Michael Quinn (aka. Mountain Mike), hiker and videographer, has been a long-time friend of Hiiker. We have followed his adventures for a while now. From his incredible completion of the Ireland Way (for which he has won two awards) to his wonderful and helpful videos on mental health , he has cemented himself as one of the friendliest people in the hiking community. and that is a hard pedestal to climb!
Mike’s boots have brought him across Ireland, Poland, Italy and South Africa (to name a few). This year, he was set to complete a challenge to climb Ireland’s highest peaks in record breaking time. But like most of us in the Hiking community, his plans have been dashed.
We always look forward to Mike’s videos and he has some good ones lined up for the future, including The West Highland Way and The Dingle Way.
His work with mental health has given him a voice to help others and overcome some of his own battles. To date he has raised over €8,500 for Jigsaw, the National Centre for Youth Mental Health.
1. Introduce yourself
My name is Michael Quinn of Mountain Mikes Adventures.
2. Where do you come from? Where do you live?
Well, I was born in Reading, but moved back to Ireland when I was seven to Westport Co.Mayo which is my current location at the moment.
3. How did you get into hiking? Was there a lightbulb moment of discovery?
I’ll never forget being a teen and on a drive down to Leenaun seeing the stunning cliff wall of Maamtrasna and feeling a magical sense of wonder captivated, I sat in awe getting closer to connemara. That was the moment that a deep affinity was sowed. However, sadly it would take a number of years before I would don a pair of hiking boots and explore. My teen years weren’t that fun as a battle raged in my head for a solid chunk of it, mental health issues limited belief in myself and I never had the courage to set forth and explore. When I was 21 I had a Slovakian girlfriend who took me to her home at the foot of the Tatry mountains, it was here I first experienced hiking and I loved it.
4. Have you ever done a long-distance hike? What was your favorite one and why?
Yes, I’ve done many at this stage. In 2018 I completed The Ireland Way a 1000km trail that goes from the bottom all the way up to the very top of Ireland. Completing that was very special for me for many reasons but for argument sake, it would actually be the Beara-Brefine Way due to the historical importance of it.
5. Are you planning any long-distance hikes in the near future? Tell us where and why you chose it.
I have two I’m very keen to hike and film The Dingle Way and The West Highland Way. I’ve been and hiked in Kerry, however, I’ve not explored Dingle that much and would like to immerse myself in raw, rugged, wild Ireland. A bit like some places in Mayo and Connemara The Dingle peninsula is one of those last bastions old Ireland. The West Highland Way calls out to me, I’ve sadly never set foot in Scotland and to get a taste of the highlands through this trail I believe it will spark a great desire explore more of remote Scotland.
6. Apart from the obvious ones, what item can you not go hiking without? A special piece of equipment/ specific snack/ lucky charm/ person??
Easy! Compeed it has saved me hiking many a time, oh and my camera, gotta capture those amazing places.
7. Give us your top hiking tip. Training/ packing/ planning.
If you are hiking on a trail don’t try to plan every detail allow room for adventure to flourish.
8. Apart from hiking, what other outdoor sports/activities are you involved in?
Videography, I love getting out and filming nature. I filmed my whole Ireland Way adventure which you can check out on my YouTube channel.
You can check out Mike’s adventures on his youtube channel and his social media pages.
