On the Bog Road, a peat cutter stacks peat to dry with the Twelve Bens mountains as backdrop

 

Our route took us toward the mountains of the Connemara region, along more coastal roads, and across inland bogs. It was spectacular country. We were interested to observe peat cutters on the Bog Road, cutting this compressed organic material into bricks to dry as a source of fuel for heating and cooking, as they have for thousands of years. We could smell the peat smoke from some of the old chimneys as we rode past.

 

We were greeted by a rainbow over the harbor as we rode into Roundstone

 

Roundstone, our destination for the evening. 

 Irish hospitality had impressed us everywhere we went, but Josephine, our B&B hostess at the Sea Grove House in Roundstone, was special. She gave us her best room with the best view, worried that we might be too cold or too warm, moved our bikes to a better shelter after we had retired for the evening, then (since we were her only guests that day), moved the whole dining table into the parlor just for our breakfast so we could have a better view of the bay. When we were ready to leave, she gave me a warm hug and a peck on the cheek, concerned that we have a safe journey. 

 

Back on the road, it was slow going against blustery headwinds along the coast road to Clifden. In Clifden we hit the bakery and shopped for the grandkids, then headed up Sky Road for another spectacular view of the Irish coast, arriving for the evening in Letterfrack, just outside the entrance to Connemara National Park. 

 

	Temporary shelter from the wind and weather
	Clifden

 

 

Climbing up Sky Road

 

Sky Road

 

The view from Sky Road

 

 With only two more cycling days after Letterfrack, it was disappointing to see the morning start out with rain again, then turn even colder and darker beyond Leenane, when we entered a forested area at the bottom of Doo Lough Pass. Here the clouds hung thick over the Delphi Mountains and the prevailing southerly wind, which had been a factor in planning the direction of our route, had reversed to become a strong headwind. We met a couple of German bicycle tourists here who were on their 16th bicycle tour of Ireland and surprised to find the wind going the wrong way. But we pushed on and by the top of the Pass, we were able understand why this was considered one of the most scenic routes in Ireland. Free range sheep moved to get out of our way or watch our passing as we cycling along the shore of Doo Lough, the large lake at the base of the Delphi Mountains. Just in time, the sun returned for the photo, and stayed with us all the way into Louisburgh. 

 

Avoiding highway N59 on scenic backroads between Letterfrack and Leenane

 

 

At the top of Doo Lough Pass looking back at the Delphi Mountains

 

At the top of Doo Lough Pass, a memorial reads "To commemorate the hungry poor, who walked here in 1849, and walk the third world today......How can men feed themselves honoured by the humiliation of their fellow beings?"  -  reference to the Great Irish Potato Famine, during which an estimated 1 million Irish, 20-25% of the population, died of starvation. The great influx of Irish immigrants during this time (an upward estimate of 2 million) has had an immeasurable impact on our own country's history and culture.

 

We always have a BLT and tuna melt on a bicycle tour. Here are the Irish versions in a Louisburgh pub

 

A sheep greets us on our arrival..."Baaaa....."

 

The view from our Louisburgh B&B

 

 Ireland is a beautiful country in the rain, but when the sun comes out.... wow! No raincoats were needed as we savored the last day on our bikes from Louisburgh to Westport. It was such a beautiful ride, we felt sad to know that our bicycle tour was coming to an end.

 

Following Clew Bay to Westport

 

	We came across a number of these signs along our route
	A tourist, responding to the "Scenic Picnic Area" sign, steps out of the car to snap a photo, ignoring Croagh Patrick, Ireland's highest mountain, in the background.
	Pub stop outside of Westport
	Students in green school uniforms enjoy the sunshine in Westport.
	St. Patrick looks down on Westport's town square.
	Mike folds his bike into its soft case for the bus trip back to Shannon

 

 In Westport, after seeing the sights and enjoying an outdoor cafe, we folded our bikes, loaded everything on the bus, and climbed aboard for the trip back to Shannon. The bus trip took several hours, longer than we had anticipated, but we enjoyed seeing more of Ireland from the bus. Finally, back at the Shannon airport, the starting point of our tour, we transferred our bikes and gear to a rental car, and headed out to find a meal. Just as we were getting ready to leave the Bunratty pub where we had had dinner, we noticed a group of musicians arriving. This ended up being our 4th pub session with traditional music, an experience we always enjoyed. 

 

On our last day in Ireland, the rain was back, and relentless. We were glad that we had the car, and that our last day on the bikes had been so beautiful. We scrapped our plan to take a short road trip by car due to the bad weather, and instead, used the day to explore Limerick and pack our bikes and gear. Irish homes and buildings do not offer much outdoor shelter from rain, so we used a multilevel parking garage as rain shelter while packing the bikes into their suitcases. For our Irish finale, we bought tickets to the Traditional Irish Banquet at the Bunratty Folk Park, an evening of entertainment with music and dance over a dinner of traditional Irish lamb stew, wine, and mead. It was the perfect ending to another great bicycle tour.