The best way to start this journey is to board the number 16 bus at Aungier Street to Rathfarnham village, or Bushy Park at Terenure.

Bushy Park, especially in Autumn, is a very enjoyable walk. The Dodder running alongside it is a winding river that flows from the Dublin Mountains.

The Rathfarnham Bridge connects the last village before reaching the countryside to Terenure and Dublin city. The walk up to Rathfarnham village is a steep one. The village is small and has only one street in which stands the Sarah Currran pub.

You will see Rathfarnham Castle before you. The castle is open daily from May to October but the tea rooms are open all year round. It’s here that the Hell Fire Wood begins.

A sinister atmosphere has been cast over the surrounding villages, probably because of its name, or maybe because of the reputation that the Hell Fire Club has had over the centuries, for it is here that the black cat was supposed to appear, the devil itself.

On leaving the village you will reach the Tuning Fork pub and taking a right at the fork you will pass housing in a wealthy area of Dublin’s Southside.

Here is where the real walk begins. The lane is a quick left off the Tibradden Road, which runs to Tallaght. On the other side is St Enda’s Park with Padraig Pearse’s museum at its epicentre.

The gardens of St Enda’s park are probably the best kept in Rathfarnham. Adam Clayton of U2 lives in the area and the great Marley Park is very close, which is a story in itself.

Marley Park was owned by the Love family until Dublin City Council opened it. It is a vast park with paths, waterfalls and trees winding through it. There is also a courtyard with various craft shops and a coffee shop. The highlight is probably the peacocks, which parade around the courtyard displaying their plumage, great for photographs.

Starting here is a black tarmac road which winds its way to Mount Venus Road, where a new cemetery has been built. There is then a dip in the road as we come to the second hill to be climbed.

Hedgerows mark the journey and it’s here that you first glimpse a view of the city lying in Dublin Bay. On climbing this hill, you will arrive at Killakee House, serving some of the best cuisine on the Southside of Dublin, recognisable because of its old stone belltower, where the cat is still supposed to appear.

The Hell Fire Wood is clearly marked by Coillte, and cannot be accessed by car anymore. The wood is sparse but to walk through it with its smell of pine is a pleasant experience.

There is a more direct route to the top of Mount Pelier. A road can be followed which winds its way to the back of the mountains. The direct route is a steep climb to ascend but there is a large boulder by which you can rest.

The woods then clear and you see the building known as the Hell Fire Club come into view. The view from here of Dublin is probably the best in Ireland, especially on a clear day, with the Pidgeon House chimney smoking in the distance.

The Hell Fire Club has had many owners, one being the Countess Markevicz. It was built by William Connolly as a hunting lodge in 1735, there being a motley crew of young officers from the nobility who basically drank, blasphemed and, some say, worshipped the Devil.

The stories are numerous. One tells of some drunken men playing cards, one man seemingly dropped a card, when he bent down to retrieve it he noticed the player next to him had a hoof for a foot.

He let out a cry in horror and the player bearing the hoof turned into the Devil and disappeared up the chimney in a ball of fire. The chimney is still open to the public and can be climbed, leading to the roof of the building.

Make of it what you will, I enjoy the experience and always have. On the return journey if you take a right down Mount Venus Road and then a left at Rockwood School, you will come to Sean O’Doherty’s pub and restaurant which has provided hospitality for more than 250 years.The 47A bus from across the road will then bring you back to the city.