Ireland (local)

Unsere Tour führte uns letztlich immer entlang der Küste. Von Dublin über Cork nach Galway. Wir schafften dabei mehr als 1100 Kilometer und erlebten auf den spannenden Tourtagen die Gastfreundschaft der Iren, die uns mehrrmals einluden. Zudem war das Wetter ausgesprochen gut - es regnete nur an 2 Tagen!

A few days spent exploring County Clare on the west coast of Ireland. I live in the UK and travelled via Dublin on the ferry and train. This was a short and rather windy trip based around the coastal village of Doolin, and included a visit to the Cliffs of Moher.

This was our third trip, I think, and this time we went to Ireland. A big warning to all travelling in the area: check the almanach for the rainy season. It may sound obvious but we didn't do our homework well and biked through a very rainy period which wasn't fun. Ireland is windy too so watch out and get in shape.

Ireland is absolutely beautiful and friendly and a lot of fun, it is also very green as everyone knows and I love green. Enjoy the pictures and stories.

I followed roughly the coastline of the Ireland, but I didn't see the sea in the first week because I cycled trough the interior of the island, from Dublin via Kilkenny to Cork. Between Cork and Killarney I cycled mostly right next to the sea, along the coastline of the south-western peninsulas. For me this was the most exciting part. I took the bus from Galway back to Dublin. In the end I had cycled 1004 miles.

A trip that I took in 2001, starting in Cork, biking north up the west coast, and ending in Galway. There are nine chapters here, one about planning the trip, and one for each day of biking. The descriptions are quite detailed and there are lots of pictures.

[I rode] a small road near Ballydavid on the northeast tip of Dingle Peninsula in Smerwick Harbor. I was bicycling to a pub there because I'd heard there'd be a session with good craic and without the ever present, suffocating crowds that fill the pubs of Dingle town. In Ballydavid I got to experience a real Irish pub without the usual mob of tourists.

When I got there the place was near empty, but slowly the Ballydavid locals trickled in for some dinner and pints. The four musicians I'd met at O'Flaherty's Pub the night before were jamming away on pipe, whistle, guitar, bodhrain, and mandolin. The evening sun was making framed boxes of light on the floor. Little kids chased a puppy under the tables, around the bar and out the door. A toddler swayed around the floor like a drunken fisherman. Glasses were being lifted and clinked together. You could hear the tap breathing nitrogen and Guinness into pint glasses. The aroma of home cooking swirled about the room. I had brown bread with some lamb stew, with my Guinness, of course.

Not your average text-cum-pictures tour report: along with the textthere are gorgeous watercolours. Highly recommended.

Take good rain gear! seemed to be the unanimous recommendationof everyone who had been to Ireland on a bicycle. "There's areason that everything is so green over there"! Our experiencewould be different - a single day of rain in two beautiful weeksexploring the South and West of Ireland on bikes.
My sister Anne and I had been planning to tour the land of ourfather's ancestors for years. Both of us being avid cyclists, bicycleswere the only mode of travel we considered.

Brian's trip starts out miserably, with a double puncture before even hitting the road. The rest is ``downhill'', and the report is packed with many enlightening observations:

``I was also suffering a double dose of culture shock--an American urbanite in rural Ireland. It took me a day or two to adjust [...] If you are from the city, start in Dublin, if you're from the country, start in Shannon. This will help you make the transition better.''

This is an outline of a 1,000 miles trip around perimeter of the Republic of Ireland that my boyfriend and I took. [...] Based on everything we heard, we were prepared for rain, rain and more rain. In thirty days, we only had two full days of rain, and a few other light showers. By the last week of June, the weather was in the 70s -80s (F), which I guess is rather unusual for Ireland, and the Irish were ecstatic.

Three self-contained cycle tourists leave sunny dry California and meander through the green rolling hills of Ireland.

[...] we took the ferry to Rossaveal, which is at the southern coast of Connemara. Connemara is a mountain area with the well known Twelve Pins which are up to 2300 feet high. In spite of the mountains, cycling in this area is easy and a lot of fun. The roads are not very steep and usually between the mountains. Also, this area is sheltered from the wind by the mountains. Connemara is a must for all cyclists because of the beauty of the nature. If you use side roads you will encounter very quiet areas where you can cycle for miles and miles without crossing a town or village. [...] We set up our tent close to Lough Inagh where we found a beautiful spot with a little river that provided us with water for cooking and washing. Worthwile is also a little trip to Lough Fee, northeast of Lough Inagh. Connemara is also a highlight for photographers who should not forget to take plenty of filmrolls along.

Once you get out of Dublin, not quite the right direction, but you will find Newgrange (a bronze age burial site within easy riding distance) well worth the visit. From then on, Ireland is your oyster. If you are trundling over to the west coast, make sure you bring your granny (gears)! Don't neglect the North if you have time, some of the most stunning scenery is in Antrim (and the toughest cycling).