The Bears’ do the Wild Atlantic Way…. Part 1

The Wild Atlantic Way (WAW) is a 2,500km coastal route on the west coast of Ireland. It starts and finishes in Kinsale/Muff, depending on whether you travel from South to North, or vice versa. Along the route are 150 Discovery Points. These are scenic viewpoints, beaches, historical locations or other points of interest. The route also includes Signature Discovery Points, must-see, iconic destinations.

Our caravan is just off the WAW and it has been on our bucket list for some time. We have touched parts of it on some of our road trips but this year we are making a determined effort to tick off the points along the way.

Our first outing was a “Golden Year’s break” at the Cashel House Hotel in Connemara, chosen to use a retirement pressie.

The hotel has very mixed reviews but we found it delightful. The room was big and airy, the view across the garden to the sea beautiful, the staff welcoming and friendly and the food excellent.

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We picked up the WAW at Silver Strand, west of Galway and headed west ticking off Spiddal Pier, Connemara Airport, Ballynahown Quay, Rossaveel, Coral Strand and Carrickalegaun Bridge on our way to the hotel. Somehow we managed to miss Pearse’s Cottage! The weather was great, we were able to get the roof down and enjoy the amazing scenery of Connemara.

Following the points led us to some amazing beaches and views that we would most likely have bypassed were we not determined to take a photograph of the signpost. The old stone Church and cemetery at Spiddal with its cross conjured up stories of a lost past. Connemara Airport, which services the Aran Islands is nothing like Dublin or either Belfast Airport! There is no way we would have seen it but for the sign! The harbour at Ballynahown Quay was beautiful in the May sunshine and the ruins we came upon on the way to Rossaveel got us discussing the civil war and the abandoned homesteads about the country – a whole new adventure could await there! The Shadows of the Boats by Edward Delaney at Coral Strand was an interesting art installation.

Day two and we continued out west to take in Sylne Head and Cleggan Head. The scenery is amazing and, again, well worth taking the side roads to the viewpoints. Derrigimlagh is the site of the world’s first permanent transatlantic radio station built by Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi. The first transatlantic radio signal was transmitted in 1907. It is also a memorial site to Alcock and Brown – the first pilots to fly non-stop across the Atlantic who crash landed in Derrigimlagh Bog. This had extra significance for as since we visited a museum exhibition to them in Washington in January. Our journey north took us over the Sky Road viewpoint to Omey Island, a tidal island accessible by foot at low tide – lovely to see horse trekking across the beach. We stopped for lunch at Oliver’s on Cleggan Pier, highly recommended, and enjoyed a little libation for Paul’s birthday. Boats leave Cleggan harbour for Inishbofin – looked like someone was getting a new kitchen from the boxes and appliances stacked on the pier! On our way back to our hotel we stopped at Ballynahinch Castle for another birthday tipple – when we win the lottery we are definitely going to stay there!

Our short trip to start ticking off the signposts was over quickly and we were homeward bound for another adventure. We were able to leave the hotel with the roof down and headed across country through the Party Mountains and Twelve Pins towards home. Wasn’t to be long until our next encounter on the WAW.