70 about American infantry fighting in the Vietnam War, who carried a huge array of gear. I wondered what Aidan had to carry to complete his hikes. I sought an interview with him, and generously he obliged during a visit to Dublin and brought a lot of his gear with him to show me. HOW IT BEGAN … AND HOW HE DOES IT His interest in hiking was sparked when he did his first long-distance walks with Venture Scouts, the De La Salle Scout Group in Waterford. In 2006, he completed the Cape Wrath Trail with his late brother, Colm, a challenging 370km backpacking route through the Scottish Highlands, considered one of the toughest hikes in the UK. (Sadly, in 2014, Colm died tragically in a climbing accident in the Alps.) “Cape Wrath made a huge impression on me when I completed it with Colm, and I dreamed of recreating that type of hike in Ireland,” said Aidan. “It’s how I ended up developing my 525km Three Peninsulas hike from Dursey to Dingle, across the mountains of west Cork and Kerry” (see Mountain Logs 124 and 129). I ask Aidan how he prepares physically for an ultra-hike. Does he go for mountain runs? “No,” he says. “I maintain a general level of fitness through daily weekday runs of 6km from my house in Tramore to the beach. Pictured this page: Wild camp on the shore of a perfectly still Loch Dubh, below an Cnapán Mór, in the Slieve Mish Mountains, Dingle Peninsula, Co Kerry. Photo: Aidan Ennis
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