Plan: To spend the morning exploring the site rich area of Loch Gur. To get to Limerick mid-day and do a ride through the town to see it. Stop in Bunratty where we would be able to see the castle and 'folk village' the next morning.
We began our day riding back the way we came the day before so we could round the lake towards the Lough Gur Heritage Center. On the way we passed and saw several sites; a stone church ruin, an ancient burial tomb/wedge, and a castle among others. The area was very rich in history as the land and location were ideal; the area was highly settled over the centuries. At the heritage center, there was a multitude of paths and green space which we enjoyed for the entirety of the morning. After a quick lunch we hit the road to Limerick. The ride was a blast; we had a tail wind and did very little elevation gain on the rolling hills down into Limerick. Mom was the most thrilled for the fun, fast ride. In Limerick we stopped for a quick pint and then road the Shannon river to see some of the town. The river walkways and bike paths were well done. To Bunratty we went with a B&B reserved. The ride was a little more uphill then earlier in the day, but way less then what we had become accustom to. Soon we were settled in ready to enjoy a sunny afternoon. We went down to the town to scout out the castle for the next morning as well as get a bite to eat. We ate at the Creamery which had a great atmosphere in an old stone creamery full of old thing-a-ma-doo-hikies including an old boiler that they had built the bar around. Full bellies and a short ride home we were ready for some R&R. -Charlie
0 Comments
This was the day for me to meet a passel of sweet, amazing people. First we enjoyed a yummy Bfast & lovely conversation with Pat who embodied the warmth & charm that we've experienced over & over in Ireland. Then we headed on an N road & made our fastest time so far. We went through several villages with ruins, beautiful churches & even saw a bride and her wedding party at the entrance of one.
Charlie spied a bike store in a classic old Irish building. (Mark & Charlie can speak to that-all the bike stores are amazing in their on way) Outside, a customer was admiring the tandem bike, struck up a conversation & once again, like so many other folks have been, was only too glad to help. For you see, we were in the middle of the "June bank holiday weekend" (the Irish have bank holidays spaced similar to our Mon. off holiday weekends like Memorial Day) & therefore our attempt at finding a camping area or B&B had come to naught. Brendan offered his yard or home, even though he was getting ready for a Charity Cycle ride that evening that his own organization, which supports families of critically ill children, was sponsoring. He also told me about a pub near our destination & when we arrived, the waitress, with the help of a customer found us Grange Farm House B&B just up the road. The food was fabulous too. On the way, we passed The Great Stone Circle of Grange, an amazing circle of 113 large stones up against a circular berm dating back to thousands of years BC (supposedly the earliest discovered circle of stone). As we were leaving, I had heard the cattle lowing across the street & the farmer called me over. Tim was also the caretaker of the area and told us about a smaller stone circle & very large standing stone (used as a highway marker) in the next field. He, like so many folks we had met, had a child in the states in Albany NY. He had us sign his guest book & before we left gave me a postcard with his address with the request for an Albany GA postcard in return. A short way, but up a steep hill, we met Elizabeth at the B&B who offered us tea & we enjoyed yet another warm conversation with she and her husband. I think the days here just can't get any better, but each one has it's own delightful surprises. -Joyce Today
-We woke up for the last time in Coolyduff. (SHOUTOUT: Thank you Phil, Ros, and Bobby for letting us camp, playing loads of badminton, the good music, and sharing your pups!) -When Charlie and I got onto the tandem we could feel something strange. It did not sound good. We were concerned it could be a major mechanical issue from the 'grinding' sensation -Luckily, the timing chain was binding up (which is a comparatively minor issue) -We planned to make it to Mallow before addressing the problem. -Once we made it to Mallow, we found a pub and Charlie flipped the bike over and started to fix the problem. -We purchased a few beers and lunch. -After the bike adjustments, we got back on the bikes and headed to a B&B that Joyce booked. -This was the first B&B that we had a male host, his name is Pat. -Charlie worked on the Website some. Sleep. -Skye Woke up at the most excellent, idyllic camping area at the house of Phil and Ros.
