dunderry man takes fundraising efforts to new heights by climbing Ireland's tallest peaks for a great cause
Dunderry man takes fundraising efforts to new heights with County High Point Challenge in aid of Navan Arch Club
A YOUNG Dunderry man has successfully climbed to the highest point in every county in Ireland to raise funds for a charity that supports adults with special needs.
Jack McConnell (24) took on the County High Point Challenge in aid of Navan Arch Club, a social club for adults with intellectual disabilities and has so far raised €2,700 for the non-profit organisation.
Having spent the last few months travelling around the 32 counties (with a lockdown break in between) the keen hiker ended his journey last week at Carnebarne East at Loughcrew Cairns, Meath’s highest point joined by members of the arch club in which he describes as a “poignant moment.”
It was Jack’s time abroad that inspired him to rediscover his home land as he explains:
“This time last year I came home from being in Canada for two years and I while I was there I travelled through Central America and I realised that I hadn’t really seen any of Ireland.
“My cousin did the county high point challenge two years ago for Sligo/Leitrim Mountain Rescue so he was the main inspiration for it and I decided that I’d take on the same challenge.
“I thought it would be a good opportunity to raise some money and if I was going to do that I wanted to do it for a local charity so I asked around friends and family and the Navan Arch Club was recommended to me.”
Jack who works in the lab in Tara Mines had only started his trek around Ireland when lockdown came into play.
“I started the challenge on February 1st at Kippure Mountain in Dublin and from there I set out the target of trying to finish it all by my birthday which was 18th August.
“It was going to average out at one a week starting February 1st and then of course coronavirus hit and threw everyone’s plans up in the air.
“When we came out of that I decided that I’d still stick to my original deadline so I upped the anti to three climbs a week.
“I still had 20 climbs to do from the 29th June to 18th August, it added to the challenge but it definitely was a challenge because it took up every weekend.”
The Dunderry man and his pal even conquered all of Northern Ireland’s high points in less than a day as he explains:
“We left Navan at 1.15am in the morning and started Slieve Donard in Newcastle in Co, Down at 3.10am.
“We ended up coming off the last mountain that night at 11.30pm so we were going straight for 20 hours.”
The highest peak doesn’t always represent the biggest challenge according to the Tara Mines employee.
“Carrauntoohill is the biggest mountain in the country but it is actually not the hardest because it is a fairly well laid out trail.
“The more interesting the terrain, the least you notice the effort going in.
“The toughest one was Mweelrea in Mayo, the highest peak in Connaught.
“I was doing it on my own which I don’t mind but it was near the end of my week off and at that stage I was coming to the 9th mountain of the week.
“It was very wet that week so on foot it was very boggy and very energy zapping climbing up that terrain and and there weren’t any views that I could take in.”
Jack says the most memorable hike was the last one in his home county.
“Lough Crew is 276m which is only a tiny hill so some of the members of the Arch Club were able to come with their parents along with my parents and a few friends.
“The Arch Club members really enjoyed coming up and they were really grateful and thankful and it was nice to wrap it up there.
“I always wanted to finish on home county soil which was a nice added touch as well.
“I loved it, it was demanding at times but it was a great way for me to experience the real kind of Ireland and seeing places I never would have before.”