Our last epic drive today, this one to Connemara National
Park, for the final big hike of our trip.
The drive takes us through some very different landscapes. Lakes, big and small, make the plains shimmer
in the shadows of the Twelve Bens Mountains.
The little island country feels very big from here and reminds us of our
drives through Montana.
We arrive at the park, layer up and strap on the hikers. As we start out, we end up in the middle of a big group of French school kids at the park on a field trip. Fortunately, they split off as we start the route. We’re not sure how committed to the whole 7km distance, but there’s a there’s a fork in the trail that cuts off the steepest 3km, so we’ll decide when we get there. As the trails rise gently, the green pastures drop away to slowly reveal the lakes in the distance in every direction. We get to the fork and look up at Diamond Hill, the peak a mere 1450 feet above us. We see hikers in silhouette along the upper ridge and decide that of course we want to be one of those guys, so we turn left to follow the red trail up. New bodies of water appear in all directions with every few feet of vertical rise from tiny lakes to the North Atlantic. The climb is steep but well-marked with plenty of vistas to catch a breath and a pic.
It’s one of the rare trails that when you’re
at the top of the trail you’re at the tippy-top of the mountain. When I tell Mandy my idea for a video… “we’re
going to spin around right on the point”… she has another idea… “hells no we’re
not!” Let’s go to the tape…
We spend 15 minutes taking it all in before starting our descent. About halfway back to the start we find ourselves smack in the middle of the same bunch of school kids who tease us playfully as we weave our way through the group. Well deserved lunch just outside the park entrance at Veldons Seafarer on Main Street in Letterfrack. The crab salad and chicken burger are both delish, but the Irish brown bread (and now that we’ve eaten it 3 meals a day for the better part of two weeks, we’re clearly experts) is the absolute best we’ve had.
We head back following the
signs to Sky Loop, a scenic drive up, up, up beautiful seaside cliffs replete
with middle-of-the-road livestock and more splendid views. We continue on to Clifden. Clifden is a vibrant little place, so we park
and check it out. We end up in an art
gallery and chat with the proprietor for half an hour. Down the street for a spot of tea and another
fun discussion with the owner of the shop.
Tired, but it’s still an hour back to our hotel for a nap.
Dinner at McSwiggans Pub, then off to find music, heading to
Taaffes Bar on the server’s recommendation.
The place is jumpin, locals, the college crowd and tourists all packed
in together. Not surprisingly, we’re adopted
by a few Galwayins sitting at the bar who, not surprisingly insist on buying us
some pints. Some U of G guys add
themselves to our conversation as the duo on stage gets the whole place singing
along, a combination of traditional Irish music and classic American
covers. When a couple floats in and
orders beers, I pass the glass (that’s a baby pint) of Guinness to the woman,
then the bartender hands me another glass instead of a proper pint. I get our new friends’ attention as I pass
the glass and ask the guy “where are you from?”
“New York” he replies. I raise my
glass as if to toast, but instead say “Hey guys! Here’s the difference… New York (pointing to
the bitty brew in the guys hand)… Philly! (lifting my own pint)” After the New Yorker’s penalty shot of
Jamison to atone for his sin, the whole UN meeting lot of us partied well into
the night.
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