clairedavieswriter

We spent a comfortable night in our modest surroundings, undisturbed by passing traffic or departing pub-goers.Like our meal last night, there was a Sardinian flavour to the weather when Team Bernard pedalled away this morning As the Green Heartlands Cycle Route sign correctly suggests, this was another day of rural views, from the beginning: Through…

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…

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…

It’s fair to say that this is not the variety of Irish weather I’d been expecting Bernard kept getting distracted by the views But before long it was time to put the beautiful mountains of Kerry behind us and cross into our third county (insert ditty here. Ed) It turned out that Guillaume had been…

I’ll write up today’s ride separately but for now I’d like to share a couple of stories that sum up my experience of Irish people so far. Settle in, it’ll take a minute.My first story takes place at Pat’s Café in the small town of Castle Island. It was the first café I came to…

After the first two days’ exertions, this was tempting: But we opted instead for a drive around the Ring of Kerry. Highlights included a side trip (a loop off a loop off the main loop) to Reenard Point, aka Valentia Harbour, an apparently insignificant pimple on the map which belies its historic significance.In 1866, after…

When we got up this morning, the wind was howling through Bernard’s spokes outside. And no matter how slowly we ate our breakfast, there was no putting off the inevitable (I’ll leave you to guess which way we were headed): The first part of the route looked demanding enough without a headwind. Plus, I had…

It has not always been easy to mark the beginning of my end-to-end rides. For Luxembourg I had to make do with a fence post in a forest. Ireland on the other hand is very straightforward. There’s even a handy sign: And another one for the more geographically minded: Many words spring to mind to…

Well this was unexpected – the sunshine, not the bloke sitting at the table. The Irish Sea has a fearsome reputation, but she laid out a blue carpet for us today. And the sun was still shining when we came ashore three hours later. We appreciated the welcome as much as Midge enjoyed the smooth…

The birds are nesting, the earth is warming under our feet and Bernard is itching for his next adventure. Just as well then, that I have A Plan. And what better way to spend St Patrick’s Day than fine tuning a route through Ireland? So now I can tell you that, starting from Mizen Head…