clairedavieswriter

Lough Derg looked just as lovely this morning as it had last night. Jon braved the waters again, plunge-pool style, while a steady stream of locals dawdled in the frigid shallows, as impervious as seals. The air temperature was still a chilly 8 degrees when Team Bernard hit the road soon after 9am

But look who I had for company once again

This is the rural heart of Ireland. Even the largest built up area we passed scarcely qualified as a town, so the view from the saddle mainly looked like this:

And this:

And this:

Plus quite a lot of unphotogenic bog.
There were signs that I was making progress up the map, although I confess I’d never heard of County Offaly

Nor did I know that Ireland had a Grand Canal, which stretches from Limerick in the west to Dublin in the east (with a bit of help from the river Shannon). The first paddle steamer made the journey in 1826, and the last cargo barge passed through in 1960. Truly, every day on a bike is a school day. These days, the canal is mostly used by leisure craft, and its tow path by walkers

Highlights of my ride today included the quiet country roads:

This example of language instruction, Irish-style:

Our peaceful lunch spot in Banagher (see ‘town’, above) – beside the Shannon for the second day in a row

After a long hot day in the saddle, I thought one of these might come in handy

Though given the choice I think I’d prefer refreshment of a more temporal nature in this cute little Banagher pub

Pity it was too early to experience the evening entertainment (what exactly is a Singing Pub anyway?)

Around the 70k mark, we crossed off our 6th county:

Our final stop was a roadside Italian, where it’s free to park overnight, provided you eat at the restaurant. And I’m very pleased we did – we hadn’t expected such excellent Sardinian food out in the middle of nowhere (Surely ‘in Ireland’s hidden heartlands’? Ed). If you’re in the area, have a meal at Loru’s (and don’t feel obliged to sleep in the car park).