The Gap of Dunloe Killarney National Park, Ireland The Gap of Dunloe is our destination today and rather than take a tour, we opted to bike to the Reen Pier and have the boat transport us and the bikes across the three lakes of Killarney: the Lough Leane, the Muckross Lake, and the Upper Lake... to Lord Brandon's Cottage. As we stood on the pier waiting (Ireland time is different from real time!) we saw some Americans..."Hey where are you from?" we asked. The response was "PITTSBURGH"! "No way!" we said, "We live in Shaler", they lived in McCandles the [View Full Entry]

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Sunday July 6, 2008 Kilkenny to Cahir to Killarney, Ireland Flemings White Bridge C&C Park We found our way out of Kilkenny and on to Cahir (pronounced "care") and took a walk to the Cahir Castle. The castle was build on a rock island in the River Suir, and is a well preserved fortress. Since we are now members of the Heritage Sites of Ireland, meaning we purchased a pass to many, many historic and natural sites in Ireland, this should be a savings in the long haul. A young energetic gal took us on a guided tour and provided wonderful [View Full Entry]

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July 5, 2008, Saturday Lady's Island, to Kllkenny, Ireland Tree Grove Caravan and Camping Park During the night there was a torrential rain and wind storm, but we were safe and snug in our little cocoon. By morning there was sunshine so we took a walk to the beach and the Irish Sea. Today we are headed to Kilkenny and we started on a find road N25, and thought we would save time by taking R704. It was another...ROAD FROM HELL, winding and twisting with buses and trucks that just shouldn't fit on this narrow path, yet somehow they do! We [View Full Entry]

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Pembrokeshire National Park to Fish Guard Ferry, Wales to Rosslare, to Lady's Island, Ireland The drive from St. David's to Fish Guard was not a long one, just tricky with the narrow country roads. What a wonderful surprise at the dock. We arrived early and the Stena Line Ferry Company was preparing decorations for the Fourth of July. They had flags and banners and even wore cowboy hats! We were the only Americans sitting in the ferry waiting line, and they were thrilled someone appreciated their efforts. With lots of time to kill, we took a walk up the Coastal Path [View Full Entry]

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St. David's...Pembrokeshire National Park St. David's Head is forged of very old volcanic rock, some of it dates back almost 500 million years! The Pembrokeshire Coastal Trail is 186 miles, we won't do all of that. After walking into town... St. David's (2miles), we visited the town market, (sampled some homemade Welsh cakes, Yum) and went to the art exhibit. On to the "Celtic Coaster Bus" to St. Justinians, the trailhead for today's hike. The Celtic Coaster Bus is wonderful... it takes one to any trailhead and then we can hike back, or if you get weary, just wait for the [View Full Entry]

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July 2, 2008, Wednesday Brecon to St. David's in Pembrokeshire National Park, Wales Lleithyr Meadow Caravan and Camping A40 is the road we followed toward Pembrokeshire, however, it changes to A487 and got a bit narrower and eventually close to the sea... it was a path with traffic. St. David's is a "large" village, (some say it is Wales' smallest city) founded by the Welsh patron saint himself in 550, St. David. The cathedral dates back to the 7th century and was RC, then after Henry's quarrel with Rome, was the church OF England and is now the church IN Wales. [View Full Entry]

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July 1, 2008 The Monmouthshire Brecon Canal footpath/cycle path The Monmouth Brecon Canal footpath/cycle path is just a few hundred yards from the campground, so we are off on our bikes to Brecon. Brecon is a country town at the north edge of the central Beacons. Historically this canal was used to move coal, today hikers, bikers, fisherman and recreational barges use it for transportation and fun. It is only 4 miles or so to Brecon, but the trail has sheep/cattle gates to open and close and bridges to walk under or cycle under, and they are very low, so the [View Full Entry]

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Brecon Beacons National Park, Wales The bus came a little after eight am and we took it to Storey Arms, and outdoor center, and the trailhead. Before leaving we took a way-point on the GPS. We have a guide and a map, but this is all new to us. It is not a loop trail, so it will require us to take the bus and hike the trail and then to find our way out of the park, across some sheep fields, farms and then back to the campground. The Brecon Beacons National Park has the lowest profile of Wales's three [View Full Entry]

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June 29, 2008 Chepstow to Brecon Beacons, Wales In Sedbury, we are staying at a B&B, in the field behind the house. Today we joined in for an English Breakfast before leaving, it was enjoyable. Sedbury is a short distance to Chepstow, but Sedbury is in England... and Chepstow is in Wales. In Wales all of the signs are in two languages...Welsh and English. The Welsh language combines unlikely consonants and very few vowels, the words don't roll off one's tongue. As a Welshman told us... you need to spit a bit! The campground is only about 50 miles or so [View Full Entry]

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June 28, 2008, Saturday Train from Chepstow to Cardiff The walk to Chepstow is about 11/2 miles, so off we go to catch the train at 9:27. Cardiff is the official capital of Wales since 1955. From the train station we found our way to the Cardiff Castle. This fortress hides insides the vast walled yard and follows the original fort built by the Romans. Long after the Romans left, the Normans invaded and made their additions, a mote, a keep, towers of domestic buildings, etc. However it was in the late nineteenth century that major changes were made by one [View Full Entry]

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