When one of you had double knee replacements 7 months before an overseas trip, your plans may need to altered to accommodate any physical limitations. We were traveling to Ireland and had wanted to see the Cliffs of Moher. Hiking 10 miles roundtrip along the cliff top wasn’t going to be our best option.
We had a lot of questions and the locals were a valuable source of information. While in Galway, we planned on traveling by car to the next peninsula which was closest to the cliffs. The local residents mentioned there was a ferry that travels to the islands and a tour of the Cliffs of Moher from the boat is included.
The trip comprises a quick ferry ride to the smallest of the Aran Islands, INIS OÍRR (INISHEER), a few hours on the island, then on the way back the boat cruises slowly, stopping a various places to provide some factoids about the cliffs.
So we head off to coastal town of Doolin, which is where the Doolin Aran Ferry is docked. We heard the daily tickets out quickly so we purchased ours immediately. While waiting for the ferry, we enjoyed coffee and hot chocolate from a small shop at the dock.
It was indeed a quick ride, with Crab Island being on our way out of port.
After that, we briefly got the chance to see the cliffs as we were moving toward the island.
Once we got on the island, and though it’s a small island, there’s plenty to do, for even more than one day. It’s set up right at the dock where you can either get a guided tour or ride bikes and tour on your own, both of which are a lot of fun!
We chose bikes (because that was less stress on the knees than a walking tour, and bikes can go further).
Of course they gave us a tourist map so that we could find our way around the island.
We were surprised how much history there was to be discovered on such a small island, all from riding bikes. One of the first things we found was Cnoc Raithni – Ancient Burial Site (A on the map link above).
Following the map, we located the old 10th century church (Church of St. Kevin – B) whose stone foundation was still standing.
We basically followed the map as it was in order around the island, with our next stop being O’Brien’s Castle & Tower, built in 400BC. The views were extensive as we were on the hill facing east towards the mainland. It appeared that the castle was open to the public, and needing no encouragement, we took the opportunity to explore the grounds.
One of the “younger” structures (built in the 1800s), the Signal Tower was not far from the castle. It looked like it had been set up for public use in that there were handrails to protect people from falling, however, nothing like the safety precautions we are used to seeing in the US.
Finally, we rode out to the lighthouse (also built in the 1800s), and as it looked occupied and a bit ominous we opted not to get closer than the gate.
Two notable things that we discovered were interlinked. Farm animals and fences. Fences were made using the stone from the island.
After a few hours biking around the island, we decided to turn in the bikes and get some food at one of the three pubs on the island. While at the pub we met up with the members of a local band from Lancaster, PA, but you’ll want to read about the Vinegar Creek Constituency story.
Take special note of the red T-Shirt and the beer the server is holding. Dogfish Head IPA is a local beer here in the states. It’s so local that the headquarters is less than a 100 miles from our house, and Gary went to the same school as the owner’s wife.
Oh yeah, the food was pretty good, too!
And considering all our entire experience of the day, the Cliffs of Moher are every bit of amazing.