Connemara

We are still in County Galway in Connemara, this time we are near the national park of the same name.

I have to make one thing clear here, in Ireland there is always someone nearby, you are never alone, the lonely corners do not exist in our experience so far, that would be really strange in the high season. Maybe that will happen in the next few days, let's wait and see.

We are still on the Wild Atlantic Way, this time close to four sights that are on the must-do list for tourists.

1. Kylemore Abbey, which we only saw from a distance on the drive here,
2. Connemara National Park with Diamond Hill.
3. Killary Fjord
4. Leenane Sheep and Wool Centre

We tackled the second tourist destination yesterday; it is well marketed and is included as a highlight in every hiking app. We were very early, the first car in the parking lot, then we set off. Several things became clear during the hike. The warnings about wind and weather on Diamond Hill are not exaggerated, and it was the first mountain that I climbed using only stairs. Dogs on a leash only really made sense when the sheep were waiting at the summit. Many tourists didn't take the warning signs seriously; most of the people we met on the way back to the car didn't seem experienced in alpine skiing, which is what you should be here. The stone stairs require very good sure-footedness when wet; we got wet several times, even though we started in bright sunshine.

There were a lot of people out and about, but the view of the Twelve Pins and other Munros makes that understandable. I found the hike very nice, but was happy to be away from the crowds.

At the Killary Fjord, experts argue whether it is a fjord from the creation of the worlds or whether the water level only rose after the ice age, but it still looks great; it is used for the cultivation of mussels and oysters. We have a hike that we still want to do here.

The Sheep and Wool Center didn't impress me much because we already know how tweed and wool are made, unfortunately there wasn't any wool that really blew me away. Aran is available in abundance, but only traditional yarns and unfortunately at very high prices. I'm always surprised by how Ireland markets itself; it's sometimes tongue-in-cheek, but then it's also very sophisticated and successful. In Galway there was already one tourist shop lined up with Guinness items, tweed and wool sweaters, here in the center was the "stop" for every tourist bus, you were literally pushed through.

At least we made a nice stop on the way to the center at one of the best cafés in Ireland, the "Misunderstood Heron", which has already won several awards. The view of the fjord is free and you could also book a boat tour there.

The highlight of the day, apart from the hike in a Coillte forest, was a visit to an old pub. Now you can say that there are a dime a dozen in Ireland, but that's not true either, but this pub was brilliant because it wasn't a normal pub, but really with finesse. Paddy Coyne's Pub has been around since 1811, it has seen many travelers, I strongly recommend making a reservation like we did, otherwise you will quickly get turned away. I ate mussels, seafood is one of the highlights here, Christian had a lamb burger.

We have a campsite that has a huge and very beautiful beach at low tide, plus other beaches nearby that are much more secluded than Allhies on the Beara Peninsula. It's partly really a postcard motif!

Ireland is more like I imagined it here, but you shouldn't always take your expectations with you, the gentle heart of Ireland was also very beautiful! Lough Derg also impressed us greatly.