Biking Through Ireland


Landing at Bradley.

You might think this picture shows the misty and wet green Irish landscape, but it's not. This was the view from the plane right before we touched down in Hartford CT at the end of the trip. It also was the only hard rain we saw on the trip as our 10 days in Ireland were absolutely gorgeous and filled with sunshine, warmth, and just a little bit of mist at the start of each day.

We started off the trip by flying into Shannon airport and being shuttled up to Galway for an overnight in that lovely town. Janice, George, and I took a walk along the waterfront and out to a lighthouse to work up an appetite for dinner. Our group of six went to a pizza place to eat - I'm not sure how that decision was made, but I was fine with it. The best part of the evening was a visit to a really old pub that rambled on for room after room, and up and down stairs through at least 4 bars and dozens of dining areas. 


The Skeff Pub and Restaurant in Galway

The next morning we all walked a few blocks to the train station to meet our ride leader, Hilary. We had morphed into a group of 15 bikers mostly from the US. Our first stop was at Ballynahinch Castle to get fitted to our bikes, then have lunch and get to know our group. 

On to the first ride, which was modest at 29 miles. We biked along a quiet lake and through farm fields and country homes. I was surprised at the very colorful and massive wildflowers which lined the roads. Flowers I spend money on and have to nurture in my garden grow in wild abundance here - fuchsia and crocosmia for example, formed five foot tall wild hedges along the roads. All that rain and sunlight I'm guessing.

Most homes had beautiful gardens!

My room at Ballynahinch Castle also included a patio, huge bathroom and a dressing room!

I took this photo of the river from the patio at 11 pm.

Me and Janice on a misty morning ride, or as I liked to call it - a cooling, hydrating facial.

A castle along the shoreline.

Jellyfish on the beach.

Janice wanted an action shot. 
The bike I rode was an electric assist ebike, meaning you had to be pedaling for the motor to kick in and assist. It was wonderful! There were 4 settings and we mostly kept it on the lowest setting, only using turbo when going up a hill. 

The four of us rode together for most of the trip while the other groups were not far away. Some were intent on going very fast, but the four of us stopped often to admire the sights and take pictures. My long arms were the best for taking selfies. 

Over the six days of biking, we covered over 200 miles. I was the only one who biked every single mile of it! The others got a lift in the van at some point, but I was determined to bike it all. I have to say that the 10 miles I biked solo, I had the biggest smile on my face as I made my way back to the hotel with the Wahoo - a navigation device.

I'll make another post about the rest of the trip, but right now I'm doing the post trip laundry, shopping, napping, and garden catch up routine and I Am Tired!

Comments

  1. MargaretJuly 15, 2025 at 7:12 PM

    Beautiful scenery! It makes me want to visit Ireland so much although I doubt I could bike 200 miles. You are incredible! I look forward to hearing more about the trip, the food, the experiences, everything.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Another Rainy Weekend

Image
Another rainy Saturday to contend with, so I decided on a Van Morrison playlist while I cleaned out the garage and danced and sang. My gardening supplies and planters and pots that need sorting and recycling  were cluttering up my space. They are now sorted and the garage is cleaned out for at least another week or so. I think the shed in the back yard needs to be a project to get it into a more useful state.  The amount of rain we've had is remarkable. May was one of the wettest months in eighty years and June is starting to look the same. I would rather have too much rain rather than a drought though.  After dropping around 3 inches of rain, the skies cleared up later in the afternoon. I loaded up my bike for an impromptu ride on the Electric Trail with the thought of dinner or ice cream at Samascott's.  The first of many turtles on the bike path. Now I see just how rough the path was and how I had no business riding on it.  The trail was very wet on the way s...
Read more

Summer Solstice

Image
Vroman's Nose overlooking the valley. Summer has begun! To mark the solstice, my hiking group held a picnic at the top of Vroman's Nose, which is a short little hike up a 657 foot hill. It overlooks the Schoharie Valley and has a beautiful rock 'dance floor' that easily accommodates our group of forty. The weather was a perfect 74 degrees with a breeze to keep any bugs away. A pleasant gathering on the dance floor near sunset. I drove Sue Ellen who had her gall bladder removed last week, and we hiked up with a guy who has spinal stenosis. As I listened to them discuss their ailments, I silently gave thanks for my health and thought about how 'mature' our group is becoming.  Once at the top, the party began with burgers and dogs, salads and desserts, and great conversation.  Most of our group made it into this sunset picture. Saturday started with me being woken up by my neighbors chatting down below in the street - it was garage sale day. I didn't join since...
Read more

Random Thoughts In My Little Life

Image
 The orchids I bought in February (!) catch my attention each day and I have to marvel at their longevity. Four months of continuous flowers? What other plant does this? I just may become an orchid collector. A new stem with buds is forming on one of them too! This long horn beetle was inspecting my snow peas. They have blooms, so peas are not far behind! I drove up to the Plateau to meet a friend for a paddle. The wind picked up for awhile so we got a nice upper body work out paddling into the wind. Then we just floated near the dock when the wind died down and the sun was shining.  This wetland was covered in yellow flag (iris) on the way to the Pond. Enjoying the calm water after the gusts. This is not proper paddling form, but it was so relaxing. This angle makes my kayak look tiny! Thursday was a nice dry day - perfect for lawn garden work. I'm diligently putting the plants I keep buying into the ground. I have a dozen sunflowers I grew from seed that need planting, but t...
Read more