Climbing Croagh Patrick on Reek Sunday, Co. Mayo, Ireland 1973

Thousands ascend Croagh Patrick making the Reek Sunday pilgrimage. Climbing Croagh Patrick requires physical exertion that takes a toll on the pilgrims as they make their way up and then down along the loose rock of the reek. For some, it was the first time climbing Croagh Patrick, for others, it was the latest in a long list of pilgrimages up the holy mountain. The majority came with a religious motive but there were those who came just to be there or because their friends had come or indeed just for the night out. Throughout the pilgrimage, the Knights of Malta are on patrol and by the end of the climb they had taken between twenty and thirty people down by stretcher. One member of the ambulance corps suffered a serious injury. As the day progressed, the numbers descending were greater than those ascending. One older man was making the climb of the reek for his twenty sixth time. Others chose to climb the traditional way, barefoot. Along the route are dotted penitential stations. Confessions and mass went on through the night at the peak of the reek. As the pilgrims make their way to the bottom, there is a sense of cheer and spiritual fulfilment. Why else would you come back here year after year for an ordeal that without the religious significance would be nothing less than masochistic. An RTÉ News report broadcast on 29 July 1973. The reporter is Tom McCaughren.