Great start to what sounds like an excellent trip!

Thanks.

Bob

-- Edited by stewh on Tuesday 29th of June 2010 06:29:35 PM

Stewart,

Did you stop at Josie's for tea after Healy Pass? I just love the little roads out there. Sounds like your GPS was really challenged.

Looking forward to hearing about the Red House and Bantry.

Michele

Stewart,

I know what you mean. Whenever I'm near Josie's it is not really "meal time". That's why I just get the cream tea. Next time, however, I am making time for dinner there. It will be a special trekk from Kenmare. I guess I should do it when the days are long so I have some twilight for driving back.

Michele

Stewart,

I must read things closer. For some reason I thought your self-catering was in Bantry but it was really in Schull. I prefer renting from the owners too. I think most of them take real pride in their cottages. It tends to be a mixed bag when renting a cottage that is "managed". But even so, the first thing I usually do is put the dishes in the dishwasher and turn it on. You never know how the previous renters washed them. I also love settling into a place to call "home" if only for a week.

Sounds like you met some interesting people in the area. I love seeing the newborn animals in the spring. You did what most people going to Ireland want to experience - interacting with Irish people. And you never know when you are going to make a new friend.

Michele

PART 5

On Friday, our last day in Schull we had a fairly quiet time - email at the library, filling the Punto with gas, a bit of laundry etc. We took one last drive through the beautiful West Cork Countryside and returned to Schull through the Mt Gabriel Pass - a very nice view of the village and the islands. For dinner we went again to the Black Sheep which had become our favourite, well-run and welcoming with excellent food.

Our longest scheduled drive was Saturday, May 22, from Schull to Killaloe Co Clare. It is a distance of approx 235 km (145 miles). Rather than a dull overland route through Dunmanway we took a more scenic drive through Glengarriff, Kenmare & Killarney. It was an easy relaxed trip on good roads. We turned the GPS off when Motorways came into play past Adare - I didn't need another tour of Limerick. We arrived in Killaloe in early afternoon, parked the car and went into the first pub we saw. The barman knew the owners of our Holiday house and phoned them to meet us. Within 10 minutes we were moved into Sheena just a few doors away. Alan, who owns the house gave us a tour and instructions. It is a charming old buiding, very nicely refurbished and meticulously clean and tidy. There are three floors with an exceptionally large bedroom on each of the two top floors. Each bedroom has a double and a twin bed as well as a bathroom. There is a small walled area in the back yard that has a seating area in an old stone outbuilding, protected from the weather by a clear roof. After settling in we walked around town, did some banking and went to the Wooden Spoon (recommended by Alan's wife Noreen who works at the Tourist Office) for a late lunch - excellent homemade food, trendy and very busy. Late in the afternoon we returned to Reddans Pub for a pint. Pat Reddan, who had made the phone call for us was home for a break while his 86 year old mother was running the Pub. Mrs Reddan made us very welcome, she has been running the pub for more than 60 years and certainly knows the business. We had dinner at home and an early night.

On Sunday morning we went to the 9 o'clock Farmers Market which eventually got going shortly after 10:00. We chatted with some of the friendly vendors while they set up - a very relaxed and pleasant time. The market was very good; we bought cheeses and pate from a Belgian couple, fishcakes from a French Irishman, bread from a Limerick bakery, strawberries from Co Laois and fresh eggs and vegetables from a local. After a lunch of cheese, pate and baguette we took a drive north along the shore of Lough Derg. We stopped at McKernans where Lorraine bought a beautiful scarf/shawl thing for one of our daughters. The weather was so sunny and warm (26C+) that the pavement was melting in spots. When we returned to Killaloe Lorraine went to the nearby grocery store and I went to Reddans. As soon as Mrs Reddan had served me a pint of Guinness she ordered me to go outside to the 'beer garden' and talk to the 'Canadian Man' - there's no arguing with Mrs Reddan. The Canadian turned out to be retired from a town about an hour away from us in Ontario. He loves Clare and particularly Killaloe. He introduced me to a couple who own the Restaurant just down the road and to another friend. When Lorraine arrived about an hour later we were all great friends - three Canadians and three very sunburned Irish.

On Monday morning, I took my camera for a walk down the hill to St Flannans Cathedral, in continuous use since c.1200. The door was not open yet so I just walked around the grounds and along the river. After breakfast we set out to drive up the east side of the lake to Portumna. When we tried to find Hanly's near Nenagh we couldn't find it, got lost on the backroads of Tipperary, were forced to take a detour around construction and came upon the shop. It is a big weaving operation with a small shop on site. The woman working there told us she has been trying for months to get the owner to replace the road sign directing drivers to the shop - it was knocked down. When I noticed that she was packing a large box full of wool scarves labeled 'LL Bean' she comment "Ah, you've caught me". We bought scarves for everyone it seems.

