Walks Summary
Stay Safe Stay Home.
Under 5km restrictions we cannot run club walks. Keep an eye on email for zoom calls to keep in touch.
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Lets continue to follow all the guidelines as the country opens up so that it stays that way. MI advice is still to keep groups to 10.
Please remember that social distancing of 2m is still in place – this is easy when you are on open ground but we need to be careful around gates and stiles. Gates and stiles are the thing that we can’t avoid touching so remember to bring your sanitizer with you.
Anne has sent an email which has the MI guidelines attached. Please take a look.
Some other stuff to remember
- Groups exercising outdoors are limited to 15 – including the walk leader. If you have more than one person who knows the way try to split the group up. Otherwise 15 is a limit that is outside the control of the walk leader.
- Be patient – we are all figuring this out as we go. We will get things wrong. Please share feedback and we will tweak and go again.
- Bring hand sanitizer because we will slip up. Overriding your instincts and habits is VERY hard.
- Consider bringing a face covering – they are not required for exercising outdoors but it might be handy while we are meeting / taking breaks.
- Consider reducing numbers for carpooling. Discuss and agree whether to wear masks while in the car.
- We are all adults. We will each be making our own decisions about risk but please respect others choices too. They may be more vulnerable or be going home to someone who is vulnerable.
- Also some of us have been working throughout this – others have been cocooning until recently. It’s strange and stressful for us all in different ways.
- Current guidelines from MI are that you should not carpool with someone from outside your household.
And some stuff we all do that we need to think twice about right now
- huddling together for group photos
- asking someone else to take a photo with your phone
- asking to get something from your backpack (or put something back in)
- sharing / passing around (trail mix, sunscreen, etc)
- be extra vigilant on distance when breathing hard during ascent
- be extra vigilant on distance when stopped at gates / stiles
- touching each others gear (holding someones poles while they climb over a gate/stile, locating the tube of your hydration pack, etc)
- be mindful of touching gates or stiles – maybe have just one person handle the gate. And use sanitizer.
But most of all lets get back out on the hills with each other.
Here are some posts from our local Mountain Rescue teams / HSE / Mountaineering Ireland with advice for walkers
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Update March 24th – this notice still applies
KMRT COVID-19 Update:
With the high volumes of people observed on the Kerry mountains over the last weekend, and given the current climate in relation to Covid-19, Kerry Mountain Rescue must make a number of difficult choices.
When calling out the Team to an incident, our first priority has to be the safety of Team members and their families. We are all volunteers, many of whom live with and care for ‘vulnerable’ people at home and in our working lives.
If you call 999 and ask for Mountain Rescue, we will of course do what we can, however…
– If you are uninjured, lost or benighted, you will be asked to consider waiting until morning, and/or better visibility to extricate yourself.
– If you are ‘walking wounded’ you will be asked to consider extricating yourself from the mountain.
– If you are seriously injured, and/or not physically able to get yourself off the hill, we will attend with the absolute minimum of team members needed to complete the task. Because of this, the evacuation will be less straightforward and the overall time to transport you to medical attention will be much longer.
Helicopter support will only be requested if a time critical injury is sustained.
While contrary to everything Kerry Mountain Rescue believe in, these measures are necessary to protect Team members and their families at this time.
Covid-19 is a very serious threat and it’s time everyone faced up to their responsibilities in order to limit the spread of the virus. Government guidelines have been very clear about physical distancing and many people have chosen to ignore this, putting everyone at risk. By its very nature, mountain rescue requires close contact between both rescuers and casualty, exposing everyone to the risk of infection. Remember, we could also infect you! Our already over-burdened hospitals don’t need or want any avoidable admissions over this difficult period.
Kerry Mountain Rescue are asking walkers to forego their enjoyment of the hills for the moment and to stick to lowland paths and walkways, while strictly observing social distancing principles. Otherwise there may come a time when the team may not be able to respond at all.
Let’s all put our shoulder to the wheel now and do our bit. Be Responsible, Stop the Spread.
Remember, the mountains will always be there.
Thank you.
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While Dublin / Wicklow aren’t exactly local for us – they shared this yesterday under the heading Risk : Its your choice not ours
Reality has temporarily shifted, and everyone gets to choose how to react. Emergency services personnel, however, do not have that choice; their actions are informed by your choices. On behalf of the entire emergency services family, we’re asking you to think before you choose.
Choose to keep your distance. COVID-19 has put social distance into conversation for a reason. Intensive care and ventilators don’t hold the solution to COVID-19; not contracting COVID-19 does. Social distance, hand hygiene, and cough etiquette will help you avoid it.
Choose not to get lost. Go to places you’re familiar with, plan your activity, and stick to safe routes and activities. The outdoors is a big place and it’ll be there for a long time. Please, for now, make the sensible, safe choice.
Choose not to get injured. Really, think about this. Even if you’re a world-class social distancer, getting injured will bring you into contact with a lot of people. Worse than that, you’ll most likely end up in hospital. Right now, the less work our hospitals get the better.
Choose not to block forest barriers. Mountain rescue, and other emergency services, use these barriers to access incidents quickly. Think about it, if you’re part of that incident, how quickly do you want help?
Your choices have a big impact on all of us. Giving up a little freedom now will be better for everyone in the long term. Think before you
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South Eastern Mountain Rescue Association
Yes, this is a Covid-19 post.
Please read it, it’s short.
1. If you are heading out for a walk, stick to familiar low risk routes. You do not want to end up in hospital right now & they don’t want you either.
2. Do not go in large groups & remember social distancing. There is plenty of space on the hills so use it.
3. If you do need our help, we will respond but we will take extra steps & precautions to protect our members and the families they go home to.
STAY SAFE – STAY SEPARATE
choose how to spend your weekend. Solidarity, not selfishness, is the name of the game. Thank you.
Note: Walk Leader to be contacted (by text) day before walk to confirm participation.
Changes and cancellations will only be communicated to those who have contacted the walk leader.
Times are departure times, if you need to grab food / coffee, please arrive early.
For Data protection, details of walk leaders have been removed from the website.
Please refer to the full walks schedule shared with members by email, or the text message circulated by the club secretary.
If you are not a member, please reach out on facebook, or contact info@blackrockhillwalkingclub.ie
Carpooling
As a club we encourage carpooling. There are a number of advantages to carpooling.
For environmental reasons less cars means less fuel and less pollution. Also space for car parking can be a challenge on some walks – we don’t want to be blocking gates or tracks that are in use by locals.
If you are interested in car-pooling please let the walk leader know if you are looking or offering. The walk leader can often be helpful in putting people in touch with each other but depending on the walk and who else is going, you will need to be prepared to have your own transport.
We recommend a contribution of €10 to the driver for any of our regular weekend walks.
Walk Grades:
C : up to 4 hours. On tracks paths and quiet roads. Little or no climb.
C+ longer walks that may involve an incline or an easy mountain involving walking on open ground.
B : expect to be out 4-5 hours. Expect a climb and rough open ground. There may be some scrambling and exposure.
B+ can be anything from 5 – 7 hours. Expect a climb and rough open ground. There may be some scrambling and exposure. Details of the exact walk might be light with the walk leader more likely to make changes depending on the group and the day.