The Wild Atlantic Way - Part 3

When I left you last, I was teetering at the rocky outcrop summit of a hike called Diamond Hill. It was a wonderful hike with views to die for, but I decided I didn't want to die trying to get up there. For most of the hike it was perfectly groomed trail, and though the elevation wasn't much, it all came at the end. That is a problem for me because I can't look up too far ahead because I would topple right over. I guess balance is one of the first things to go when you get old, mine sure has. And dragging my hiking poles up the rocks was not a good idea, either. In any case, I made it up and down and lived to share the photos with you, so it all worked out in the end. 

It starts off easy enough and with every step of elevation the views got more spectacular.

Oh how I wish every boggy hike came with a wide and well maintained boardwalk!

 

It’s difficult to photograph height and steepness. And dragging those poles up was not helping me.

Made it up and off the summit to the other side! It got windy up there, notice I have on all my head gear!

Following our hike we took off. We drove to a little marina town south of Galway where we parked up facing the water with a beautiful view, albeit a windy one. As much as we love parking at marinas, the sounds can be a bit nerve-wracking, especially in the wind. All that clanging and stuff whipping around. The winds got worse and in the middle of the night we finally couldn't stand it anymore. We got up and actually repositioned Bijou on the other side of the marina so we could actually get some sleep. I think that's the first time we have ever had to do that!

This is how we started off. We watched an elderly man launch a rubber dinghy and head out. I thought he was a goner, but he made it.

For a couple of weeks prior we had been stalking weather.com hoping for a good weather day so we could visit the Aran Islands. We kept our eye on one day in particular that was looking good and when it arrived it was absolutely perfect. We took the ferry to Inishmore, the largest of the three islands and the furthest away. Once there, we rented bikes and rode across the island to Dún Aonghas, a prehistoric hill fort. Once the bikes are parked it's quite the hike up there, but the views are spectacular. It is on a sea cliff and looks right out over the Atlantic Ocean. There are no fences, no guardrails, nothing at all to keep one from toppling right over the edge and into the water far below. We managed to find a place to sit fairly close to the edge where we had our picnic lunch. It was in a bit of a depression, so we weren't in danger of going over, but I had to reposition myself several times just so I wouldn't have to look at others dangling their feet off the cliffs. It made me physically ill to see people right on the edge. 

All aboard and ready to head out to the Aran Islands.

Views of Inishmaan, another of the Aran Islands on the way to Inishmore.

These are not E-bikes so the uphill portions of out trip required a bit of effort on our part.

Look at those people near the edge!!! This is as close as I could get and not topple backwards.

These three monks were getting a lot of attention. Here, they are meditating up at Dún Aonghas.

Despite being pretty commercialized these days, it is still possible to find the authentic parts of the island.

On our way back to the port we cycled to an adorable little thatched-roof cottage that for many years was a BnB. We stayed there 20 years ago and loved it. The cottage had been built as part of a movie set for the documentary "Man of Aran", which was filmed in 1934. It showed just how difficult it was to eke out a living off a rocky island with very few resources at hand. As it turned out, the cottage only made a brief appearance in the film, but was well-built enough to be sold and become a wonderful home to folks over the years. Last year it sold again and is now a private home. Still, we knocked on the door and in true Irish fashion, we were invited in for a cup of tea and a look around. I love Irish hospitality!

Man of Aran cottage, formerly a lovely BnB with an owner/chef who made us a wonderful dinner when we stayed there previously.

It is beautiful on a sunny day, but what few trees exist on the island are completely bent over. They get some massive storms here.

On our way to the Cliffs of Moher we passed through Lisdoonvarna, which for the entire month of September has a matchmaking festival. Folks come from all over to join in the fun.

Back on the mainland we were enjoying our campsite, in sight of the beautiful Cliffs of Moher, so we kept renewing our stay. We walked into the little village of Doolin to enjoy the craic at Gus O'Connor's pub, where the sessions started at a very reasonable hour of 4:30 in the afternoon. I also had some of the best mussels ever, giving my favorite dish at Christopher's on Whidbey Island in Washington a run for their money. We took on the trail walk from Doolin across the cliffs to the visitor's center and enjoyed some very dramatic views. 

We had the craic at Gus O’Connor’s and good food, too! Twice!

