Walk Today - Avondale Forest Park

Retroholic Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 5685

I never done any form of history passed my primary education but there was once a chap called Charles Stewart Parnell who they called the uncrowned king of ireland. I dunno what that means but google found this : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Stewart_Parnell

Anyway, he lived about 1.5 miles from my front door on a 500 acre site. Since he dies the forestry/heritage place took it over and it became a tourist attraction. Lovely plac ethat most of the Rathdrum folk grew up in.

Theres a few different designated walked where you follow different signs and it brings you through all the different types of trees or what not but thats not for me so i just made up or own walk!

Pics aren't of anything exciting so i haven't much of a story to tell so i'll just explain them as i go along

This is "the big ride" i thiink its actually called "the great ride" but i've always called it the big ride so thats what i'm telling you to call it Razz

Basically is a grassy corridor lined with trees either side, all the trees are divided into species etc. Over the brow of this hill

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This pic looks like it comes to an end but its the same width the whole way down so where you see the narrow gap is over 1/2 a mile away

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Further on from the last pic, at the very end you can just about see the cairn which you'll see in a sec

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They've recently chopped down a patch of tress to the left, dunno why

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Weehay, the cairn. Bet you feel cheated thats its just a pile of rocks Laughing

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Bit of history of the cairn, the sign hasn't been there long

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Hanna climbed on top of it and now believes she can climb anything (despite me having to rescue her from it)

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Some of the rolling hills that surround us here. I need to take the digi cam for good pics but its annoying to carry it so the phone will do for now

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Random woodland piccie

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Reading down to the river now, Hanna missed this sign and took off running. I would've let her plunge to her death had she not had the only set of house keys

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Random piccie again

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Still heading down to the river and you come across the railway line, this is the main south - dublin line.

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Which you then have to go under

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Some weird little house ruin thingy. Looks quite new but also very old, Freaky

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Yey we reach the river

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Again we go under the railway line, as does the river

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Randon blurry piccie

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This reminded me of the volvic ad with the pole dancer! Laughing

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Trees, pretty ones!

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Steps

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A bridge, fascinating

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I found a beach Laughing

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The river. Rivers sound lovely don't they?

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Ye don't get water this clear in england Razz

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The next 2 pics were taken at the request of Hanna, these are trogg houses. Yes thats right, troggs live here. For those that don't know troggs look like trolls but are brown and swarm like piranhas!

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Steps, lots of them, very bloody steep

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And when you get to the top theres more!

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This is the house where Parnell lived, you can get tours and stuff if you so wanted

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Forum Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2004 Posts: 19978

good stuff.

Thats a big cairn, theres thousands of them here.

Rivers are great and again we have thousands of them.

the steep drop sign looks like a drunk falling off a kerb!

Retroholic Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 5685

hahaa yeah i thought it was a bit stupid

Fixed the volvic pic now

Forum Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2004 Posts: 19978

lol at the volvic rock.

Site Subscriber Joined: 11 Dec 2005 Posts: 192

woo looks a great walk, some good pics Cool