 trail below and head to the forest, taking a left instead of a right when heading towards the lake.
The Glen of Aherlow hosts two annual walking festivals each year, the two-day Winter Walking Festival over the last weekend in January and the three-day Summer Festival over the June bank holiday weekend. You can find more information here.
The route starts at the Galtymore Parking Area and is clearly signposted (52.400990, -8.1858616). It’s off a minor road that runs parallel to the R663.
Head 1 km south from the car park into the forest trail until you see a right turn that will take you on a mini loop west. After another 1 km the mini loop exits the forest into open space and you will see a river. The river runs south to Lough Curra.
If you are wearing suitable gear you could follow this river as it climbs towards the lake, but for a potentially dryer route, look for the trail to your right (heading south) that runs higher but parallel to the river.
Keep heading south against the direction the river flows until you reach Lough Curra. It’s about a 1.5 km walk from your position. It sits like an infinity pool as if it was cut into the mountain side. Once you have stopped for a sandwich or a selfie, walk 500 metres east, along the bottom of the lake and then take the trail descending north back the way you came. The steep descent reaches the forest area once again after 1.7 km. From here you can follow the trail through the forest back to the car park.
 Don’t be surprised to meet other walkers celebrating their different Galtee Mountains conquests.
Errigal Mountain is a beautiful sight in the Donegal skyline, looking like it was picked up from a landscape in South Africa or Australia and then transplanted in Ulster. On a sunny day, the quartzite peak contrasts against the blue sky, leaving the mountain crying out for a photograph. Errigal Mountain is located in Gweedore, the largest Irish speaking area the country. It’s also one of Europe’s most densely populated rural areas.
The mountain itself has been used as a setting for stock footage in music videos and Hollywood films. Although not Ireland’s tallest mountain, it is a contender for the most iconic.
The mountain can be climbed without the help of a professional guide but the trail on the very top of the mountain is very narrow and extreme care is needed when standing at the summit.
It all starts at a parking spot on the side of the road of R251. From here a trail leads up the mountain, and brings you in between the main summit and a smaller ‘second summit’ to the east. The safest way to the top, is to walk for 1.5 km from the car park until the climb flattens out onto a shelf. Once you have reached this plateau, face west and you will clearly see the trail that leads to the summit.
There may be just 1km more to go to the summit along a clearly identifiable path, but it is a very sharp ascent with step drops on either side. From here you will see some of the most breath-taking views in the whole country. Take your time to soak it in, but know that on a busy day there isn’t a lot of space to stand up at the summit so if there’s heavy foot traffic, it may be time to start moving down again.
Take care on the way down from the summit. The care needed to navigate the loose rocks and slippery surfaces make the descent to the car park almost as time consuming as the initial ascent.
If you’re craving more of the tranquil views you’ve just enjoyed on the mountain, be sure to stop into the Gweedore Court Hotel on your drive home. You’ll also find the Errigal View Pet Farm across the road if you’re with the little ones. You’ll find this location by heading west on the R251, from the Mount Errigal car park.
A level above the leisurely Spinc Walk, Lugnaquilla is a testing trail for walkers looking for a Sunday challenge in Co. Wicklow. Once you reach the 925 metre summit, you will be rewarded with views of other peaks in the region and the lush greenery of the surrounding area. Keep an eye out for goats, deer, hares and frogs as you make your way through the bog land areas towards the waterfall and up the hill.
It’s advised to bring a map when you take on Lugnaquilla because when the clouds settle, it can be easy to lose your bearings on the route and get into difficulty. You can find information on guided walking tours in the region here.
Start at the car park on the Glenmalure road and travel northwest until you reach a left turn after 1 km that takes you up the mountain. Follow the trail west for 2 km up through the middle of the valley. Once the track stops head right of the face of the waterfall. From here make your way up the hill and walk southwest behind the waterfall and enjoy the views of the valley you have just walked through.
Walk 2 km from Lugnaquilla towards Cloghernagh, then follow the trail back down to the Glenmalure road. This section is another 3 km, and once you reach the road it’s just another 2 km north to the car park.
 The B&B is complete with a restaurant and bar and boasts open fires in the winter and live music most of the year.
If you have any suggestions of walking routes that you think people should know about we’d love to hear from you on our Facebook page.
I had the post about Valour-IT up for about a week or more here sitting on the top of my blog. Through the period leading up to Veteran’s Day Soldiers’ Angels held their third annual fundraiser and with the help of web sites and blogs all over the world were able to raise over $200,000. That is great! Thanks to everyone that donated to help out during the fundraiser. It even got my buddy Zonker out of the closet to post for a few days. Amazing…BTW dude, I added your link back in, I had inadvertently deleted it and didn’t realize it until I went looking. Sorry about that.
Anyway, The Gallery Collection is the leading supplier of business holiday cards and just recently it was announced at Soldiers’ Angels that they have made a fairly sizeable donation. Anyone that runs a business knows that giving away your product for free might be one way to create awareness about your products but it can be an extremely expensive proposition because it cuts into your profits. I know because we do things on a smaller scale in the community, mainly for schools and every dime I give away is basically a dime out of my paycheck but the feeling you get being able to help out is unmatchable. Kudos to The Gallery Collection for their donation.
It might not seem like a lot but they are donating a greeting card to every soldier that wishes them Happy Holidays and Happy New Year and tells them thanks for their service. They are also putting in blank cards and envelopes for the troops to write home as well. The cards are being included in care packages that are being sent out by Soldiers’ Angels.
Even though the Veteran’s Day fundraiser might be over, you can still donate year round to Soldiers’ Angels, just go to their web site.
I know one thing and that is that I support the companies that support our soldiers, so here is a plug for The Gallery Collection.
They have a pretty nice selection of different holiday cards for businesses and not just Christmas cards either. I found some Thanksgiving cards over there as well as many different Christmas cards for all manner of gifts. They even have calendar cards and die-cut cards to choose from.
I am lousy about sending out Christmas cards and every year I say that I am going to send them out and never do. I think that this year I will start on a smaller scale and just physically hand them out to all of my employees and managers. Next years I can deal with the whole mailing thing.I doubt anyone outside of Japan will be particularly surprised to hear Nokia is pulling out of the market as it feels its investments there are uneconomical. Heck, I doubt anyone in Japan will notice either as Nokia only holds (held?) a one per cent market share there.
Nokia Executive Vice President Timo Ihamuotila commented: "In the current global economic climate, we have concluded that the continuation of our investment in Japan-specific localized products is no longer sustainable."
However, Nokia will still keep a Japanese contingent in operation, working in R&D and sourcing for the global market. Certainly, on a worldwide scale Nokia isn't exactly under-performing.
Globally, Nokia has an impressive 39 per cent share of the market, no doubt thanks to the continued slew of capable handsets the company makes.E71 anyone? Giving up on its tiny hold on Japan, then, will hardly be a difficult sacrifice for the company, especially with the saving it will doubtless reap as a result.
Link:Question about timelines...

I'm watching the series for my second time, first since original airing. Pretty happy to see it on Amazon Prime and I've been beasting through the whole thing. Just started s5 today. 

My question is... How much time passes throughout the whole series? I remember when I watched it originally, around season 3 I realized that it had only been a few days since Bill and Sookie met. I tried to do a little research online and discovered that the first 3 seasons take place over a little less than two