clairedavieswriter

Bernard spent a peaceful night outside the henhouse

But we were all woken shortly after dawn by the garrulous gobblings of our hosts’ newest acquisition (just yesterday): an eight month old male turkey who was clearly so aggrieved to be rehomed with a bunch of old chooks that he escaped to the roof in protest

Today’s ride was a game of two halves. For the first forty blissful kilometres, Team Bernard meandered along almost deserted single track roads (the kind where grass grows down the middle) with only the odd cow or goldfinch for company. On this bridge over the placid river Maigue, just across the fields from Adare Manor (which a well-placed source tells me will host the 2027 Ryder Cup) we saw the first swallows of summer

Obviously it was all too good to last, but I was still in good spirits as I pedalled towards my lunch date on the banks of the Shannon

From where we had a fine view of King John’s Castle

As for the next 45km, the least said the better.
On the plus side, there was usually a decent hard shoulder (apart the first 5k out of Limerick, which was an experience I’d rather not repeat). But the problem with hard shoulders (even those that are formally designated cycle lanes, as much of this was) is that they tend to be full of chippings and debris, which meant that Bernard’s Schwalbe tyres were severely tested.
As for me, I found both mind and body (bum, let’s be honest), equally tested from three hours riding on a largely featureless, mostly dead-straight, roughly surfaced and relentlessly undulating main road. Suffice to say I won’t be waxing lyrical about pussy willows on the R445 and if I never ride that road again I won’t be sorry

So imagine my delight when, first of all, my destination looked like this, and secondly, refreshments were on hand

Fuel of champions

Plus, I had no difficulty finding my support driver

Highlights today obviously included the first 40k on EuroVelo 1

And Ireland’s no overtaking sign, with its ‘FBI Chevrolet sedan from the original Starsky and Hutch era’ vibe – or is it just me?

And this one, because no matter how often I see it, I can’t figure out what the picture means. Could my Irish readers please explain?

As for this one, I’m sure you’re dying to ask ‘Was it a long way?’ And my answer would be, it depends where you start, but in my case it was 263km from Mizen Head. Does that sound a long way to Tipperary? I’ll leave you to decide.

But the best thing about today is our discovery of the lovely Lough Derg. Jon even managed a swim, which was sadly over before I had a chance to take a picture, but we were still out enjoying the warm sun at 8pm. I’m starting to think Ireland is always like this…