Save the Date and check out our Q & A on the 2026 Bluestack Challenge

The 2026 Bluestack Challenge sponsored by Blas and the Gateway Lodge will take place on Saturday, June 13.

All funds raised will go towards local organisations supporting Additional Needs, Cancer Care, Mental Health and Neuro degenerative conditions.

Q&A with Chairperson, Liam McCrea

What’s the Bluestack Challenge about?

It’s a fundraising hillwalk that now takes place every second year. The very first challenge took place in 2002, when Patrick McBrearty and his family decided to organize the challenge instead of having a 40th birthday party. Patrick’s idea was to get 40 people to walk 40km to raise €40,000 for people with additional needs. And so, it all began! Now, as we get ready for our 15th walk, the Bluestack Challenge has raised over €1.7m to date, for various County Donegal based charities.

We’re also very fortunate and grateful to our sponsors for quite a number of years now – Seamus Quinn and his family from Blas and the Gateway Lodge in Donegal Town. And then of course we’ve some great support too from Noel Cunninham who has been our patron right from the start – and Jim McGuinness who helped us officially launch the 2024 Challenge and will be doing so again this year.

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What Charities benefit?

All funds raised in the 2026 Challenge will go towards local organisations supporting Additional Needs, Cancer Care, Mental Health and Neuro degenerative conditions. We’ll have more detail on the specific charities at our official launch in January.

How much are people expected to raise?

The 2024 walk raised over €110,000 and the average amount raised per walker was just over €400. While we encourage people to actively fundraise and raise as much as they possibly can, there’s no minimum amount. We do need to be conscious of the fact that the primary purpose of the walk is to raise much needed funds for all the worthy charities, and we’d hope that everyone will do whatever they can in this regard.

It’s also important to realise that while the Challenge committee, organisers, guides, van drivers, food providers etc. all work on a totally voluntary basis, there are significant costs involved in organising an event of its size, eg insurance, food, marquees, transport, portable loos etc, and the average expense cost in 2024 was €52 per walker.

What’s the 2026 route?

This year’s Challenge brings us on a varied and amazingly scenic route from Fintown to Drimarone. We start off on the Glenties side of Lough Finn, heading then around the back through a forest to Lough Muck school. Then over the hills down into Edenifagh and then up by An Stuchan. From there, up over the back of Silverhill, climbing to about 500 metres and then in the back of the windmills down around Carnaween and eventually finishing in the Bluestack Centre in Drimarone.

It’ll be nine to ten hours and approximately 30km of a variety of terrain, combining tarred road, dirt track, bog and open mountain. You don’t need to be an experienced hillwalker, but you certainly need a reasonable to high level of fitness – and very importantly you should have the appropriate clothing, rain gear and foot wear.

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What’s it like to participate?

To be honest, it really is an amazing day out. There’s a great sense of community, camaraderie and a genuine feel-good factor that carries everyone along, from the first steps to the final finish line. While the route is challenging — covering over 30km across open mountain, dirt track, bog and quiet roads, and taking nine to ten hours to complete - it’s a challenge that’s shared, supported and hugely rewarding. Walkers are encouraged every step of the way, with plenty of time to take in the scenery and enjoy the experience too. Dozens of people are involved behind the scenes in making the day run smoothly, and that collective effort is a big part of what makes the event so special. We’re incredibly proud of what’s been achieved so far and look forward to making the 2026 challenge bigger and better than ever.

So, please put the date in your calendar and watch out for our official launch at the end of January.