Sept 25/23 Dunquinn

 Today we had breakfast at 9:00 and were picked up at 10 am by our favourite driver, Ozzie.  He had delivered us for the beginning of our 2 day stay at the Dunquinn guest house.  He was taking us back to where we had finished walking yesterday which was on the sandy beach.  So todays walk we continue further along the beach.  It was a beautiful fresh morning with a strong wind blowing us all about. There were a few people about, walking dogs and swimming in the waves. 

We were to have good weather and lots of elevation today. The first part was on the road and we came upon the Fairy Fort where there was an imprint of an ancient structure that could be seen in the grass.  For the cost of admission we were given a small bowl of “food” to hand feed the goats, sheep, donkeys and a couple of llamas.  We were advised not to feed the pigs……who were gynormous! Back on the road we soon we’re following yellow markers which took us onto paths with high hedges with lots of flowering fuschia. The path was  ascending and a bit muddy given the torrential rain of the last couple of days. The path is narrow, so we walk one behind the other. Up up up and the sun was warm. We were walking towards Slea Head and had a view of the Blasket  islands far below us.  There were lots of sheep, ewes and rams and also goats who would run away when we came close.  While we were enjoying the views we had to keep our eye on the ground which was full of sheep dodo. . The hills are also quite rocky so foot placement was important! All the while the wind was gusty,,  we all agreed it was exhilarating.

Usually when we have been hiking on this trip we have not seen many other hikers.  Today we met a few, some appeared to be out for a walk with their dog.  We met a couple from Trail BC, who were walking with a couple of ladies from San Francisco.  Funnily they were also at the same guesthouse as us.

There are many stiles to climb over , some are made of wood, others are newer metal ones.  The fields are separated by stone walls, walls that have been standing for more than a 100 years. We have a guide book with good instructions….and there are signposts with the little yellow hiking man on them with an arrow pointing the way.

I think what best describes todays hike is elevation. We seemed to be going over mountains! We stopped to eat our packed lunches, sitting on big flat rocks., stripping of jackets and changing socks as the day warmed up.  We finally started a descent towards the water. Slea Head is a spectacular area that people come from all over the world to see.  The sea crashes into the towering cliffs. 

We arrived back at Dunquinn and hit the shower. We walked down the road to Kruegers Pub for dinner. The pub is the furthest west in all of Europe.  The pub was practically empty .  We ordered Guinness and all had fish and chips for dinner, and had a few games of Farkle before walking back to our guesthouse. Tomorrow we will leave at around 10 am .