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Ireland 2017
April 2nd 2017.
Denver airport waiting for our flight to London and the beginning of our long six month adventure.
IRELAND here we come!!
A superb flight over, thank you British Airways.
Short lay over in London then in the air again to Belfast City
(George Best) airport.
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Short half hour drive from Belfast to Moira (the village that I grew up in).
Checked into the guest house, home for the next few days.
Edenmore Golf Club Magheralin. We absolutely love playing this course. Lovely people.
Saturday morning, time to get on the road and head to Glengarriff, WAY down in the south. Four & a half hours later we arrived. A beautiful village, Maureen O'Hara's home. She was lady president at Glengarriff golf club for a number of years.
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Found our cottage, shrone villa. Views are beautiful.
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Next day we took a ferry to Garnish island, beautiful gardens. Boat back to Glengarriff , walked to the Blueloo pub. Eileen, the owner/innkeeper. Lovely lady and a wealth of knowledge. Told us about numerous places to hike/visit. Dursey island was one. Arrived at Dursey cable car, the only cable car in Ireland. A short ride over the channel, hopped of and set of on the six mile hike out to the end of the island.
2 hours out and 2 hours back. Back to the mainland and of to Castletownbere. McCarthys Bar, nice place with a lot of history.
Adrieane McCarthy, owner and a lovely lady and very interesting. Her father was Dr Aidin McCarthy, A Doctors Sword.
KenEtta and I got to hold the sword, courtesy of Adriene, thank you. Amazing.
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Castletownbere, great village & great people.
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A nice scenic drive from Kenmare to Castletownbere over Healy Pass.
Glengarriff . a wonderful place to stay, a good central point for Bantry, Castletownbere and Kenmare. Went out for a walk, totally enjoyed the scenery and the smell of turf coming from the chimneys.
Lots of great hiking and the views , absolutely incredible. Gleninchaquin, (Valley of the tears).
Lady Bantrys view. Whiddy Island.
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Pubs, well now, another side to the trip. Hahaha. Bar staff in a number of the pubs would see us walk in and say "the usual"? Yes please. Our favourites, Glengarriff (Blueloo & Caseys) Bantry Bay (Bantry Bay Hotel) Kenmare (Foleys) and Castletownbere (McCarthys).
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We had a nice time in the Bank House pub on Whiddy Island after our walk. The ferry boat owner was also the pub owner and the postman, very interesting person.
Overall, glengarriff was a gem. The great places we got to visit, pubs, resturants, towns and villages, and of course. Golf courses. One restaurant, Donemark, incredible food, the place is always packed. KenEtta had wild mushroom soup and golden fried brie. I had spicy chicken salad, Very, very tasty, a great dining joint. Jacks restaurant, with Joan, nice restaurant. Strange people but nice. Great chicken curry and chips. mmmmm
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Golf clubs, Bantry Bay, Kenmare, Ring of Kerry and Glengarriff.
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There was one Sunday we went to Glengarriff Sacred Heart Chapel for 1130 mass. After, we stopped in to the Bluloo to see Eileen and chat about places to go visit.
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3 weeks in Glengarriff was not long enough.
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Friends we made.
John & Mariane. Eileen. Ruth. Peter. Tim. John & Joan.
Wonderful people.
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On to the next leg of our adventure. Off to Portmagee, not a long drive. A week in a self catering cottage on a sheep farm. Waking up to the sound of lambs, so pleasant and peaceful.
Portmagee, need not say anything else. A beautiful part of Gods wee country.
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This is where Luke Skywalkers home is, hahahahahahaha . Skellig Michael. Would highly recommend a visit to Portmagee and Skillig Michael.
Skellig Michael. Have to say, a beautiful place.
Heaven!
Found our new local, Bridge bar at the Moorings.
Bartender at the Bridge bar, Paul, super lad. Andre, another bartender, great fella. Great music and food. Oh, and great craic.
Short drive to the skellig experience. An exhibition about the monks that built a monastery on an island rock founded between the 6th & 8th centuries. Abandoned in the late 12th century.
Next day, walked along the Kerry cliffs, incredible views. After, we took a drive into Glenbeigh to check out Dooks G C.
Stopped in Caharsiveen for a visit on the way back to Portmagee.