These guys were really talented. I think the young guy looks like Rick Steves. And look at my yummy dinner!

The adorable village of Doolin. We stayed here five days and loved it. We could see the Cliffs of Moher from Bijou.

On the cliff walk. We had gorgeous weather for it, but it was windy!

Beautiful Cliffs of Moher. Honestly they were more amazing than I was expecting.

A man and his pint.

Finally leaving Doolin we blew through Limerick and made our way to the Carrigafoyle Castle for one of the most unique overnight stays we've had. Standing on the edge of the Shannon estuary on what was originally an island, the castle rises five storeys, nearly equal in size to its more famous sister, Blarney Castle. An unusually wide spiral stairs ascends in one corner of the tower which has small rooms as well as the main living spaces opening off it. From the outside it looks quite small, as far as castles go, but inside, it went on forever. We slept in the small parking lot just at the entrance, with the estuary all around us. Very cool place.

What a unique stopover!

The view of Bijou from the top of the castle.

There are lots of modern renovations in the castle but they mimic what the original doors and rooms looked like.

  

The winding stone staircase.

Leaving the castle we had a beautiful drive to Dingle, a popular tourist destination. We came here specifically to hike another of Ireland's pilgrim paths, this one was the 18-kilometer Cosán na Naomh (The Saint’s Route). As per usual the path followed quaint country lanes before sending us off across the farmer's fields, one after the other as we made our way across the boggy goodness to land at the foot of Mount Brandon, Ireland's eighth highest peak at just over 3,000 feet. While we didn't climb the mountain, we did have fabulous views from the foothills we crossed to reach the end of our walk. We had to arrange for a pick-up at the end, and welcomed the site of the taxi. It was a tiring walk, for which we earned a stamp in our Irish Pilgrim Passports. I think I was probably that kid in kindergarten who eagerly awaited a gold star from my teacher because these stamps make me very happy. 

  

Always smiling at the start of a long hike!

  

It was a sunny day but it had rained for a few days previously. Even so, some places never dry out.

On the lane, starting to go up.

In the fields, one after the other!

Gallarus Oratory. An early Christian stone church. It is a good example of dry stacked stones.

I don’t normally like walking on pavement but it gets the mud off our shoes!

Oh, hey little sheepies. Don’t mind us, we are just passing through.

The vista is getting bigger! This area is where the film “Ryan’s Daughter” was filmed. Have you seen it? Robert Mitchum, Sarah Miles? Mitchum plays the saddest character ever.

We left Bijou in Dingle in this very secure parking lot (!!). It was right on the water and we stayed two nights.

No marked spaces, just park wherever you can squeeze in.

This is where we recovered from our hike and I admired my new stamp. 

Best fish and chips I’ve ever had! This guy gets stellar reviews and they are well deserved.

A beautiful sunset at our spot in Dingle.

In all of our planning, or lack thereof, for our trip along the Wild Atlantic Way, there was only one campground I wanted to stay at: Mannix Point Camping and Caravan in Cahersiveen, Co. Kerry. I had read about it in a blog and thought it sounded fabulous, and it was. We stayed five days and did a whole lot of nothing! We did explore the town and on one particularly beautiful day, knocked out another pilgrim path (and earned our third stamp, yay!) the Cnoc na dTobar (Mountain of the Wells). This one was about 12 kms, from sea level to around 1500 feet. Since this hike was an up and down round trip, we were able to drive Bijou to the little parking lot at the beginning, which is a first. And this time there were no country lanes, we went from parking lot right into the fields of sheep shite and that is where we stayed for the entire hike. By the time we finished I announced to Steven that I was done with hikes in Ireland. No more. At least for this trip, I had had enough. 

On our way to Cahersiveen, home of Mannix Point camping. Our spot is shown in the aerial shot at the top of this post.

Downtown Cahersiveen.

Not a bad view from our living room, eh?

The start of our last hike in Ireland.

This one was mostly up and the views were jaw dropping! The return was down, of course.

Ireland doesn’t typically use the yellow arrow of the Camino, but it was all over this route.

Epic views does not even begin to describe it!

Snack time.

A lovely evening back in Mannix Point and a chance to rest on our strenuous day of hiking.

Up next: WAW, last one. :)