When planning our trip to Ireland, Kim gave me a list of things we’d do including “climbing Crough Patrick”. I didn’t have any idea what that meant but trusted that whatever it was, it would be awesome. When we arrived to Westport and I saw the mountain he was talking about, I thought “no way!”

At almost 3000ft, Crough Patrick is Ireland’s Holiest Mountain. It begins at sea level which means climbers are climbing every one of those feet. It features a chapel at the top in honor of St. Patrick and is a popular pilgrimage for Catholics and tourists. On what would turn out to be the warmest day of the year so far, we caught a bus to the base. Luna has only been happy in her backpack for about 30 minutes at a time lately – she’s just too excited about learning to walk to be content being carried for long. I figured we had about a 50:50 chance of making the two hour hike to the top. It would all depend on some luck and timing.

Fortunately, Luna cooperated and fell asleep at the perfect time, allowing us to climb without any fussiness or squirming. The climbing was tricky at times, very steep with loose rocks. Most climbers that we passed were amazed that Kim was carrying a baby on his back.

We made it to the top in just an hour and 40 minutes. Luna woke up a few minutes before we reached the summit. Perfect timing!

We aren’t religious, but I was giddy at the top. The view was spectacular, but I was thrilled with a sense of accomplishment. I didn’t think we’d make it, but we did. Several hikers congratulated us on achieving the feat with a baby on board. I was just happy that having a baby has not made us totally compromise our desire for adventure.