Having been to Ireland every years since I was eight, I can say that despite that fact that the stunning scenery and hospoitality of the Irish people never changes, there's always something to keep things fresh - we had a great laugh at these Father-Jack-inspired hay bails (for those who've watched 'Father Ted') which welcomed us on the route from Cork airport to our house in Lauragh, a small village in the ring of Kerry.

The view from our small cottage looks something like this:

...except that I'm not permanently standing there looking like a spanner to taint it!

It looks out onto a deep valley surrounded by the craggy peaks of the Caha Mountains, and since I was eight I'd been telling myself that I would climb the moutain on the right-hand side, Knockagahanish.

I don't know why it never happened until my twentieth year; sometimes no one could be bothered to come with me, sometimes I couldn't be bothered, and sometimes we stared out of the window into torrential rain, retreating into the world of literature by a toasty fire.

This time, the conditions were perfect and we had no excuse. Our neighbours even decided to join us.

It was a three hour climb, not too strenuous, but a work-out none-the-less. We strode through heather, thick tufts of bull-rushes and took frequent breaks to settle on rocks and look out over the valley.

Eventually we reached the summit where we found a Cairne, or rock pile used to mark the summit of a mountain. Ceremoniously, we each added a rock to the cairne and stood back to enjoy the amazing view: on one side the Kenmare River estuary stretching out and into the greying sky beyond, and on the other lush green thickets and wooded areas, and a rabble of rugged mountains piercing mist.

We returned to the foot of the mountain down the opposite side to which we'd climbed because we'd heard that there was an old stone circle on the way down.

Sure enough, after half an hour or so, we saw a gathering of distinct rocks, talls and slim jutting upwards from the grassy slope. We also came across an underground tomb, with a well constructed entrance. I had a bit of an Indiana Jones moment when I thought we may actually be able to venture inside, but it was blocked up (DUH its a tomb) and I replaced the cow-boy hat in my rucksack...

Though I'd seen a few stone circle sites before (the ring of Kerry is FULL of them), there was still something excting about it; a remainder of a civilization, a culture, a way of life beyond us.

The most exciting thing was that I found a stone with a strange spiral shape on it...quite Celtic...but likely to be a spoof. Got me riled all the same.

The Irish mountains are stunning whatever part of Ireland you're in, but (call me biased) the Kerry area is certainly one of the most beautiful. The almost untouched rural authenticity of much of the area makes it special and though there are quite a lot of tourists who visit the ring of Kerry, it is so expansive, and the cottages and camps so far apart (if you choose to stay outside a town) that you can pretend there's no one in the world but you.

Climbing Knockagahanish made me feel like king of the world for half an hour - so if you need to get away, climb a Kerry mountain and blow your worries to the wind!