5 weeks away

Over 400 km walked

2/3 of the Ulster Way hiked

2 nights camping

18 different towns stayed in

3 1/2 weeks on the trail

5 days in the Republic of Ireland

Numerous wonderful people met

A handful of minor injuries

2 heavily used bus passes

1200 photos

A million memories

It’s so hard to return to normal life after an experience like this.  Between the jet lag and the catching up at work this past week seemed to drag on and on.  But as the jet lag wears off and things get back to normal I can’t help but remember this quote “Don’t cry because it’s over.  Smile because it happened” by Dr Seuss.  

We are finished two of our three day bus tour now and I have confirmed that I am not a bus tour person.  That being said I have had a lot of fun and the other people on the tour have been great to get to know.  Yesterday we headed west from Dublin and worked our way through the countryside.  We spent the night in Galway with some Galway Hookers (which is the name of the local micro brewed beer, get your mind out of the gutter).

Today we drove down the coast and saw the Cliffs of Moher, a very famous natural wonder.  The clouds rolled in off the Atlantic just after we arrived so we missed the full effect but what we saw was incredible.  Of course as we pulled away the sun came out.  Tonight we are in a little town whose name I can't recall, a downside of the bus.  But it is beautiful.

Tomorrow we head to Cork and Blarney Castle, then back to Dublin for the night.  Thursday we head back to Belfast and are meeting some new friends for dinner.  It has been a great trip.

A tale of two cities

Over this weekend we have spent time in the largest city in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.  Belfast appeared on the surface to be dull, an industrial working class city that tourists over look because of a troubled past and few shiny attractions hand fed to them on a silver platter.  Dublin on the other hand is vibrant, colourful and full of history, named the UNESCO City of Literature, we both anxiously awaited our time in Dublin.

Belfast had the Titanic Experience which opened last year and was put together very well and after touring thatI spent most of my day just wandering the streets.  That evening we had a steak dinner at McHugh's Bar, in one of the oldest buildings in Belfast, served "on the rocks" where we cooked our own steaks on hot volcanic rocks at the table.  That evening we stopped at The Crown Bar to get out of the rain and to enjoy a few pints at the oldest bar in Belfast, this turned out to be a very fun evening and we met some very lovely people.

Dublin is home to the Guinness Factory as well as the Jameson Irish Whiskey Distillery.  Our evening finished with a literary pub crawl.  Sunday we took the time to enjoy other parts of the city which are less dependent on alcohol and included The Book of Kells at Trinity College, Christ Church Cathedral, a walk in the footsteps of some of the best writers in the world and Temple Bar.

At first I didn't like Belfast but once I toured Dublin I can only describe it like this; Dublin is the cute, baby faced little brother, who knows he is cute and milks it for all it is worth.  Naturally he gets the greater amount of attention.  Belfast is the dark, grittier older brother who the family ignores.  Misunderstood and first but hard working, steadfast and incredibly interesting once you get to know him.  And I've always been a fan of the black sheep.

You know you're an Ulster Way hiker when....

24 km is a rest day
It is easier and shorter to list what doesn't hurt
You know all the bus schedules in NI
You can spot a stile from 1/2 a mile away
You pass along beside a fence or gate and eye how you would climb it with a pack
You clothes are packed in groups of wearable and disgusting
You're in bed by 8 pm every night and the nights you go out for dinner one beer makes you giddy.
You lose weight eating fried and battered food at every meal
Half way through you have a list of gear being tossed before heading home
You can read a map that doesn't list street names
In 2 weeks you've talked to more sheep than people
The only towns in NI you can name are places with accommodations along route
You're in bed asleep before the rest of the b and b guests even arrive
You only turn down rides offered by passing motorist so you can get your mile count in for the day or when you are in Murder Hole.
Pharmacy workers are very concerned by the amount of pain treatment meds you purchase.
You are following a trail with more livestock hoof prints than foot prints.
You have more water in your boots than in your camelback.
In the beginning you have the taxi driver drop you 1/2 mile from your start point so you don't miss it, by the end when the driver offers to drive you the 3 miles up the hill from where you wanted to start, and you take it.
You wonder daily why it is you haven't met any other people the whole trip who are also hiking the whole route.

My favourite section

Our accommodations in Belcoo

Yesterday was and I am sure will remain my favourite section of the trail.  We traveled from Florencecourt (near Enniskillen) to Belcoo.  The trail included the Cuilcagh Way, it started at the Florencecourt House where we were able to stay just down the road.  The Victorian style manor house, I believe was the recent site of the G8 meetings which Northern Ireland hosted.  The trail weaved around the grounds then went cross country through farm land.  The trail was well marked even if the directions said things like "follow a farm track" which I would interpret as a lane or vehicle track but turned out to be what we would call a cowpath.  Half way through the day we arrived at Marble Arch Caves Geopark, and took the time for a tour down into the caves.  From here our trail took us into the town of Belcoo our final destination for the day from the Republic.  In all it was about an 18 km section which saw us in and out of the Republic.

The next section was supposed to have us walk into Belleek, where I was really looking forward to going but it is not going to work out.  The 42 km section is pretty remote and there is only one place to stay on route and it would mean a 30 km day or so with our packs, and no way to get out of Belleek until Saturday so we are day hiking again and Belleek remains the hardest town in Northern Ireland to get in to or out of.  Only two more days of hiking then we are throwing in the towel and becoming regular tourists for a week.

The trail past Marble Arch Caves

The road into Belcoo looking back into the Republic

Canadian Connection

The other day I badly needed a rest day (more information on injuries to come) and Lisa didn't so she went hiking on a popular section of the trail and I spent the day sightseeing as a typical tourist. I started the day by heading to Rostrevor, which is officially on route as the end of the Mourne Mountain section but we missed it since we only dayhiked through the Mourne's.  Rostrevor isn't a big town but I wanted to go and see the Ross Monument and pay my respects.  This monument stands on the land where General Ross originally from the town planned to build his retirement home.  The General died while in Canada and never had the chance. He is most famous for his role in the war of 1812.  It was General Ross who led the British Army on a march to Washington, driving the President into hiding and it was Ross who oversaw the burning of the White House. Rumour has it that Ross finished the President's breakfast before burning the residence. That was the battle which also inspired "The Star Spangled Banner" a fact that is emphasized here as opposed to Canada's freedom.

The Ross Monument

On another note many Irish people we have met are very familiar with Canada and have been there recently or know someone who has immigrated for work.  Perhaps because of this a handful of a local convenience store chains called Spar actually sell Tim Horton's coffee and baked goods, which is pretty cool.  I haven't tried it if you are wondering as once this trip already I had to break my no American chain restaurant rule and I'd rather not do it twice

Pictures to follow if I can get them off my phone.

The Mourne Mountains

The past two days were spent in Newcastle in the shadow of the Mourne's. This section of the trail was 42 km through the mountains with no place to stay along the way.  We decided to just do day hikes up there instead of tackling the entire thing. The first day we hiked up Slieve Donard at 853 m it is the highest peak in the mountain range. The ocean views were incredible as well as seeing the Mourne Wall which encircles 15 mountain summits and stands 8 m tall; built originally in the 1920's to keep sheep and cattle out of the water networks in the mountains.

Today was a rest day for me to nurse my bad feet and ankles and Lisa did another short day hike up another mountain. Newcastle has been one of my favourite places so far and we still have half the trip to go.  By my calculation I have hiked 265 km (approximately) so far.

The Mourne's from the Newcastle promenade

The Mourne Wall from 3/4 the way up