S U N D AY

6 / LIFE

Clad in two wetsuits and with a woolly hat under her safety helmet, Katie Roche joins a team of adventure-seekers to go canyoning and kayaking among some of Co Kerry’s most striking geographical features in the Gap of Dunloe

I

do not fully understand what canyoning is until I am in the middle of negotiating the drops and slides of a gorge at Torc Waterfall in Killarney, Co Kerry. It’s like whitewater rafting, only without the raft. There are slippery rocks, tricky handholds and gushing water so forceful it is difficult to hear our instructor, Nathan Kingerlee of Outdoors Ireland. “Just go,” he shouts at us — and so we do. Scrambling, jumping, abseiling, swimming and squeezing our way downstream. We take some knocks, but luckily bounce back unharmed, thanks to the fact that we are wearing two wetsuits — a get-up we originally thought a little OTT when Kingerlee first suggested it. Canyoning — a relatively new sport to Ireland — basically involves getting from the top of a canyon or gorge to the bottom, or vice-versa, using a rope where necessary and your own abilities. The pastime is huge in countries such as America, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales, where there are numerous high mountains and spectacular canyons, but it’s becoming popular here in a few locations around the country. In Killarney, Kingerlee has combined canyoning with kayaking in the stunning Gap of Dunloe, allowing adventurous souls to spend a day paddling and scrambling their way through a stream, river, lakes and gorge with some hiking and, er, dragging a kayak thrown in here and there to make it more “rewarding”, as he likes to call it. In total, you descend about 150 metres and travel 6km in the untamed, icecarved valley, following the water course from its highest to deepest levels. “There are so many words for it — canyoning, swanaboree, gorge walking — but they are all talking about an activity that basically involves getting wet and exploring water with an ascent or descent,” Kingerlee says. “The course we’re doing is similar to those offered by adventure companies in Scotland and America.” Scotland and America, however, don’t have the Gap of Dunloe. The long, narrow mountain pass is flanked by two

Bangs and bruises are just part of the journey awe-inspiring mountain ranges — the Macgillycuddy’s Reeks and the Purple Mountains. A small road passes five lakes, with the River Loe connecting each one. When offered a chance to try Kingerlee’s outing, how can we say no? Our team on the day includes my intrepid companion Mary D’Arcy and and two instructors in training, Aoife Smith and Sarah Seery, who own Kerry

Dragging the kayaks feels like resistance training and, just when we think a quick break is called for, we are taken on a detour

Outdoor Sports, an adventure clothing and equipment store in Killarney. We arrive at the ruined Arbutus Cottage, which once housed a furniture-maker for English landlord families in the 1700s. Opposite it stands a derelict army barracks, which was built to protect the furniture-maker’s family and the road through the Gap from rebel ambushes. Getting ready for our own assault course, we put on a T-shirt, thermal jumper, the two aforementioned wetsuits, hiking boots, a woolly hat and a helmet. The weather is hot and sunny, but Kingerlee assures us that we needed the lot. The goats we encounter look mystified to see Arctic explorers pass by. Kingerlee gives us the rundown, which is simple and brief. First we do the kayak section, then the canyoning. There is just one catch: the water levels are too low in the Gap of Dunloe to complete the full

Water course Kingerlee tackles Torc Waterfall, above left, while, inset, Roche’s tolerance of tight spaces is tested; above right, the Gap of Dunloe

course, so the canyoning is being moved to Torc Mountain, a short drive away. It is also a great spot for gorge walking, he informs us. “The rules for the first section are: hold on to the kayak; help the person behind you; and don’t forget to look around,” Kingerlee says. With our kayaks tied to us, we start our journey along the narrow stream of the River Loe. The Gap here is beautiful — like a grand landscape painting at every angle, rocky grey and mossy-green in colour. Dragging the kayaks feels like resistance training and, just when we think a quick break is called for, Kingerlee takes us on a detour to an old sandstone tunnel under the road. “It’s a claustrophobia test. You’ll be sliding through narrow rocks in the canyoning that are just like this,” he tells us. We wriggle through, one by one, bemused at first, but then surprised to