A RETURN TO IRELAND’S WILD ATLANTIC WAY

7 day driving trip exploring the Aran Islands, Connemara, Achill Island and Counties Mayo and Sligo

Day 1 : Arrival and to Inishmor via Cong.

A friend and I had long planned this week’s driving tour of the Wild Atlantic Way but it was postponed for two years due to Covid.Then last year, Simone’s husband had a long awaited hip replacement and needed a lot of after care(heaven’s, we’re all getting on a bit now.) Finally,  in May 2023, we were off!

 I’ve been exploring the beautifully-named Wild Atlantic Way over the past few years, a week here and there, with my husband Chris and also one trip solo.So far, this has taken me through Donegal, the Ring of Kerry, Dingle(2 visits), Connemara, The Burren and the Cliffs of Moher. The big focus this trip was Inishmor, one of the Aran Islands, a little of Connemara, Achill Island in County Mayo and County Sligo.The latter is the final resting place of one of my favourite poets…W B Yeats… so Drumcliff, where he is buried, was a must visit.

This was also Simone’s first trip to rural Ireland – she had only ever visited Dublin and that had been years ago.I hoped she’d like what I had planned, as she’s one of the most travelled people (and often highly adventurous travel to unusual places – the Sudan being her latest) that I know.

Arrived 12.30pm on the button at Knock airport with good old Ryanair from Edinburgh (for the princely sum of  33 quid each.This included what we paid to add a suitcase between us, required for our walking poles.) Within 15 mins of landing, we’d picked up the hired car (via the broker Discover Cars and supplier, Budget) and were headed for Lidl in Claremorris where we stocked up on food and wine for the next few days.

I should mention that I had a panic about this rental the day before because I noticed in the contract’s small print that if we were as much as a minute late in picking up the rental, the hire was cancelled!

An immediate call to Budget in Knock and I could have hugged them for their response – ‘Now, don’t you be worrying about anything like that. Of course it won’t be cancelled. We’ll be waitin’ all day for ye!’ Loved them from this moment on.

Simone had brought her Garmin but had forgotten to set it to Ireland so initially it nearly had us headed north to Donegal instead of south to Cong. Thankfully a signpost (phew) showed Claremorris to be in the opposite direction so I confidently turned right. It was a gorgeous sunny day, we were on the right road (sometimes the worse part of actually negotiating your way from an airport) and the adventure had begun.

CONG of ‘The Quiet Man’ fame.

After a brief stop to pick up fruit , water and for me, chocolate in various forms, we set off for the little village of Cong.I was so looking forward to Cong mainly because of The Quiet Man film connections and Ashford Castle.

Well, Cong, bathed in warm sunshine, did not disappoint. Gotparked easily in the almost empty car park just before the village, then walked over the old stone bridge into the heart of things.

It is a really delightful place, tiny, with a lovely 12th century ruined abbey and a beautiful wide, clear river. Today, it was very quiet with hardly a soul about.

We ambled around the impressive abbey ruins then made our way to a little promontory by the Cong River, where sits a 16^thcentury Monk’s Fishing House.

It has a trapdoor in the floor where the monks would place a net to catch fish as the river ran beneath.They made sure they kept cosy during this task – the remains of a fireplace are visible too. Apparently, a rope ran all the way up to the kitchen and this was pulled whenever a fish was caught – a warning to the cook to get the frying pan on!

Loved the river here too…the peat stained water crystal clear and lined with mature trees.There is always something about a big salmon and trout river.

Simone was sceptical about Ashford Castle (she’s a retired architect and quite critical about building styles and their respective qualities) but I really wanted to see it.The photos looked so grand and part of it IS 800 years old. It was here that Paul McCartney married Heather Mills – not that that was my reason for wanting to see it but if it was good enough for a near billionaire I thought it must be worth a gander. Plus it was awarded ‘World’s Best Hotel ‘ in 2017. I’m always curious about these posh places though it’s so exclusive that scruff like us can’t just wander in for a coffee – residents only, thank you very much.

In fact, the place was a wow, grandly overlooking Lake Corrib and surrounded by stunning grounds. Even Simone was impressed, albeit the newer section has a slightly ‘Lego castle’ look about it.But really, the whole place is just gorgeous.We strolled the grounds surrounded by a blaze of colour from rhododendrons and azaleas, a real spectacle against the pines and oaks. Marvellous.

