The Irish Mountaineering Club (in Irish

Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

, Cumann Sléibhteoireachta na hÉireann, usually called "The IMC") is a mountaineering

Mountaineering

Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...

 club based in County Wicklow

County Wicklow

County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, although most of its members come from the Dublin Region

Dublin Region

The Dublin Region is a NUTS Level III region of Ireland and is governed by the Dublin Regional Authority. It consists of the area under the jurisdiction of the county councils of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin, as well as Dublin City Council. The Dublin Region has an area of...

. Its activities encompass all aspects of mountaineering, but its climbing

Climbing

Climbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations.Climbing activities include:* Bouldering: Ascending boulders or small...

 activities are most prominent. The club has about 200 members.

History

The IMC was originally founded in 1942 by Bill Perrott and a group of other climbers in south Dublin, within easy reach of Dalkey Quarry

Dalkey Quarry

Dalkey Quarry is a disused granite quarry located in the Dublin suburb of Dalkey. It was used for quarrying during the 19th century, and is now part of Killiney Hill Park, a public park...

. They established several climbs in Dalkey and at other locations around Dublin such as The Scalp, Bray Head

Bray Head

Bray Head is a hill and headland located in northern County Wicklow, Ireland, between the towns of Bray and Greystones. It forms part of the Wicklow Mountains and is a popular spot with hillwalkers. At the top of the head is a concrete cross which was placed there in 1950 during the holy year...

, and Ireland's Eye

Ireland's Eye

Ireland's Eye is a small uninhabited island off the coast of County Dublin, Ireland, situated directly north of Howth Harbour. The island is easily reached by regular tourist boats...

; these were the first steps in the development of climbing in Ireland. This group, now known as "The Old IMC", disbanded in 1944.

In 1948, the IMC was revived on a more formal basis by Perrott, Joss Lynam, and others, with the intention that it become a national club drawing its membership from all around Ireland, with local branches in the major cities. The first President was the renowned naturalist Robert Lloyd Praeger

Robert Lloyd Praeger

-Life:Of a Unitarian background, he was born in Holywood, County Down, and grew up in that town where he was educated, first in the school of the Rev McAlister and then at nearby Sullivan Upper School. He worked in the National Library of Ireland in Dublin from 1893 to 1923. He co-founded and...

.

During the 1950s the IMC became the dominant force in Irish mountaineering, and branches were established in Dublin and Belfast

Belfast

Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...

, and one for the "Wild Geese

Flight of the Wild Geese

The Flight of the Wild Geese refers to the departure of an Irish Jacobite army under the command of Patrick Sarsfield from Ireland to France, as agreed in the Treaty of Limerick on October 3, 1691, following the end of the Williamite War in Ireland...

", Irish emigrants living abroad. In 1957, with the aid of a grant from the Guinness

Guinness

Guinness is a popular Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin. Guinness is directly descended from the porter style that originated in London in the early 18th century and is one of the most successful beer brands worldwide, brewed in almost...

 brewing company (which remains a major supplier of refreshments to the club's members), the club purchased a farmhouse at Glendasan, near Glendalough

Glendalough

Glendalough or Glendaloch is a glacial valley in County Wicklow, Ireland. It is renowned for its Early Medieval monastic settlement founded in the 6th century by St Kevin, a hermit priest, and partly destroyed in 1398 by English troops....

, County Wicklow

County Wicklow

County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...

, and converted it into a mountain hut, to be run by the Dublin section. Later another hut (called the "Bloat House") was established in the Annalong valley in the Mourne Mountains in County Down

County Down

-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...

; this was to be run by the Belfast section.

The increasing affluence of the 1960s saw the emergence of other mountaineering clubs in Ireland, and the IMC's dominance began to weaken. In 1971 the Federation of Mountaineering Clubs in Ireland (FMCI, then MCI, now Mountaineering Ireland) was formed, which ended the IMC's national aspirations. In the meantime, the club became increasingly Dublin-based, and the struggling Belfast section was finally dissolved in 1991, two years after the Bloat House burnt down resulting in several serious injuries.

The club now draws its membership almost exclusively from the Dublin area.

Activities

The IMC has an active programme of activities throughout the year. In the spring, the climbing season starts with the long-standing (since 1966) annual rock-climbing beginners' course conducted by experienced club members in Dalkey Quarry and Glendalough. Those beginners are then encouraged to develop their skills and join in the club's climbing activities in Ireland and abroad throughout the summer and beyond. Summer is also the peak alpine season, when many groups of members climb in alpine ranges throughout the world. In winter, the focus is on indoor Thursday night social slide shows, training at climbing wall

Climbing wall

A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with grips for hands and feet, usually used for indoor climbing, but sometimes located outdoors as well. Some are brick or wooden constructions, but on most modern walls, the material most often used is a thick multiplex board with holes drilled...

s, hillwalking

Hillwalking

In the British Isles, the terms hillwalking or fellwalking are commonly used to describe the recreational outdoor activity of walking on hills and mountains, often with the intention of visiting their summits...

, ice climbing

Ice climbing

Ice climbing, as the term indicates, is the activity of ascending inclined ice formations. Usually, ice climbing refers to roped and protected climbing of features such as icefalls, frozen waterfalls, and cliffs and rock slabs covered with ice refrozen from flows of water. For the purposes of...

 abroad, and rock-climbing, both at home and in sunnier climes such as Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 and beyond.

The club publishes a quarterly newsletter

Newsletter

A newsletter is a regularly distributed publication generally about one main topic that is of interest to its subscribers. Newspapers and leaflets are types of newsletters. Additionally, newsletters delivered electronically via email have gained rapid acceptance for the same reasons email in...

 containing articles written by its members describing their activities.

The club's climbing hut (called "The IMC Hut") is located in Glendasan, in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains

Wicklow Mountains

The Wicklow Mountains form the largest continuous upland area in Ireland. They occupy the whole centre of County Wicklow and stretch outside its borders into Counties Carlow, Wexford and Dublin. Where the mountains extend into County Dublin, they are known locally as the Dublin Mountains...

 and within walking distance of the popular crag

Cliff

In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...

at Glendalough. It is used by IMC members on a regular basis, but since most members now have access to a car, it is not as important to the club as it used to be. Its main use now is to serve as accommodation for pre-booked groups of outdoor enthusiasts from Ireland and abroad.