Leenane hotel was buzzing. Every few minutes, newcomers would make their way into the dimly lit foyer of the three-star guesthouse with a mix of pride and exhaustion on their faces. They had just completed the gruelling 25km, 2,300m ascent of the Maamturks mountain range as part of the annual NUI Galway-organised Maamturks Challenge. Most had started out at 5am and completed the walk within eight to 11 hours.
This was the hotel’s first weekend open after the winter break in April, and as more tour buses pulled into the village the next day, you got the sense that Leenane was awakening for a new season.
On the Galway-Mayo border, situated at the head of Killary harbour and under the Maamturk and Maamtrasna mountains, the
