Mount Kilimanjaro climb for Corofin man

THIS weekend will see a North Clare man begin an attempt to scale Africa’s highest mountain.
Rose of Tralee co-ordinator and former escort of the year, Ciarán O’Connell from Corofin will next week be battling the elements as he begins his ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro in Eastern Africa.
Ciarán leaves on Thursday with a group of 13 previous roses and escorts, to climb the 5,895 metres or nearly 20,000 feet to the top of the volcanic Tanzanian mountain.
“The real reason we are putting in all this effort, training, time and hardship with the possibility of death on the mountain is to raise vital funds for the Voluntary Service Overseas or VSO charity, which is a very worthy cause,” said Ciarán.
Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is an international development charity that works through experienced volunteers living and working alongside local partners. It is the largest independent volunteer-sending organisation in the world.
“I have been involved in the Rose of Tralee for a number of years and so a lot of the gang there have been on to me for a while to get on board and do this. Most people signed up around Christmas but I only joined in February or March because I wasn’t sure if I would be able to do it, as I am back in college. In the end, I just decided to go for it.
“Since then I have been training on all the local walking routes and last weekend I climbed Croagh Patrick. It was quite warm so that was good preparation for the weather at the bottom of Kilimanjaro. Then, as you go higher, it gets cooler and at the top it is snow covered. It really only dawned me last week that the mountain is in Africa. I was so focussed on the walking and the climb that I sort of forgot about the climate and that is going to be so varied on this trip,” Ciarán explained.
“As well as all the training, I have a lot of funds to raise, which everyone knows is extra hard in these times but I’d be delighted of any help, even the price of a pint,” he outlined.
Anyone wishing to support Ciarán can do so by visiting mycharity.ie/event/ciaran_o_connells_event or by signing up to the sponsor cards distributed in a number of shops around Corofin.
Ciarán is also on Facebook.