Ireland's
'holy mountain', which was climbed by bare-footed pilgrims for hundreds
of years, is being destroyed by hikers, boots and 'gangs' of walkers.
"If
we don't do something about Croagh Patrick it won't be there in the
future," warned local priest Fr Michael MacGreil, addressing the recent
AGM of the Western Tourism Organisation in Mayo.
"The growing
number of climbers on the mountain is now cutting into the mountain and
their heels are digging into the shale on the path. It is not like when
pilgrims went up in their bare feet -- they didn't damage the path" he
said recently.
The sheer number of visitors to the famous Mayo
mountain, their tough modern footwear, and erosion, are all ravaging the
surface of the famous mountain and leaving it in a treacherous
condition.
According to legend, St Patrick spent 40 days and
nights fasting on the summit in the year 441 AD, but in the past year
part of the pathway to the top has become almost inaccessible.
According
to the Mayo Mountain Rescue, last August they had to deal with nine
incidents on the mountain, ranging from suspected heart attacks to
people with broken limbs.
Now international hillwalking tour
operator, Hoofbeats International, are warning visitors: "Do not ascend
to the summit of Croagh Patrick Mountain owing to the steepness and
erosion of the track near the top which is considered unsuitable."
In
recent years Croagh Patrick has also become a magnet for
adventure-sports enthusiasts who descend en masse upon the mountain.
However, many fear that their presence is causing severe erosion: "What
has caused the problem are these challenge races where you have a large
number of people tearing up and down the mountain," says Gwen Mitchell
with the Westport Mountaineering organisation.
Mayo County Council
accept that the mountain is dangerous but feel that their hands are
tied in the matter: "People have been climbing Croagh Patrick for
thousands of years and it was always dangerous. It is meant to be a
pilgrimage after all . . . We don't own the mountain and we don't look
after it. The path upwards is very ancient and steep and I don't see
what you could do with it. It is not like the edge of a cliff where you
can put up a fence to keep people back," said John Condon, county
secretary of Mayo County Council.