Ros’ dog was doing his usual rounds, checking the area. I think he forgot we were there and barked at the tent...then came over all apologetic. What a hoot. I laid there for a little while more, listening to the zillion kinds of bird sounds, including the happy coos from the nearby chicken coop. Then inside to enjoy a little time with our excellent hosts. Cork... Urban feel but rode bike on bike trail and lanes from outskirts to city center. English market with loads of fresh food and other Irish items. The ride there was bicycle heaven for an urban setting. Charlie had located bike trails through parks for most of the way. On the city streets we shared a big lane with largely nonexistent buses. Joyce wanted to go to Blarney Castle. Rode significant distance in rush hour traffic to Blarney destination, had an hour and a half to see the place, since closing time loomed. Turns out when you do it this way you almost have the place to yourself and the ride back is pain free, cause everybody is home eating. I got over my annoyance with the hairy ride there quickly. Blarney castle is a major tourist destination, but it is absolutely gorgeous without any tourists. Some of the areas seemed a little “contrived”, but the buildings and gardens were awesome. Back to camper heaven for the night at Phil's house. As we arrived, there was a rousing game of badminton being played on the back lawn, nobody keeping score. Easy dinner of fruit, cheese, bread and olive oil or peanut butter...then after a little more pleasant talk with our new friends off to bed..tomorrow the wheels are rolling again. P.S. our hosts were some interesting and awesome characters. -Mark Morning stuff per usual.
Some chill time with Lucie (the young golden retriever). Stretches in the sun. Off onto our least favorite road in Ireland; N22. Luckily, only a few kilometers on N22 to get across the lake! Yay! N22 never again! Wonderful back-roads up to R618. River valleys always make pretty rides. Skye summons a field of cows (they came from all four corners and gather around). R618 to Coolyduff. Coolyduff is the destination by way of a connection made during a visit to Portland: Matt&Erin introduced us to Drew who put us in touch with Phil who lives outside of Cork. We show up; meeting Ros, her dog Yosha, and Phil's dog Rocket as they return from a walk on the river. Phil arrives after work a few hours later. The group chills outside and we chat as the sun begins to set. Phil goes to band practice. Sun sets. Ready for a nice night under the sky. Stoked to have such welcoming hosts and look forward to another day! -Charlie After our 3 day break in Killarney, it was back to "work". We had done our 1st load of laundry the day before (lots of hand washing), so packed it all up & headed out past the mountains & forest we had ridden through the previous days. Traveled on an "N" road which is a highway with pull off lanes that are perfect for cyclists. Later it turned into 2 lanes up a long slow hill with a more narrow edge. We did find a few "L" roads that generally paralleled the highway, are smaller, less heavily traveled & wind through farmland & small villages. Some of these are designated as specific cycle routes too which of coarse we love . We arrived in Macroom, which despite having a castle, seemed much more of a work a day locale. The end of the day traffic was bumper to bumper & more harrowing than we'd experienced before. We were relieved to see a nice walking path over the river. We found Penns Pub which only had a few patrons. After a few minutes, we had a new bartender who was quite friendly & informative. We had found a B&B online (all the pubs have WiFi) & she approved of our choice. She commiserated with us about the traffic and discussed the local economy a bit. The pub used to have a restaurant & hostel but the area had fallen on harder times. I also figured out that it was Penns bar because William Penn's (Pennsylvania) brother was from there. We then headed to Fountain House B&B on a lovely lake, met Breda & her 3 youngest elementary age boys, Mark, Simon & David. She offered to do laundry & since we're apparently in an Irish heat wave (highs almost 70), that was much appreciated. She also had a 7 month old puppy, a white Golden Retriever who we all loved on.
(Joyce) Today we woke up and went straight to O'Sullivan's bike shop in town to fix Mark's bike. The back cassette on the bike required replacement.
