Heike, Philippe, Lena, and Felix

Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday June 16th thru 19th
Cork, Ireland
all the weather, all the seasons...and lots of rain! Until today which was dry and sunny and lifted the spirits.

We're heading to Cork today, about 65 km away and we promised Heike and family we'd be in tonight. It was an Irish day of cycling: lots of steep hills and constant temperature shifts as the we climbed and descended...Buff up, hood up, jacket zipped...then everything reversed. Lost my gloves I fear back at the library in Bantry I presume. I have rain mitts (silicone hand covers) that keep the chill at bay while I'm cycling...and the do a pretty good job of it. Just putting them on warms me up. Little touches make a big difference in managing my thermostat:)

One thing I've noticed is that the old manor houses seem to dot the countryside in either peach or pink or yellow. Bright spots on a grey horizon. The other thing is the smell of Ireland that dominates: the smell of manure. This is farming country after all.



We were biking past a DIY home store and I wanted to stop and see what they're selling for appliances, etc. Everything seems to be smaller here. Front load washers were selling for 300 euros...that would be about $400, half the price of back home. They had small fridges and stoves. Just what I would need to outfit a cottage home when that day arrives that I really settle down. I'm being drawn to owning horses again as I pet them by the side of the road. They were such a part of my childhood and I miss the contact. Would love to test my hand at raising a foal someday perhaps.

We hit the "burbs" of Cork at about 3 pm and had to wind our way through the city. Our maps are pretty useless but strangers offer the best option of getting suggestions of routes. We're never able to follow the directions all the way, often missing a turn ...take a left at the "take out office"...and having to ask again. Makes for wonderful conversation!

What a multi-lingual house we've landed in! Heike speaks German and English. Philippe speaks French and English. And the children understand all the languages because Mom speaks to them mostly in German and Dad speaks to them in French...and they respond in English! I don't know how those little brains do it, but they do.


The kids are great...good parenting pays off. They loved Blaze and spent quite a bit of time riding her around and around the cul de sac where they live. The other hit was my iPhone and some of the games on it. Felix spent 30 minutes one evening working on Trace where he had to draw lines for the little guy to travel on and not bump into the obstacles. What tenacity! Lena would spend quite a bit of her time outdoors running around the neighborhood with her friends and come in with the rosiest cheeks and biggest grin. It was nice to see children outside playing and not sitting with their faces glued to a sceen (other than my iPhone...oops...bad influence I am!)

I'm pretty exhausted tonight after traveling by bus for most the day and having to take drugs so I didn't get sick.

I'm hoping I can stay awake enough to catch ya'll who's not on Facebook with the news.

I'm traveling alone now. Fuat decided to fly to Oregon and bike across the US. He wasn't having any fun and didn't know if bike touring was for him. I think I had something to do with his unhappiness although he shared nothing with me in that vain. He has a way of dropping bombs on me. This time I was better prepared to handle it. I, also, found touring together difficult. I'm not having as much fun as I usually do and I'm not sure why. But I decided to try going on alone and see if I can figure this all out. I've always wanted to do this so let's just see if in reality it's as much fun as it sounded. The difference in cultures (although not dramatic) has an effect. I often have a hard time understanding people and get tired of having to ask them to repeat themselves so I smile and nod at whatever was said.

Back to the rest of the weekend. Sunday we all went out to lunch at the market by the harbor and tried to bike into the center of town, but the rains beat us down. Philippe took us in by car later so we could get some supplies. That's when I started the hunt for a real rain coat. I've got to figure out how to be warmer or I'll be hopping a plane home too:) And I did find one that I think will work well AND is cute. Critical, of course!


I"m just too tired to continue or the drugs are still in me, but I can't type another letter.

Goodnight, BagLady



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Hanging Around Bantry

Friday, June 15th
Dunmanway, Ireland (65 km west of Cork...we may get there yet:)!)

18 miles and didn't get started (the 2nd time) til 4:30 because we were waiting for the rain to stop!!!!

And that about sums up today.

Packing up and leaving the hostel early 'cause we couldn't get any coffee nearby...then off to breakfast at a little bakery and cafe. An Irish vegetarian breakfast of baked beans, sauteed mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, and two very fried eggs with toast. It was tasty...I was surprised. Then I wandered into some stores to learn about rain gear and a new metric for waterproofness. 8000mmH2O was one coat. I think mine's around 2000, if that. If I can find a Goretex that I like (that's important...not just dryness, but likeability, too) I'll get it. I need to stay drier and this is a rainy summer for all of Europe I'm a-hearin'.

