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First time into Northern Ireland

Monday 11th September 2017

Today we are making our way to Northern Ireland. We have commitments later in the month so we need to make our way northwards. Unfortunately we will only be paying lip service to County Mayo and County Sligo but I’m sure we will be paying Ireland a visit again some time in the future.

Towing Kilometres – Today: 216 – Cumulative: 1,732

We took the Wild Atlantic Way along the Killary Harbour on N59, a now familiar road, even after a short time in the area.

We travelled the whole length of the Harbour, skirting the southern shore, passing through the village of Leenane before crossing into County Mayo, from Galway. The road followed the meandering Erriff River at the base of the mountains, with views of water cascading down the slopes. We continued on N59 to Westport, then headed east to Charlestown and the border between County Mayo and Sligo.

After navigating Sligo at school’s out time, we made our way northeast. The road began to rise and to our surprise we were suddenly driving along the valley of Glencar and County Leitrim.

Apparently it’s alternative name is Swiss Valley, owing to the limestone walls which give it an alpine appearance. If time and no caravan had allowed, there was a pretty waterfall to be visited.

Back on the road again, and onwards to Manorhamilton . The weather was so changeable. One minute the sun was out, the next it was pouring with rain. We even tried to find the end of the rainbow and the pot of gold!

For some reason the sat nav came into it’s own again and sent us off on R282 towards the village of Garrison. Not really the fastest or most suitable road but we managed to take in Lough Melvin on the way. (And boy was it choppy on the waters!!)

Sat Nav mistake #2 was just around the corner. Instead of taking the longer route B52 to Belleek and then the lovely smooth A46 to our destination. Oh no, we headed east on the scenic Ulster Way! Not so scenic towing a caravan or if you suffer from motion sickness. The road was suitable for tractors and that’s all that we encountered on our 9.7 miles to A46! Needless to say, by the time we reached the end, we were both feeling the worse for wear.

At last we pulled up at our next destination, Blaney Caravan Park in County Fermanagh, near Enniskillen. Home for the next few days.

Stormy Sunday

Sunday 10th September

As forecasted, the storm arrived late Saturday night and was set to continue all day today. We had already decided we would not be moving on today, as towing a caravan in these conditions can be very  dangerous and stressful. So a blogging day it was.

The site became very busy over the course of the day, with many motorhomes arriving one after the other. Our new neighbours from Holland, were attempting to erect their tent, but were having serious problems, as the wind was so blustery. Eventually they gave up and said they were off into town to find a B&B.

As a treat and for having been cocooned all day in the ‘van’ we headed into Clifden for supper. We were spoilt for choice but had been recommended Mannion’s, The service was good and the live  traditional Irish music added to the atmosphere. The food was pretty decent too. As we left to leave, we spotted the Dutch couple from our site earlier and they informed us that they had a place for the night. In 40 years of travelling, this was the first time they had had to abandon the tent and find somewhere to spend the night!

Connemara National Park

Saturday 9th September

Having enjoyed our lunch on the beach, we headed off to Connemara National Park. We continued our mission to drive as much of the Wild Atlantic Way by taking the coast road (Cleggan Loop) around the remainder of the Aughrus Peninsula before joining N59. The quiet winding road, allowed us views of the Atlantic and there was a plethora of signs highlighting the many sandy beaches along the route. We also passed through Cleggan, where it is possible to catch a ferry to the island, Inishbofin.

Connemara National  Park is located just south of Letterfrack village and has no admission charge.  Once parked we made our way down to the visitor centre, which is worth a visit and the staff were very knowledgeable and helpful too.

 

There are four signposted trails to explore, all of which have their merit.

 

We chose the Lower Diamond Hill Walk, approximately 3 kms. We headed off uphill following a very well maintained pathway. As we got higher the views were fantastic. There were several stone steps to navigate both on the upward and downward journey but not too excessive. (Although they will certainly get your heart rate up).

 

Having reached the top of our trail, we paused to take in the views. Yet again, they were spectacular. It was possible to see for miles, despite the poor weather conditions.

Back down at the visitor centre, we rewarded ourselves with a coffee in the pleasant cafe. Time to head home and prepare the caravan for the storm that was about to arrive later that evening.

Omey Island

Saturday 9th September 2017

The weather looked promising so best get out there and make the most of it! We had remembered reading about Omey Island, which was not very far from our campsite. The reason it had stuck in our minds, was that twice a day around low tide, it was possibly to walk across to the island or even drive across the sand! The last time either of us had had the opportunity to walk from the mainland to any island, was in our childhood. It was possible to walk to St Michael’s Mount in Cornwall. So bring it on! We parked up in a small car park, at Omey Strand,  and thought we would make the visit to the island on foot, as lately, we have not been able to do so much walking, owing to the inclement weather conditions.

It was still rather soft and wet underfoot,  as we made our way across the sand, but what was much more noticeable, was the wind! We had to laugh at a few brave cyclists, who were trying desperately to stay upright on their bikes, as they rode across the sand, back to the mainland at snail’s pace! On the other hand, the horses and their riders, were enjoying their freedom, galloping off at great speed.

Having made it to the island we headed clockwise along the narrow road, until it came to an end. There were a small number of other visitors but we more or less had the island to ourselves. Having reached the north west side of the island, we crossed a small beach and headed inland passing the remains of a medieval church.

The ground was very undulating and we had to avoid many rabbit holes, but finally we reached the north east side of Omey and we made our way back along the rocky, sandy shore, finally past the graveyard and back across the swathe of sand to the car. We enjoyed our picnic lunch in the car on the beach.

North Connemara

Friday 8th September 2017

We had planned a busy day, as today seemed the best bet for the weather. First on the agenda was The North Connemara Sky Road.

It is a loop famous for it’s incredible views over the islands, mountains and coastlines of Connemara. The Sky Road wasn’t far from our camp site and we decided to begin in a clockwise direction. We stopped at the viewing point and were not disappointed. The wind may have been howling, but the sun was out and the views were truly spectacular.

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