Charlie, Joyce, and I went searching for an ATM, and then off on the grocery store hunt. Since the beginning of this trip my daily hunger has doubled. I also have developed an addiction to ice cream. With these two new facts, I noticed that most grocery stores have an ice cream cone advertisement, about as tall as I am, standing outside of each store. Found the cone – found the grocery store. Inside we purchased sandwiches for lunch, and beer and snacks for the day. Now off for our new daily adventure: First, we devoured the sandwiches, hence the photo above of Joyce :) Second, we got onto the bike paths that we rode to get to the castle. Third, we stopped at the Muckross Friary -everything was built in “Skye” height, except for one hallway -the middle of the building had a tree growing up through the middle, and a walkway all around Fourth, we went to Muckross House -while we were there we just strolled around the huge garden. Fifth, we got back on the path and stopped at a beach on the way to the waterfall. Sixth, the waterfall. Seventh, back to Golden Nugget. -Golden Nugget is a pub that we have spent almost every dinner at in Killarney. -The people are friendly, the food is delectable, and it is not overrun by tourists. While we were there, we ordered clam chowder and the three folks sitting next to us made a joke (too quiet for us to hear) about Americans. I guess we must have been eating really fast, but we were all starving for our well earned calories. I noticed that they were showing card tricks earlier in the night so I decided to go blow their minds. I borrowed their deck and earned myself a glass of wine from the group. Two of the three were from Germany, Andreas and Nicole. In town for work. The third, oddly enough, was the bike shop owner from the beginning of our day. He shared a few tricks and went home to the lovely wife. We stayed and drank beer/wine with Andreas and Nicole and had the chance to get to know the two. Lesson of the day: Learn another language, and respect people who have already done so. Nicole, an amazing woman, spoke small amounts of English but continued to hold a conversation with me throughout the night. I appreciate how much effort she put into understanding me and helping me understand her. I never felt a strong desire to learn a new language until I was unable to speak German with Nicole. She has my full respect, and I will always be thankful for her helping me see the value in learning for others and not just yourself. -Skye Weather, sunny and warm (are we in Ireland?)
Around Kilarney: First and largest national park Big beautiful lakes Big beautiful mountains Fast moving water Lots of bike paths Lots, lots of history Bike rides: Rode a couple miles to base of Ross castle and beginning of lakes. Got on motorboats (20 foot long wooden outboard with room for bikes and 15 people) Rode the boats upstream through three lakes with fairly hairy rivers between them. Finally to base of some of the biggest mts in Ireland. On bikes, no gear, they feel like feathers. Up the mountain to the gap of Dunloe. Shepherd on the way up, working dog. “NED!”. Ned chasing sheep at 90 miles per hour. Me walking bike up mountain. Old man likes to walk up, and go down slow...see you at the bottom. Astonishing views. Met people on the way, and reconvened with them at the pub at the bottom. “Katie’s cottage”....Brendan and Sheila, retired couple, electric assist bikes, navy man, pipe smoker. Had to get back to Mallow and the Bridge house pub, to continue saving the world with his buddies. Kevin and Dierdre:. Young couple, both beautiful; she was pregnant (walked 5 miles over mountain pass!). He a perfectly fit young man; Gaelic football interest. We had questions about rules. Seems like a mix of rugby and soccer. She had dancing happy eyes...I embarrassed her a little by telling her I liked the smell of pregnant women. Oops. They walked dog...half pug half jack russell. “Minch”. He must've made a million steps on that hike. -Mark 1st full day of our break time which translates to biking with no gear/packs. Fossa, is just outside the town of Killarney with great bike access to Killarney Ntnl Park. Late start, no breakfast, snacked. Started around Killarney on a red bike lane along the main road & in <1/2 mile, a bike /walking path which wound through woods, past a meadow where we saw horseback riders & a golf course (lg bright pink blooming rhododendron which reminded me the azaleas at National Hills for The Masters in Augusta). Past the golf course we went through more fern floored woods & meadows with clumps of yellow irises, which we had seen all over Ireland. We arrived at Ross Castle, another tower home from the 15th century. It had been set to fire by the locals when they thought Cromwell was about to attack from the water in the mid 1600's. The story goes that there had been a prophesy from the druids that the castle would only fall if besieged from the lake side. Apparently Cromwell learned of the prophecy & that's just what he did. Large boats had never come up through the lake before, so when the locals saw Cromwell barges, they gave no real fight but burned the place leaving nothing to be taken. All of the informational displays we've seen have been so well done. This one was no exception. There was a replica of the house with cut outs to show various features. There was also a side window with a 3D replica depicting methods used to construct the house. There was a cute primitive painting showing life back then and you were to find the items that were out of place like a flip top trash can & sun glasses and you could find the myriad of cats (thought of Aunt Polly). One of the displays showed a band of barefoot Irish mercenaries & next to that was my favorite, a portrait of an English official in full royal blue regalia complete with military helmet and