A fantastic Guided Hiking / Walking tour covering County Louth, County Donegal, Sligo, Westport, Connemara and the Aran Islands. Join us for a unforgettable journey through the best of the north.
Itinerary
Day 1:
You will be met at Dublin Airport. Then we travel on to Carlingford in County Louth. Located at the foot of Slieve Foye, Carlingford is a former fishing village. A walk up Slieve Foye will be rewarded with stunning views back over Carlingford Lough. After settling in at our guest house, we will take a short walk along the lower path at Slieve Foye with lovely views across Carlingford Lough.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 3 Miles
Day 2:
Our first full day walk will be at the lovely Ravensdale forest and the Black Mountains and the Cooley Hills. We will encounter ancient stone circles along the way and learn about the legend of the Cattle Raid of Cooley. We will have great views of Northern Ireland.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 7 Miles
Day 3:
A visit to Donegal is like a trip back in time: hay is still stacked by hand, and most farms only yield enough produce for one family, for this reason farmers work in co-operatives and share their machinery. Beautiful day-walks and spectacular sunsets are promised along the rugged Donegal coastline. Our driving journey today will take us across to the west of Donegal to Kilcar on the coast. En route we will stop at Finntown for a walk around Lough Finn. Look out for the turf (peat) cutters hard at work. There should be some music in the pubs for us to enjoy after dinner.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 5 Miles
Day 4:
We head for Europe's highest sea cliffs at Slieve League (2000ft). The beauty of these cliffs will have to be seen to be believed and a walk over "One Man's Pass" will be exhilarating, (this will not be a compulsory part of the journey - be calm, vertigo sufferers!). An isolated gentle green road will bring us out onto the most majestic views of the Atlantic Ocean. This walk is truly an unforgettable one and is Donegal's piece de resistance. It will be hard for you to ever forget this beauty and stunning views.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 7 Miles
Day 5:
We now move south to the Nephin Beg mountain range in County Mayo, walking what is known as "Europe's Last Great Wilderness". Mayo has a landscape of high cliffs, lonely mountains and fuchsia hedges. We will stop in County Sligo to visit the grave of William Butler Yeats. Then we'll walk at Knocknarea Mountain, the burial place of Queen Maeve. A warm welcome and a lovely location await us at Kilmena on the edge of Clew Bay near the town of Westport. Catherine is our hostess and is a chef-extraordinaire. After dinner we can walk out across the causeway to one of the 365 tiny islands Then we'll drive into Westport to enjoy the music.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 6 Miles
Day 6:
On now to County Galway, Connemara and Joyce's Country. Connemara is a wild, rugged, unspoilt area with a ragged coastline and an impressive group of inland mountains - the Twelve Bens. In the past we have been lucky enough to spy otters playing among the rocky inlets of the Connemara coast. Our walk today will be at Killary Harbor, not a harbor at all, but Ireland's only fjord. Our route will take us along an old famine road (rough track built to give poor people work during the Great Famine of 1845-48), looking out across the fjord to Mweelrea, western Ireland's highest mountain. You'll love this walk! Our base for the next 2 nights is Clifden, known as the "jewel" in Connemara in Co. Galway. Again, there should be plenty of music in Clifden.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 7 Miles
Day 7:
Today we will be visiting one of the Aran Islands, Inishmore. "The landscape of the Aran Islands is an intricate sculpture of stone, combining natural limestone pavements with a filigree wilderness of man-made stone walls". We will walk the green roads to visit the fort of Dun Aenghus (a massive semi-circular ring-fort). For our evening meal tonight, don't miss out on the excellent fish and chips to be found at the "Ould Pier" cafe.
Hiking / Walking Distance: 8 Miles
Day 8:
This is a 15 day tour which can be split in to Undiscovered Ireland North and Undiscovered Ireland South. If you are taking the whole 15 day tour then today we travel to Galway City to pick up and drop off our "half way" passengers (a good opportunity for some souvenir shopping). We then travel on to the lovely village of Adare in County Limerick. Walk by the river this evening. If you are not continuing on the tour then we will drop you at the Galway City Bus / Railway Station. From here it is very easy to get a direct bus or train back to Dublin for your flight home. The journey from Galway to Dublin takes approx 4 hours.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Tour dates for 2008: July 12 - 19, August 17 - 24
$2699 per person sharing.
Tour price includes: 7 nights' 3-4 star accommodation en suite, all land transportation, evening entertainment, 7 breakfasts, 7 packed lunches, 5 evening meals, service of guide / guides throughout.
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Hiking & Trekking
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