Played Dooks G C twice. Great course, lots of hares around. The drive to and from Dooks was quite nice.
Took a drive into Knightstown on Valentia island. Called into Royal Valentia Hotel then headed back 'home'.
Off to Waterville G C. Enjoyable round. Popped into the club to check it out, nice. Browsed around the pro shop and then headed into Waterville village for some lunch at the Lobster.
Thank you weather golf god.
Transported ourselves up to Bray Head, parked the car and hiked to the top. A bit windy, however, a good hike. Took some pics and hiked backed. A short drive to Knightstown then back to portmagee. Decided to go on a pub crawl, 2 pubs in the village. Cheap and short crawl. The Fishermans pub and the Bridge bar. Fishermans, a locals pub. The Bridge bar, a tourists pub.
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Next morning, up and clean the joint. A 5 hour drive ahead to Woodenbridge. Stopped in Moneygal, Obama's ancestral village, needed some lunch.Must be the only place in Ireland that doesn't have food. Reason, Obama plaza, hahahah. Had a chat with the land lady.
Time to get going. Arrive in Woodenbridge, our new home for 3 weeks. Beautiful cottage.
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Another peaceful part of heaven.
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Sunday morning, a lie in til 0900, lazy hallions. A wee drive to Macreddin golf club. Another one of those hidden gems. Incredible!
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Golf over, time to head to the meeting of the waters. A great place for food and Irish music. Day done, off home.
Meeting of the waters, where Avonmore river meets Beg river to form the Avoca river.
Bit of toast for brekkie, shower, shave and a shampoo. Into the car and mosey of to Rathdrum to walk around Avondale national park. Lovely trek.
Off to tesco in Arklow for our grocery shopping. Had a chicken curry for lunch in the Old Ship before hitting the aisles in tesco's.
Back to inishfree. In for the evening.
Early rise, outa bed, get ready and over to Woodenbridge G.C. Beautiful course.
Another fine day at Woodenbridge G.C. Can't believe the weather we've been having. A short drive to Avoca, a very small village. Avoca, known for the weaving mill and Fitzgeralds pub. The pub was used for a tv series, Ballykissangel.
A quiet day today. Good old Irish breakfast. Me cooking and KenEtta took care of laundry. After, we headed into Arklow. Checked out where the cinema was. Got some golf balls at a sports shop and then of to tescos. Back 'home' to innisfree.
Checked out bridgewater shopping centre in Arklow. Walked across the bridge into town. Had lunch in The Old Ship.
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Well, it happened, rain. Rain in Ireland, unheard of. hahahahaha.
Headed into Wicklow G.C. didn't play because of rain. Walked around the town for a bit. Had some lunch then headed back to Arklow by the coast road.
Home to Innisfree.
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Decided to go to Arklow to watch Gaurdians of the Galaxy 2. Very good film. Day over. Home.
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Lets get ready for our 5k RNLI charity run in Arklow. What a fun day, so many nice people.
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Wee drive to Arklow gym, good workout. Home, changed and off to Rathdrum for some groceries. Stopped at The Meeting of the Waters on the way home.
Nice quiet evening in.
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Another day, over to Woodenbridge G.C. fantastic weather. Round done and of to Arklow. Back to Innisfree and a good dinner.
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Golf the next couple of days at Arklow and Wicklow. Stopped at the European G.C. Down the coast road to Arklow and home.
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Another round at Wicklow, lunch and stopped at Kilmacurragh botanic gardens, beautiful.
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Full breakfast, rucksack packed for our hike in Glendalough.
Had some sandwiches, snacks and drinks at the top. Beautiful views. Incredible hike, 3+ hours round trip. Well worth it. Stopped at Casey's hotel then headed to Glenmalure lodge, very popular stop for hikers. Good food.
Short drive to Aughrim for some groceries. Another wonderful Day.
Movie day, into Arklow omniplex to watch King Arthur. Good film.
Short stop at Woodenbridge then home to Innisfree. Nice dinner, good fire going and some TV before bed.
More golf the next two days, Woodenbridge & Arklow. The weather has been fantastic.
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Off to Glendalough for another hike. Wicklow national park is incredible, lots of deer.