I’m a huge romantic and Cong is also famous as the setting for a favourite film of mine – John Ford’s classic  ‘The Quiet Man’ – featuring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara in their heyday. I’d watched part of it the previous night, just to get in the mood. Full of cliches but enjoyable for all that and of course, the path of true love does not run smoothly for Mary Kate Danaher and Sean Thornton.

There’s a statue of both characters in the centre of the village and a Quiet Man Museum, based in a replica of the cottage used in the film which had the very evocative name ‘White o’ Morn.’ I felt a little lump in my throat looking at the statue, which I thought captured John Wayne particularly well.

I always think that Ireland capitalises on things like films/locations etc far better than we do.

The pub used in the film still exists too and I recognised the quite unchanged main square where Mary Kate Danaher (MO’H), perched precariously on the back of Sean Thornton’s bike (JW), the pair whirling through the village to escape their chaperone, wee Michaleen Flynn.

What a lovely first stop Cong turned out to be!

To Inishmore, Aran Islands

We had an hour’s drive ahead now to Rossaveel and the ferry to Inishmore but first, a brief stop to admire the lovely, bucolic scenery around Lough Corrib.

Beyond Maam Cross, we had a look back at the Maamturks range in Connemara, rising out of the moorland…lovely looking hills.

Onwards and south and soon, we were pitching up at the large, mostly empty parking area for the ferry(7 euros per 24 hrs I think it cost.) We both got a bit of a shock a few minutes later when we reached the harbour and saw how busy it was! Hundreds of people were milling about – yikes, was the island going to be mobbed? However the crowds turned out to be day trippers who were now waiting for their tour bus to take them back to Galway. When our ferry left at 6pm it was pretty much empty so, overnight at least, Inishmore would be very quiet.

As the boat got underway, most passengers, us included, stood at the back of the ferry in the open air, enjoying the lovely evening. There was of course the usual chill wind, as to be expected in the North Atlantic, so woolly hats were on too.

A benign-looking Irish chap asked us where we were from – yes, we were Scottish (well, Simone is actually German), yes first time to the island. Then somehow he swept things round to the Ukraine War (which he announced was a USA ploy to undermine Russia) and Covid Vaccines (a horrific experiment on us all!)  NO WAY was I getting into all that heavy political stuff first day of the holiday though Simone enjoys these sorts of discussions and was soon in the thick of it. I drifted off on the pretext of taking more photos, glad to escape.

A smooth sail out and 40 mins later we arrived at Kilronan and made our way to our B&B at Clai Ban House, a 15min or so walk uphill and out of the village.We’d each taken just a few things from the big case, packing them into day rucksacks, so we had no issues struggling with luggage. A nice, neat bungalow awaited with a comfortable three bedded room.Lovely!

Somehow, apart from a couple of apples, we’d skipped lunch amidst the rush, so we were both now ready to eat a scabby horse. Off we dashed out again after dropping off the bags, heading for Joe Watty’s bar, thankfully only a two min walk away.

It was one of these pubs that looks quiet from the outside (the island had seemed deserted too) but the minute we walked through the door, it seemed like EVERYONE was here. The place was jumping AND some good music was playing too…old 50s/early 60s stuff. I usually hate the modern pop stuff that blares out in restaurants these days but this was a joy – Elvis, Frank Sinatra, even some Doo Wop. Magic! 

Thankfully, we got a table right away and were soon tucking into first class Beef Stew and Veg.It came in a wide soup bowl, loads of gravy, meat so soft it was falling apart. Superb! Followed by an equally excellent and shared White Chocolate Blondie with Chocolate Sauce and ice-cream. Hopefully, this was a marker of the quality of food to come!

What a great first day it had been.

Simone is a vaper (after many decades of a 50 a day smoking habit)so I walked out along the road with her so that she could get her fix, both of us enjoying the glorious evening. Bike hire the next day and a visit to the World Heritage Site that is spectacular  Dún Aonghasa fort, 3,000 years old and perched precariously on Inishmor’s southern cliffs. And a good sunny forecast ahead! 

Next Days- The Aran Islands – INISHMOR AND DUN AONGHASA FORT ACHILL ISLAND AND MORE WILD ATLANTIC WAY TRAVELS The Mullet Peninsula and Downpatrick Head – Wild Atlantic Way continued Mayo, Sligo and terrible news