We arrived at Portumna castle around 2:00 PM. Lorraine was particularly anxious to visit the large walled kitchen garden that we had seen a few years ago when restoration was just started. The garden is still very impressive but seemed a bit overgrown. The castle renovation goes on but the guide said that there is not a lot of money in Ireland for that sort of thing. They are wisely trying to preserve the building rather than 'make it new'. We completed our cicumnavigation by returning to Killaloe along the Western shore of Lough Derg. We Takeaway Indian food from a small restaurant down the street; it was very good. When we went for a pint later Mrs Reddan was holding down the fort. The bar was full so everyone shifted around to make room for us beside one of the people we had met the previous day "we're all friends here". They were all interested in our day and were keen to offer advice. There was a very tweedy old man sitting at the corner of the bar with a big smile on his face. He was intrigued that we were from Canada and would come out with the odd appropriate phrase - "Mounted Police" he blurted at one point. After a while he broke out singing 'Springtime in the Rockies' in a pleasant, strong voice. He finished to applause, the loudest from me. The evening continued with very friendly chat and a bit of a sing along - good Craic. Back at our little house we watched the last episode of 'Lost' and promised a quieter day tomorrow.

On Thursday we kept our promise and enjoy a quiet restful day around town. While Lorraine checked out the local shops I took my camera into the Cathedral. I was impressed. There is a High Cross that was rescued from Kilfenora as well as an Ogham Stone. The elaborately carved door (or window) inside reminded me of similar carving at Clonfert Cathedral and the church at Dysert O'Dea. There is also colourful stained glass and a great screen inside. Lots of photos.

Later I went to the Public Library in the same building as the Tourism Office for free internet access. Unlike Co Cork, Clare does not require you to become a member to use the library's resources. For Lunch we went to Wood Brothers Bistro almost directly across the road from our house. We were surprised at how large and stylish it was. Like a lot of places in Ireland it teaches you not to judge by the streetfront. This was the restaurant owned by the couple we had met at Reddan's Beer Garden on Sunday. The food is excellent and the menu eclectic. John has a large vegetable garden where he grows many ingredients and the emphasis in the comfortable bistro is definitely on fresh and healthy. Brenda is very hospitable. I had a spicy (particularly for Ireland) Moroccan Chickpea Stew and Lorraine had Smoked Salmon and Scrambled Eggs. Excellent. A bit more walking in the afternoon and, for the first time we did not use the car all day.

more to come, sorry about the slow pace...

-- Edited by stewh on Saturday 10th of July 2010 09:12:08 PM

Unfortunately the Castle grounds come second to other work around the area. Portmna suffered heavily in the Floods last winter when the Shannon broke its banks and was un crossable for almost a week. The heavy rain got into and under many of the roads followed by a full month of sub zero tepratures and extensive damage was done This has taken priority and you no doubt noted the extent of resurfaced roads and cleared ditches as you headed down the Lough Derg Drive (probably got stuck at the road works by the Coose bridge). I would have recomended the Ferry Inn for lunch and a detour via Abbey and Woodford over the Slive. I have a couple of favorite spots with views across Lough Derg to the Slive Bloom's which remind me how lucky I am to live where I do.

PART 6

note: Tuesday, not Thursday as I said in Part 5, was our quiet day.

On Wednesday we decided to go to a larger town for some shopping. Ennis is a town we like but after listening to a radio show that talked about the worsening traffic and parking situation we decided to try Nenagh. I had never spent any time in Nenagh before and was pleasantly surprised. The town is larger than we expected with a good selection of shops and a wide main street. The Country Choice Cafe was recommended as a good place for lunch. The tiny deli has an amazing variety of cheese available and serves good homemade meals. Peter, the owner is an Irish cheese expert. He stopped for a chat and gave us his recipe for 'Pint Bread'.

When we left Nenagh we drove to one of our favourite towns in Ireland, Birr, Co Offaly. It is a very attractive Georgian town, home of Birr Castle and just seems to have a relaxed atmosphere. Spinners Bistro is once again 'closed til further notice' and a self-catering place that we rented a few years ago near the river looked overgrown and a bit rough. Otherwise things seemed to be busy and prosperous.

