Howth

The train back to Dublin was fairly full, possibly Dubliners returning after a weekend. I would continue to Belfast the next morning. I didn't want to do both journeys the same day in case a delay or cancellation threw a spanner into the works. I would spend a night in a hotel near Dublin Connolly station. In the afternoon I would visit Howth. The DART station for this is also conveniently Connolly. It was an expensive overnight, but my last days in Dublin would be in cheaper student accommodation.

After reaching Dublin Heuston and catching the Luas to Connolly, I grabbed a Thai lunch nearby. It was alright but not as good as Thai food in Australia. A sign of cutting corners is when they bulk it out with onion or cabbage.

I rested until the afternoon, then went to Connolly to catch the DART to Howth. I wasted time looking for it. It actually departed from a spur platform.

You may recall that Howth was the first piece of Ireland I laid eyes on from the plane when arriving. Now I was seeing it from ground level. The island you see in the distance is Ireland's Eye, an uninhabited island and bird conservation area.

A zoom shot of Ireland's Eye.

Looking towards the lighthouse on the longer curved east pier. We are on the west pier. The piers enclose the harbour like pincers.

The enclosed harbour.

A panorama:

The hill that backs the harbour and the houses of the affluent on it.

A somewhat bulgy panorama of the hill:

The west pier is lined with seafood restaurants.

You can also buy fresh seafood.

People enjoying their meal.

Beshoff's is one of the well-known establishments.

The shots are against the light, so a bit hazy.

Now the main street of Howth, the Howth Market, opposite the station. It's a weekend market so not open on Monday when I was there. Anyway it sells local food, artisan products and souvenirs, which were of little interest to me.

Moving east, a watering hole.

Now we are on the long east pier.

And looking back we can see Howth Head Peak. It's possible to get there for a great view but I didn't.

Zooming in on the peak.

Where Balscadden Road takes a corner to follow the coast.

Panoramas:

I walked on the wall of the east pier. You can see people enjoying the setting sun at the base.

Panoramas taken from the end of the pier:

Time for a refreshment break. I took the cone to a nearby park and enjoyed the fine evening for this outing. There's a large time gap to the next picture so I must have just watched the world pass by during that time.

Howth is the end of this DART line naturally. There were quite a lot of young people on the train, being the summer holidays. I couldn't help thinking that it's like an excursion to Manly for Sydneysiders.

This is Claremont Beach, to the west of the Howth terminus station. It's not terribly attractive, but there were bathers.

I got the idea in my head that I could walk along the beach back to the penultimate station, Sutton. But when I saw that the beach turns into rocks that I would have to clamber over in some stretches. i.e. not continuous, I gave up that hare-brained idea.

Back in Dublin, on my way to have dinner, I passed the Dublin GPO. This has played a part in Irish history, but I didn't visit it then or later.

I had buffalo wings for dinner. It was actually in an Asian eatery, and I could see that they were prepared in a wok rather than in a deep fryer. Nonetheless, it was a fairly good rendition of this dish which originated in upstate New York state.

The Cliffs of Moher

If you read the name too quickly as The Cliffs of Mother, you should keep mum about it, hahaha.

But before we can make puns about The Cliffs of Moher, we have to get there. So, rewind.

After The Burren, it was not quite time for lunch, so I drove down to Doolin Pier to see where I would be embarking in the evening.

Several companies compete for business. Ferries to the Aran Islands also depart from here but I had opted not to visit them. I remembered the name from the 1934 documentary Man of Aran.

Then it was off Gus O'Connor's pub for lunch. The place was bursting at the seams with patrons as it seemed to be the only reasonable eatery in the area. More so as it was the last day of a long weekend. I ordered a meal of buffalo wings which came rather quickly so the kitchen must have been very efficient.

There was much traffic on the access road and vehicles parking slowed progress. The tour buses were the worst offenders due to their size.

Then I drove several km south to the Experience Centre which is an interpretive centre. The Cliffs got an estimated 1.5 million visits in 2017! That's 40,000 per day, probably higher in summer. To manage the numbers tickets are sold with 2 hour arrival slots. Parking is included in the ticket.

There are many informative displays here. One I liked very much was this animation of continental drift through geologic time. Makes one realise how fleeting a lifetime is compared to the history of the earth.

The rocks are I think seats for a children's game about wildlife on the cliffs and not rock samples on display.

Then it was time to see the real thing. It was lightly raining, not uncommon in Ireland, so the views faded into the distance.

O'Brien's Tower from which many views are photographed.

What could be seen from there.

About 10 minutes walk to the south, the weather cleared up somewhat.

This section of the walk is unofficial.

And undertaken at one's own risk. It is possible to take the coastal walk both north and south of the visitor centre as the cliffs extend many km.

Looking from the centre to the arrival area and car park. By this time my 2 hour slot was up so I headed back to Doolin.

It was too early for the cruise so I found a parking spot on the access road to the pier. I remembered that I had forgotten to buy postcards so walked to the gift shop then went back to have a nap in the car. I must have taken this floral interlude about this time.

When I got to the ferry office they had brought forward the departure by 15 minutes. It also looked like they had merged the excursion with one run by another company. I guess they have to do such things to maintain high occupancy.

Crab Island which faces the pier.

Leaving the bay.

A few minutes later and a few km south we saw the cliffs from the sea. You can make out O'Brien's Tower.

An arch caused by erosion. The Cliffs are constantly eroded.

A rock stack.

Zooming in. The Cliffs support many species of bird life, puffins being one.

Well it was a far cry from the pictures I had viewed that were taken in fine weather. I had hoped to see the cliffs illuminated by golden evening sun, but that was not to be. That's Ireland for you, you have to take your chances with the weather. Still I enjoyed many stunning views in the aerial flyby that they had screened in the theatrette of the Experience Centre.

Then it was back to Gus O'Connor's pub for dinner, as planned. I had read that the mussels were good this part of Ireland so I ordered a pot. They were tasty but it was laborious as they were small. A friend explained later it wasn't the right month, you have to wait for one with R in the name.

Apparently Doolin is a centre for traditional Irish music but I didn't explore that. It had been a long day, and besides I didn't feel like mingling in crowds.