an Irish lance from the thighs up, but bare pale legs complete with blue veins, barefoot. This was Sir Thomas Lee from the late 1500's & it was noted that the English officials were concerned "that the servants of the crown would 'lapse into barbarism by adopting Gaelic ways" The house had then had various owners over the years, was re-purposed with the addition of barracks at one point but with disuse, began to crumble. The area was almost developed by several Americans who probably would have torn the castle down and built homes around the lake (those Americans!); but an Irishman American bought it back. He made a deal with the government that if they fully restored the castle, he would give it to them along with surrounding lands for free. With this motivation, the castle was restored over a 20 year period to as close to the original as they were able to accomplish & using many of the same building techniques. Our tour guide was excellent & I assume she was one of the historians or curators for the museum. She explained the various defensive features of the castle including several small rooms near the entrance where up to 2 dozen men would sleep in readiness for an attack. Just above the front entrance was access to an opening called the murder hole where rocks, hot water, or oil could be thrown onto intruders. Mark's favorite feature was the spiral staircase always revolving clockwise allowing the right handed defenders from above to have the spatial advantage. She told about the living conditions, damp, crowded & cold, but those lucky enough to be inside were protected from attack. There were furnishings from the times including some 16th century tapestries in immaculate condition, the carved back chairs with arm rests for the head of the household and a 10th century chest from Irish oak that seemed to be a prized possession for the museum. Each level up was considered more protected, so the Lord of the castle slept in the 2nd to the top floor. There was a curtained bed for the Lord & Lady & up to a dozen children & even guests would have slept on the floor there. The top floor with a high ceiling was the meeting area/judgment hall (where the Lord would preside over disputes)/dining room. This area had a side room for cooking & a balcony for the musicians and barbs of the day to provide entertainment. Those in the balcony were hidden behind the balcony wall. They were considered lower on the totem pole than the servants but are highly appreciated today for having passed down & developed the history, poetry, plays, music of the day. They ate off pewter since it was less expensive than silver but unfortunately this resulted in lead poisoning. Near the end of the tour, our guide asked for "the question" which Mark correctly asked - "where was the toilet". We were wound through an area with metal grates where material would fall the 5 stories down & that was then managed by a "farmer" who generated compost. The servants slept near this area & one could only hope for olfactory fatigue. After our tour we then had a late lunch back in Killarney at Murphys pub, scored some groceries, snacked at the Hostel & enjoyed our shut eye. The day was partly cloudy, mostly sunny. -Joyce We left Murphy's farmhouse after breakfast, some quick route discussion, and bike tuning. The day would be a short day to Killarney requiring about 15 miles.
Killarney is Ireland's largest nationally reserved park for public use. We knew a few details; the park is centered by 3 lakes which are encircled by woods, mountains, and historical sites with walking/biking routes winding throughout the park. For these reasons + we had been riding for 7 days straight, we chose to take our break there (experience taught me that within an 11 day period you need 3 days where you are not packing and toting your gear everyday - aka a break). But before we could break we had to ride our 15 miles through country side. We had hoped for a flat day but had to conquer 2 large hills. One long and gradual, the other short and steep. The hills are always worth the effort because they generally get us off the busy roads and offer the best views out onto Ireland. On top of our first hill we met an Irish postman who provided us with some route suggestions for the day. These postman are definitely the most qualified people to be providing anyone with back-road directions. We have later discovered how personal the mail service is in the countryside; there are few addresses so the service requires a knowledge of the people in your area/route. As a result, it seems postman are the most knowledgeable individuals of the areas we have been riding. Now that we know this, it will be a valuable tool if lost or unsure of our route...or to just have a chat with a friendly face that knows the area best. After the second monster hill of the day, we had a nice drop into the town of Fossa where we planned to stay at the Fossa Carvan and Camping Park. After reviewing the price to camp+electricity+shower vs. getting a bed in the all inclusive hostile, we chose the hostile as the more bang for the buck method. Especially as we would be there for 3 days and spending little time in the room except to sleep. Derry, the very friendly and helpful host, showed us the room and settled us in. We than had a conversation with a Irishman, Marty, who frequently visited the area in order to assist a cycling group in transporting all their bikes from Dublin. He gave us recommendations for the next few days as well as a suggestion for a pub to eat at. This pub/restaurant, the Golden Nugget, became our go to place for meals and to just relax after long day of riding (lending us some good tales later to come). With full bellies on good, cost effective food, we decided to save Killarney for the next morning, instead going back to the room to catch up on sleep. -Charlie |