Thursday started with a soft rain falling. We took the advice of John Wood (chef & gardener) and drove to Scarriff to Irish Seed Savers. We ended up spending more time here than we had expected. The staff are very dedicated, many of them are volunteers. We met staff from Canada and the U.S.A. as well as from Ireland. We got a very informative tour from Dave (knows everything about apples). When he told us of the many virtues of 'the gorse', I asked him if he had ever heard Christy Moore's song 'The Poor Old Earth' which uses Samuel Beckett's words about Gorse. "No" he said but then proceeded to recite the Yeats poem 'The Song of the Wandering Aengus' in its entirety - only in Ireland. I was particularly intrigued by the apple varieties known as Irish Pitchers - you pitch the cuttings onto the damp ground and they take root! More care is taken these days.

That evening we had dinner at Wood Brothers Bistro. Highly recommended. The salad ingredients were all grown in John's back garden. The ingredients were all fresh and prepared to perfection. Lorraine made an early night of it while I went out later for a pint with John at Reddans. It turned into one of those nights. John's brother is a former captain of Ireland's National Rugby team and he was there with another former captain and a couple of local hurlers. Mrs Reddan was very hospitable. A famous local golfer was welcomed later and we all became good friends. I left a reasonable time after we were 'locked in' but I learned the next day that the Craic had continued until Mrs Reddan sent everyone home.

On Friday we got organized, had lunch at the Wooden Spoon again and spent a quiet day. We went in to say goodbye to Mrs Reddan and Pat. She insisted on buying us GAA lottery tickets 'I can send your winnings to Canada'. Reddan's has joined my short list of favourite Irish Pubs. On Saturday morning we went to Wood Brothers Bistro for coffee and John & Brenda very kindly gave us a tour of his beautiful garden overlooking Lough Derg and the bridge to Ballina. We were sad to say goodbye to Killaloe.

We had a leisurely drive from Killaloe to Kilrush and checked in to Crotty's. Kilrush is an attractive town built around a traditional square but seems a bit down on her luck. Crotty's is a very traditional Pub and B&B that is run by a very hard-working and hospitable family. Our room was large with very big windows looking out on the town square. Not modern but comfortable and roomy. We had to walk up to the 3rd floor. The pub is very busy and friendly with plenty of local character(s). A good selection of food is served.

On Sunday after a very good made to order breakfast we set out on a drive through Kilkee and around loop Head. This is just the kind of drive I enjoy - Thank You, Michele!! The road is mostly narrow but in good condition with almost no traffic and truly spectacular views of the cliffs and the Atlantic. We stopped often and I took many photos. There is Sea Thrift everywhere. This is mostly farmland and has a very far away and isolated feel - the few small settlements are not genteel or even very attractive. We spent most of the drive in brilliant sunshine but it was raining when we finally stopped at Loop Head Light. Walking around I can only imagine what a storm would be like here. We drove through Carrigaholt on our return route - more substantial than anything else in the neighborhood and not unattractive. Kilkee seems full of uninhabited Celtic Tiger Holiday Homes. We drove up the coast of Clare a bit before cutting cross country back to Kilrush. That afternoon we took the short drive to Vandaleur Walled Garden. The place was teeming with families - lots of kids running wild. It was a fund-raising event for the local hospital - complete with bouncy castle and PA system. The attractive garden itself is still a work in progress and we were surprised at the amount of damage from the harsh Winter. Back at Crotty's while Lorraine relaxed I took the advice of the Barman and went down the street to the Bookmaker (1st time) and placed a wager on Cork to beat Tipperary in the televised Hurling Match. A couple of hours later I collected my winnings! We ate a good dinner at Crotty's - sat in the little 'snug' beside the bar.

At breakfast the next morning we met three Canadian couples who were all traveling in a rented 'people mover' - all seemed a bit overwhelmed. After we had packed the car, Kevin the manager (?owner) came over to have a chat and say goodbye - another Irishman working hard in the hospitality business. We took an unhurried drive up the coast through Lahinch (did not visit THE CLIFFS) and then turned inland to drive around the familiar roads of the Burren. We were lost and found more than once near Kilfenora and Corofin. We spent some time shopping around Bunratty before driving back to Quin for our last night at The Abbey Tavern where we had a quiet dinner and a quiet night. I took the 'return the car full' option and bought gas in Shannon Town before returning the Punto to Dooleys. We had plenty of time so I went and collected my 60 Euro refund at the office rather than waiting for it to be credited. Checked in and did the duty free thing with no trouble. Save Shannon. Plane left on time and had a smooth flight back to Toronto. Our most laid back trip yet.

Thanks Michele, for the info about Loop Head self-catering, an interesting possibility for our next trip. All of the properties available from the Landmark Trust look interesting. It is never too early to start planning.
Stewart

Monty, 

Here's a photo I took of the lighthouse at Loop Head. I have other photos but need to get them online before they can appear on the forum.
 
Michele 



Loop Head Lighthouse Click the link for a larger photo.