Slieve League, Glencolmcille, Glengesh Pass, Lough Eske Castle

19.06.22

We had to listen to Dorothy at the breakfast table giving a talk about excursion information, the age and origin of her tablecloths, and her father-in-law's business before we made our escape.

We start our journey along the coast in the fishing village of Killybegs, where it is quiet on this Sunday instead of the usual busy activity.

After 4 minutes without rain, it starts again as we continue our drive through Carrick and Teelin towards the Cliffs of Slieve League.

At 601m, the cliffs reach a height that is surpassed only at a handful of other places in Europe, making them one of the highest cliffs in Europe. Access by car is possible if there aren't too many visitors. Otherwise, it's a treacherous 2 kilometers on a stormy road from the last parking lot to the viewpoint. We briefly consider what to do. If it rains every 10 minutes and you spend an hour there soaked in 12-degree wind, it can be quite miserable.

We are allowed to ride up for 5 euros with our little car and are grateful for this luxury. The wind is relentless and without a hat, it's impossible to make any progress. Unless you come from India and apparently traveled to Ireland without appropriate clothing. The photos taken by the group next to us make you freeze even in 'autumn clothes'.

The clouds move back and forth over the ridge of the cliffs, the sun shining through the clouds for a few minutes at a time - it's truly an amazing sight. Some sheep lie on a rock ledge, about 100m above the sea.

I wonder how many of them fall off the cliffs each year. The force of the wind alone is so strong that it shakes you to the core. We continue our excursion and drive towards Ardara.

If you want to know what life in Ireland was like about 150-300 years ago, the small Glencolmcille Folk Museum is a great source of information. After the ancient cliffs, here are a few hundred-year-old thatched cottages. The road we take is very lonely, except for the occasional sheep standing on or by the road.

Turf is still being harvested here and piled up in hundreds of small stacks ready for collection.

In the Glencolmcille Folk Village, there are seven cottages with original furnishings. With an information booklet available for borrowing, you can explore the open-air museum yourself.

When a Polish tour bus arrives, we leave the small complex and continue driving over the Glengeash Pass.

The weather doesn't get any better and it won't be more than 13 degrees today. We follow the regional road R230, which connects Glencolmcille with the town of Ardara. At first, the road leads through a barren landscape with moors, sheep, and rain. Then, the road descends in a few hairpin turns through a valley from 275m to Ardara, which is only 27m above sea level.

The view from the viewpoint is stunning, especially when the sun peeks through the clouds for a few seconds.

https://www.theirishroadtrip.com/glengesh-pass/

We pass by Ardara, although we could have gotten tweed in all variations here. We want to try to reach a historic steam railway in Fintown. Along the way, we see one of the typical thatched cottages with a red door. What used to be a common sight in the landscape 40 years ago is now a rarity.

Maybe we can end the day with a castle? After an unsuccessful trip to Fintown, where we arrived just after the last ride of the day on the historic Fintown Railway, we drive about 50km further to see the castle of the same name at Lough Eske. It turns out to be a 5-star hotel, with beautiful rooms in the historic main building, but not quite suitable for dinner in our price range. We walk around the grounds and find that 550 euros for a garden suite per night isn't quite what we had in mind, as these are located in a modern annex building. The view into the rooms inside the castle, for example, the setting of a high tea with the typical tiered tray of sandwiches and sweet scones, is like something out of a brochure.

So we continue to Donegal and find that the chance of getting a table at any restaurant is hopeless, as it is Father's Day today. So we decide on Lidl and an improvised dinner.

Lidl had everything our hearts desired. In contrast to our B&B, where the strict 'innkeepers' have already locked the common room at 7.30pm.

So now our 'buffet' is set up on the only available surface, my camping cutlery and knife are put to use. When we look at/in the kettle, we decide against having tea 🙈🤢.

The water in the kettle is most likely older than the dust and grime on the lid. The romantic idea of vacationing in bed & breakfast accommodations also has its surprises. Tomorrow we will continue north to a hotel.