Steelhorse Adventures

Ireland

The land of green, endless fields and sheeps. Home of Guinness. Every motorbike riders dream. Many twisty roads, scenic landscape and the Wild Atlantic Way.

Area

84,421 km2

Population

6,197,100 (2008)

Density

73.0

Currency

EUR, British Pound

Language

Irish, English

Preparation

I think, you all know that people are saying that there can be many rain in ireland. So i checked the rainfall tables and found out that the average rainfall in ireland is not much more than in germany. So i checked the weather forecast and everything looks really good. A little bit colder than in germany (we had about 35 degrees celsius) but that would be nice. But during the whole trip i realized and learned that the weather forecast apps doesn't really work in Ireland. I had moments when the weather-app said that it is currenlty sunny but it was raining. Or it was sunny and the weather-app said it is raining. So in the end i had 3 days with good weather and the rest (10 days) it was raining.

Formulars

When you are an european (EU) citizen you don't need much. Your driving license, your passport and registration paper is enough.

Ferry

I took the ferry from Dunkirk to Dover and from Fishguard to Rosslare. I didn't booked beforehand and this was no problem. You can just buy your ticket at the harbour. The ferry from Dunkirk to Dover departs many time per day. The ferry from Fishguard to Rosslare only 2 times a day. Please check the timetables online, sometimes they change it.

Bike

No special preparations.

Immunization

No special immunizations.

The Trip

From Germany to Ireland

I started the trip together with my dad. The first night we spent on a camping spot near Namur in Belgium. Also this was the night when rain starts.

Since then rain was our companion nearly every day.

camping somewhere in belgium

We missed the ferry in Pembroke for 30 minutes (they told us that the schedule changed and we didn't knew it), so we rode to Fishguard and waited there for the next ferry which departs at about 22 or 23 pm.

There we had some of the little moments when there was no rain.

waiting for the ferry

From Rosslare to Dungarvan and back to Waterford

After 4 days of riding in the rain my dad decided to turn around and to enjoy the better weather in germany.

Because we missed the ferry in Pembroke i hadn't slept over 24 hours, so i decided to look out for a b&b room to have a dry night and to dry a little bit my gear. I found one nice room near Waterford.

Luckyly, since noon, the wheather got better and i also had some sun.

Because of the wheather and the weather forecast i studied the map and reworked my trip completely. First i wanted to ride from south west up to the north and then down on the east side. But due to the wheather i decided to go up on the east side and then down on the west side.

sunrise somewhere in ireland

Through the Wicklow Mountains

Today i wanted to find a camping spot near Dublin, so i rode the N30 and M11 to Arklow and from there i crossed the Wicklow Mountains.

I had nice weather and the Wicklow Mountains are absolute beautiful and scenic landscape. There are lot of roads to discover, so if you plan to go there (and if you visit Ireland i think this is a must) don't be on the rush and take your time.

To North Ireland and to the west

This day i woke up from the raining sound on my tend. The weather forecast said that i will have rain all day. So i decided to take the M1 up to North Ireland and from Newry the A28 and A29 up to Port Rush.

In Port Rush i found a nice bead and breakfast location. Very friendly people and nice rooms. They also offered me their garage to put my bike in it and drove me into the town center later the day to find something to eat. The name of that location was All Seasons and i can totaly recommend it.

The next day, after visiting the rope bridge and the giants causeway i rode down to Omagh and then up again to Malins Head and Malins Well in Ireland. Very nice small roads with awesome landscape.

I found a nice Bed and Breakfast location near Dunegard and the next day i rode down to Sligo visiting Clips of Slieve League.

In Sligo i had to find a camping location because i booked a B&B in the morning but when i arrived, they told me that they need a booking at least 24 hours beforehand and so they had no rooms left. But i had nice weather so that was no problem.

From Sligo to Achill Island and Westport

The night at the camping spot was not very pleasent because some people where very noisy nearly the whole night.

So i slept not very long but luckily the weather was pretty good at the next day. So i took a small breakfast in the morning, packed my motorcycle and start riding towards Achill Island.

It was a nice ride along Lough Conn and through the Mayo County.

At Achill Island i visited Keem Bay which is a pretty nice beach. I also met some people from germany there which lived near me. Sometimes the world is really small :)

I took some pictures and enoyed a hot meal before i took the road down to Westport.

Achill Island

From Westport to County Kerry

Today the weather forecast looks good and it should be a day without rain. The campsite where located near the ocean but it turned out that there where no public showers.

After good night, i started early because i wanted to reach county kerry today and i wanted to take the ferry from Killimer to Tabert.

I visited Kylemore Abbey and Cliffs of Moher. Both are nice places you need to visit when you are near by.

At Kylemore Abbey i looked out for something to eat and after having a nice lunch i rode to Cliffs of Moher and then down to Killimer to get the ferry.

Cliffs of Moher

County Kerry to Castletownbere

This day i had really nice weather and i rode through many nice places. First i rode over the Conor pass which is pretty nice and i recommend everyone to ride it.

After Conor pass i wanted to drive Ring of Kerry but the traffic was too much. So i decided to take a shortcut and i think that was one of the best decision during the whole trip. I rode through the ballaghbeama gap which is absolutely breathtaking. Also i only met 2 or 3 cars on that road.

I spent my last night in Castletownbere and enjoyed the festival of the seas.

The other day i visited Gap of Dunloe which is also very nice, but has many tourists.

Ballaghbeama Gap