THE EARLY MASSES on Reek Sunday in Croagh Patrick were full of green and gold flags and jerseys as Donegal and Kerry fans squeezed in both the pilgrimage and the All-Ireland football final.

Reek Sunday, also known as Garland Sunday, falls annually on the last Sunday of July but a change in how the GAA operates its county championships is impacting the celebrations for a second year in-a-row. 

The pilgrimage sees thousands scale Mayo’s Croagh Patrick – some barefoot – to celebrate St Patrick.

Speaking to The Journal last week, Administrator of Westport parish, Father John Kenny, said some pilgrims would opt to come out early so they could watch the final too.

“The final impacted numbers, but there were a lot of people from Kerry and Donegal there,” said Fr Kenny this morning.

He even met a person from Donegal who made an early climb of Croagh Patrick and was then hitting the road to be in Croke Park for the final.

“At the earlier Masses, there was lots of flag waving and lots of Kerry and Donegal jerseys.

“I said to one of them, ‘if you’ve any spare tickets, leave them in after the Mass’, but unfortunately no one came forward with tickets.”

A particularly busy morning with the All-Ireland final resulted in a quieter than usual afternoon.

“There was a big fall-off during the All-Ireland final and at half time, I met people going up the mountain and listening in on their radios or phones,” said Fr Kenny.

Confessions were available from 7.30am and Masses were celebrated hourly in the old church on the top of Croagh Patrick from 8am to 2pm.

Fr Kenny said the priests were “kept very busy with well-attended Masses and confession”.

View from inside the old church on top Croagh Patrick yesterday Fr John Kenny Fr John Kenny

Earlier this month, he issued a callout for priests who have the capacity to make the journey to join him among other clergymen on Croagh Patrick.

Eight priests responded and were all present yesterday, and others turned up on the day.

‘Quality, not quantity’

Fr Kenny acknowledged that numbers are trending downwards, but remarked that “we’re not about numbers – it’s not about quantity, it’s about quality”.

He added that while many of the people present yesterday were there for religious purposes, people also came to be a “part of the whole experience and atmosphere”.

As well as the hourly Masses, there were two ecumenical services – one at the summit and one at the foot of the mountain.

An ecumenical service brings together members of different Christian denominations and Church of Ireland parishes were invited.

“A wonderful feature this year was the ecumenical services,” said Fr Kenny, “and you could sense a feeling of this being for everybody, not just Catholics.”

And while Fr Kenny said numbers on Reek Sunday are down, he added that over the course of the year, more pilgrims are coming to climb the mountain “in their own time and at their own pace”.

Meanwhile, Fr Kenny said that pilgrims going barefooted is “still very much a feature of the pilgrimage, among both old and young”.

“Some people would climb up barefoot and descent with their shoes,” said Fr Kenny.

“Cameras were focused on the bare feet a lot and any press photographers made sure they took pictures of the people with their bare feet, it does stands out from the rest.”

As for Fr Kenny, he chooses to keep his shoes on.

“I do barefooted when I go to Lough Derg,” he told The Journal, “but anywhere else, apart from the beach, I keep my shoes on.

“It’s a choice people make, but I wouldn’t encourage it.

“While the person themselves might be safe and take it nice and steady, somebody might step on their foot or something like that.”

There weren’t any serious injuries this year and Fr Kenny said the Order of Malta and Mayo Mountain Rescue Team “weren’t kept awfully busy”.

Fr Kenny said this was partly due to reduced numbers, but also a result of works to make the steps safer for people climbing.

“There were call outs, and the helicopter was there, and they had to use the flares because of the cloud coming over the mountain every now and again.

“There were people with sore limbs and ankles but thankfully nothing serious.”

Cloud and fog atop Croagh Patrick yesterday Fr Kenny Fr Kenny

And despite numbers being down, Fr Kenny feels confident that the long-term future of the Reek Sunday pilgrimage is secure.

“This year, I thought the amount of people using the Pilgrim Passport was encouraging.”

It’s a Jubilee Year within the Church and there is a “Pilgrim Passport” that people can get stamped at the three national pilgrimage sites in Croagh Patrick, Lough Derg, and Knock.

“When people come to their third place, they got a medallion to mark this,” said Fr Kenny.

He also remarked that there was interest from abroad this year on Reek Sunday.

“There was a journalist doing the pilgrimage who had just come from Lough Derg.

“He was going to call in to Knock on the way to London, so the pilgrimage has an appeal and a reach that you might not expect, not just nationally, but internationally.”