Day 34: Bunbeg to Downing

June 17, 2024

The Wild Atlantic Way really starts to feel wild

The wonders that a good night sleep gives a person. After yesterday's adventure and dinner, I crashed and slept right through until our normal waking time. The fog had lifted from my brain. Yay!!

Today's weather outlook was better than yesterday's, so we set off without the waterproof socks over our shoes and wearing the wind jackets. Within a few kilometers we switched jackets to the light rain jackets. Within another kilometer or so, we stopped and struggled to put on the waterproof socks and helmet covers. Okay, so it's misting quite heavily for the moment. Actually, all day long . . . put on the helmet covers because it was starting to come down, and a few minutes later it was over. It rained/misted on and off all day long. Helmet covers on / off / on / off . . .

River view taken after we donned the rain gear for today.

The route told us to turn left, but we turned right to check out this church first. Not very old as it was built in the late 1800s.

The ceiling was beautiful! Acoustics were nice, too.

The mountains in this part of Ireland are beautiful.

Little did we know when we left the church that we'd be riding over the flank of that mountain.

It was one of the prettiest days as we rode along. We'd be in a rural setting with scattered house or farms, then we'd climb over a rise and be in a valley that felt far away from civilization. This scenario repeated itself several times throughout the day. Then we would ride through a forest area, or pop out along a beach, and then find ourselves in an area full of trees (but not forested). We even saw a deer today (no photo, though). We came across 2 cycle tourists traveling in the opposite direction and a guy headed our way. He was heavily loaded with front & rear panniers, plus camping gear. Makes me shudder to think of the weight carried on his bike. It was a lovely day for a bike ride despite the weather.

Here are samples of the varying scenery from today:

Now we are on the backside of the mountain, as well as, across the valley from it. It's top is still in the clouds.

And then there was a castle across the river from us. Doe Castle.

We stopped at St. John the Baptist's church outside of Downings before continuing the ride around the peninsula.

This church was at a crossroads and we couldn't ignore it.

The roof structure is a bit different than the last few churches we've entered.

The stain glass windows were very pretty.

We opted to loop around Rosguill Peninsula before going into Downings and finding our B&B. It was a great decision - again beautiful views.

That is Downings in the distance with a golf course (or two) and a beautiful beach between us.

The bay on the opposite side of Rosguill Peninsula from Downings (the name is escaping me).

Going around Rosguill Peninsula, we stopped for more photos.

It was a stellar day on the Emerald Isle despite the weather. The weather didn't bother us too much. ;-)

Note to ourselves: Misting showers throughout the day. Once we put on the waterproof socks, we didn't seem to care anymore about how wet or not it would be.

Accommodation: Bradley's Cuan Na Long B&B - Mary, our host, is so sweet and she's from New Jersey. Her parents were first generation who moved to NJ from Downings and the family returned when she was in high school. The property is great and our room is very comfortable. There is a "hot press" where all our laundry is drying. The tandem is tucked away in a dry and secure site.

Today's ride: 76 km (47 miles)
Total: 2,239 km (1,390 miles)

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