FINAL ~ The Sheep 041105

And of course the sheep!

I notice there are two types of sheep: one with black face and feet, the other with white face and feet. Different genders or diferrent pedigrees?

Rush hour in the Connemara.

What's with the plastic underwear?

 

 

The Connemara Show 041105

The bens, the lakes, the heaths, the woodlands, the grasslands, the bogs, ..., all uniquely Connemara.

Some parts, minus the lakes and woods, remind me of outback Australia.

 

The Inagh Valley, between Kylemore and Recess.

 

 

Kylemore Abbey 041105

A short distance from the National Park entrance, we come to the famous Kylemore Abbey, home of the Bendictine nuns in Ireland. Started life as a castle (built 1868), the abbey has the best Irish neo-Gothic architecture, whatever that is.

Nice juxtaposition - white against the colours of autumn.

 

A short drive away, another vista of the abbey.

We have indeed found a great photogenic spot - even a tourist coach takes a pause here.

Connemara National Park 041105

Opened in 1980, the park covers 3,000 hectares of fine mountains (bens), bogs, grasslands, heaths and woodlands. Hopefully no sheep like they have in Snowdonia, Wales. Sheep sort of spoil the national park thingy.

 

Atlantic Inlet 041105

That's no lake, but an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean. And the wind is so cold it chills the bones.

Near Letterfrack village.

Clifden 041105

Sandwiched between the Atlantic, mountains and bogs, Clifden is quite a pleasant town when the weather is good, I suppose. From here we decide to head north, then turn east, to make a loop around the Connemara, before heading back to Galway City.

 

A Pot of Gold? 041105

Yes, we have a chance to find us a pot of gold, but I guess the odds are not much better than catching a leprechaun!

Beautiful double-rainbow on the road to Clifden.

 

The Youth Hostel 041105

Our Youth Hostel, in glorious sunshine. Last night we arrived wet and cold and in pitch black. When daylight comes, it is always exciting to find out where we spent the night.

But we never thought we would end up in such a desolate place.

Yes, our Youth Hostel is stuck to the side of this huge rock (or ben, they call it). Come to think of it, we did quite well in being able to find the place last night, just outside the village of Recess.

Anyway, we are now heading further west, towards Clifden town, the capital of the Connemara region.

START ~ The Morning After 041105

A well-earned night's sleep for us ... and in stark contrast to the awful weather we had when we got in last night, we now witness sunrise on a beautiful fine cold morning.

As sunlight fills up the earth, we have our first taste of Connemara, famous for its mountains, valleys and lakes. Connemara is indeed another jewel of Ireland.

And after a quick D-I-Y brekky of bread, biscuits and orange juice, we are raring to go. Where to? No clue, as Lao Tzu says, "A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving."