• Degree in Outdoor Learning
• Certificate in Training Delivery and Evaluation
• Mountain Leader
• Mountain Bike Leader
• Ride Leader Award
• Single Pitch Award

I first started working as an outdoor activity instructor in 2005. Since then, I have continued to enjoy working outdoors and guiding visitors to Ireland, whether hiking, biking, kayaking or exploring the rockpools at the local beach. Since 2016, I am currently the Head of Guides at Wilderness Ireland, leading training projects and developing training programmes for new guides.

I’m fortunate to have a career that has involved visiting beautiful parts of the world – from cycling and kayaking in France to hiking trips to Tanzania and plenty of places in between. In recent years I have really enjoyed cycling over in Scotland along the outer Hebrides, a stunning landscape. I’m always keen to visit somewhere new when the opportunity arises!

I’m lucky in that I get to do what I enjoy doing for a living. Journeying across the landscape by boat, by bike or on foot is my passion. I do a lot of hiking and running around the west coast of Ireland. A few years ago I bought a fatbike (a mountain bike with extra wide tyres, up to five inches across). This type of bike opened up a lot of new options for exploring parts of Ireland that not many people get to see. Recently I have begun to experiment with swimming as a way of journeying and I find it really exciting.

I am very interested in learning more about the natural world that we have around us, so close and familiar to us that it goes unnoticed. There are amazing survival skills, territorial struggles and courtships happening in every rockpool and hedgerow. Really I’m only beginning to understand how these ecosystems function but I find it fascinating. Also, by looking at things closer to home, I’m finding out more about the folklore and mysticism that is associated with Ireland’s amazing and diverse landscapes.

I grew up in county Meath, an area incredibly rich in history and archaeology but not so well equipped for sea kayaking or hiking (six miles of coastline and the highest point is 905ft !).

I have lived in Galway for the last 16 years and this is definitely home for me. Right on the Atlantic with the mountains of Connemara, the rugged backcountry of Mayo and the wild Burren landscapes in Co. Clare only a short drive away. It’s a fantastic part of the country for scenery, seafood and socialising!