After a few hours hiking we headed to Glenmalure for lunch. Sat outside enjoying the weather. Cheese and ham sandwiches, mmmmm. Another grand day on the isle.
Drove into Rathdrum, checked out the Cartoon Pub. Some grocery shopping at the centra then back to the cottage.
Next morning all packed up and on the road for Moira again. Stayed at
the guest house for one night then moved on to Edenmore golf club cottages.
Lovely place to stay.
Woke up and went for breakfast at Anettes house in Lurgan. Met the brother Martin in the evening, chatted for a while then home.
1000am t-time at Edenmore G C, some rain on the front nine, somewhat better on the back. Went to the hospital to see the mother, she looks much better. Home, bed down, golf in the AM. Perfect golf day, hospital visit, then met Martin at Byrne's.
Next day went to Anettes, said goodbye till next visit. Called on some good friends to say hello and see you in June.
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3 and 3 quarter hour drive to Bunratty. Checked in, now of to Durty Nelly's
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Early t-time at Dromoland Castle G.C. Beautiful scenery, flowers and lots of palm trees. Very enjoyable walk.
Took a drive into Ennis, walked around for a while then back to Bunratty. The old village in Bunratty is beautiful. Had a beer in Macs pub. Nothing fancy about the place. No TV's, no music. It's just a pub from way back.
A short drive to Shannon G.C. A lovely sunny day. The course is beside Shannon airport. Was fun watching the planes take off while playing. Headed into Shannon town to mail some cards then back to Bunratty and Durty Nellys for some chicken curry. Good curry. Time to go and bed down.
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Bags and car packed, off to pick up Ray and Patty at the airport. Didn't have long to wait. Bodies & luggage into the car and of to Fota Island resort. On the way we stopped in the town of Mallow for some tea.
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Fota Island resort, we have arrived. Beautiful
hotel and golf course.
Checked in, time to relax. The four of us chill in the restaurant. A few nibbles and drinks.
We all love Fota Island, it's a great place. Played golf twice, Patty was KenEtta's caddy, Ray and I had to fend for ourselves, HaHaHa.
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Weather for golf was wonderful. When we visited the animal park we had a spot of rain, didn't dampen the day , so to speak.
Wonderful day at Fota Island animal park.
Dinner at the golf club, good food. Overall, a wonderful time at Fota Island.
Next day, bound for Woodenbridge. On the way we stopped in Kilkenny. Went to the castle, after, we crossed the street to the castle café.
Bound for Woodenbridge.
We took a drive to Glendalough. The four of us had a nice hike to the miners village dating back to 1790's. Walked through the grave yard. A nice day at Glendalough
Oh no! another round of golf. Over to Wicklow we go. Another beautiful day.
Sunday, the day we check out, we decided to play Woodenbridge G. C..
A lovely park land course. After the round we set off for the 'Grand Hotel' in Malahide near Dublin.
Checked in, bags into the room. We met in the restaurant for dinner. The food was wonderful. We even got a nice table by the window.
Malahide Golf Club.
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Enjoyed a good round, we four had a good day on the course. Time to head back to The Grand.
Feeding time. Next day, tee time at Portmarnock GC. Great course.
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Next day, On the train to Dublin. A short ride. Got of at James Connelly station and walked into the city centre. Checked
out some of the shops. Had some lunch then
caught the train back to Malahide.
Malahide
Time to leave Malahide and head for Kildare, we're on the road again, on the road again. It's a long way to Kildare. HaHaHa.
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Kildare Village
We found a nice Italian restaurant in the village for breakfast. Walked around for a bit. KenEtta & Patty went of shopping & Ray & I headed of for a coffee.
Time to move on to our hotel.
The K club, In my opinion, the best hotel in Ireland. First class, and staff, fantastic!!
We played both courses, had wonderful food and again, staff were out of this world.
The four of us had a great time at The K Club.
Number 16
Time to depart the K club. We had a wonderful time in Kildare, absolutely beautiful hotel and golf. Not a long drive at all to Bunratty. Arrived at our hotel Bunratty Manor. A nice hotel and very close to Durty Nellys and the castle, 10 min walk.
Having a beer in Durty Nelly's. Very old pub. Est 1620.
The food in Durty Nelly's is very tasty. Excellent atmosphere.
All checked in. Freshened up now for the short walk into the village. We checked out the touristy shops as you do.
Bunratty Castle.
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Looking down on Durty Nelly's
Gallagher's, a very nice eatery, great atmosphere.
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The time has come to take Ray and Patty to the airport, two weeks went by pretty quick. Bags packed and in the car. A short drive to the airport. Bags checked and away they go.
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Off we go again, Lahinch here we come. Short drive from Shannon to the hotel in the town. Played a round at the Castle course.
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After, we had lunch in the club, we then headed to the hotel to check in.
Checked in and freshened up. Walked around for a while, popped into a baby casino and won €80, sweet!
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Time for a feed bag, Kenny's it is. Good food. After dinner headed back to the hotel. Got a t-time @ 0840 in the morning at the old course, fantastic course.
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No, I didn't put my ball there. Just wanted to show how far down that hellish trap was, the photo doesn't really do justice.
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It's a mean place to chip out of.
Put our clubs in our room and ventured of around the town.
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Back to the hotel for dinner, chicken curry, mmmmmmmmm.
Next day went for a walk along the beach, about a mile out then came back by the road.
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Popped into O'looney,s for lunch.
Another good day was had.
Cooked breakfast, 30min drive to Doonbeg GC.
Doonbeg is a great course. Hope to be back at this club in the future.
We enjoyed it very much.
Walk of the 9th heading towards the 10th tee and you see the half way house.
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Anyone fancy a bottle of champagne?
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Had lunch in the club, food was good, soup, bread and Guinness.
Once again the car is packed, a five+hr drive to Derry. Arrived at our B&B, checked in. A very nice family, a beautiful home. They made us very, very welcome.
A nice view looking down over the city.
The walk into the town was pleasant, found a great restaurant/pub, the Bentley. The place is huge and the food is great. The best Guinness and beef pie ever.
Walked along part of the historic wall and across the peace bridge. Derry is a nice city.
While we were staying in Derry we did a mud/obstacle race, 'Hard as Oak', Ireland's hardest obstacle race. Lots of fun.
Nice landing lad.
Drive time, heading to Dunfanaghy. Not a bad drive. Checked into Arnolds hotel.
Beautiful village.
Arrived at a good time, music fest happening, oh yeah!!!
Two tone polka, what a great band.
Cajun/Zydeco music.
Dunfanaghy GC, wonderful course. Played it twice, totally enjoyed it.
Enjoyed our time in Dunfanaghy. Now off to Fanad lighthouse. A short drive
to our new quarters.
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No TV, no WIFI, so so peaceful. Just the sound of burning logs and the crashing of the waves. Wonderful place to stay.
Popped down to the lighthouse tavern, had a beer and chatted with some of the locals. Nice folks.
Portsalon GC here we come.
Great course, excellent links golf. Story goes
that HMS Saldanha shipwrecked in a storm and all 250 crew perished and that bodies are buried under the 18th fairway.
Finished our round, stopped at the tavern for a bite to eat before heading back to the lighthouse.
A good fire going, some reading. Time for bed. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!
Next day we had a tour of the lighthouse, very interesting.
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All packed, bags in the car. Heading back to Moira, a night in Edenmore GC. Golf in the AM. what a windy day.
Lunch in the club then into Moira to visit the mother. Chatted for a while then we headed down the street to the chinese. Yummmmm. After, into Normans, yes I know it's pretty marys. I still call it Normans.
Portrush, here we come. Oh No! flat tyre on the way there. Spare on, off we go.
Our next home, Avarest B&B. Only a 5min walk to the harbour bar.
Had dinner in the Neptune and Lobster. Great food.
Next day, 5mile ish drive into Coleraine to get the flat fixed. Fantastic job Coleraine Tyres.
Headed to the dark hedges (GofT). Stopped at the Fullerton Arms, GofT related.
Back to Portrush, freshen up and a wee walk to the wine bar. Yet again amazing food. Checked out some of the babby casinos. Picked up a bottle of red on the way back to the B&B. Nice evening.
Caught a bus into Portstewert. Irish open time. Lovely weather for it. Lots of autographs from the players.
BEEF!!!!!!!!!!
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