Another problem is my Keen bike sandals are falling apart. The stitching is breaking away on the heel strap.



This morning I attempted a fix using dental floss and a needle, but it didn't hold up walking around Bantry today. So on my long list of things that need to get addressed in Cork is taking them to a shoe repair shop and sewn professionally. Fuat's gonna have his sandals glued there too.

So then, in Bantry to pass the time, we went to the library. Felt like a hiker for sure then, but didn't use the internet because they wanted to charge me. Not paying for it. Against my religion! The woman there told me that the organic cafe had free wifi. Two birds with one stone: free wifi and good food!


So after a couple of hours in the library catching up on the Irish news, we headed off to eat again. Can't do that too much, but I'm trying to keep the portions small during the day. Very hard to pedal in the position with a full stomach. Just doesn't work and feels awful. Then we got brave and ventured out of town because it seemed to be clearing up. Nope. Wrong. One mile down the road, the skies opened up and we headed back. Not doing it. Not biking out in the rain. Let's wait til 6 when the library closes and see what it's doing then. Worse case, we'll just bike out of town and set up camp. I checked the weather map on my free wifi and saw the weather pattern. A second bout of rain was coming after the clearing mid afternoon. Let's make our break around 4 and see if we can get some miles behind us before the next cloud burst. So off we headed. Oh, why is always so hard to get started? My legs are working too hard. But we managed to bike nearly 3 hours and got to the next town.

We're camped in the field of a trotter track. They were nice and left the bathroom unlocked for us., too.

Ooops! My tent is leaking. Rain is dripping on me!! I think this thing is on it's last legs. We usually use Fuat's new REI Quarter Dome. But it's wet from when we packed it up yesterday. I really like it, but it would be too heavy for backpacking. I hope I don't have to buy a new tent on this trip. i had to resurface the tent floor before we left. Guess I should have resiliconed the whole thing! Silnylon must have a limited shelf-life. Anyone know what it is?

So here we sit, listening to it rain...AGAIN. At least we're mostly dry and warm. We'll make it through another night and then we'll be spending a few days with new friends in Cork. Can't wait to meet Heike:)!

I'm testing the 2 theories tonight. 1) wool is warm when wet and 2) clothes dry in the sleeping bag. I wore my long johns when we rode down off the mountain yesterday and they got drenched. They didn't dry out over night and I kept them separate from my dry clothes in the pannier. So tonight I have soggy long johns on for sleep wear...hence the tests. So far, so good. I'm warm and I think they're almost dry.

I must say we're getting much better at reading our 2 maps. But it does take a team effort for us to get anywhere. It will be a real test of our map skills getting into Cork and to Heike's house tomorrow. I have the address but my map app wants to always put us on the main roads. There's a walking option but I can't always get it to route it right. I know there's much I don't understand about this map app and learning on the road without being able to google it is challenging. And of course, there are no instructions that I can find build into the app. Anyone else ever used Sygic Maps Apps?

Enough for tonight. I'm ready for sleep.

Oh, dinner, you ask? A salad of cukes, tomatoes, snow peas, and cheddar cheese tossed with oil and vinegar. And humus bought at the farmers market with brown bread. Then spelt brownies and chocolate cake for dessert. Fuat spends his time biking thinking about what we'll have for dinner and I'm glad he does! I'm the one who always makes sure we have something for dessert:)

And an update on the itching 'cause I know ya'll worry about me...talked to a pharmacist today and he said some of my itching was due to midgie bites (that's the no-see-ums I was talking about.) He said they can last up to a week. I got an antihistamine ointment and it's calming everything down. Much better than a pill. Do we have that? Better idea.

Ok, now...goodnight and hugs and love to everyone!

Bug-Bitten BagLady

p.s. got several albums of Roy Orbison on my iPod...he's got the best voice!!!!

p.p.s have been listening to the book Wild on my iPod. Read it! That girl can write AND she has a good story to tell. It's as much about her life before the trail as it is about hiking. She deserves the recognition she's getting!



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Never Hike out in the Rain...or Bike, for That Matter

Thursday June 14th
Bantry, Ireland
15 miles, I estimate (cause when I zero out my bike computer, it also turns if off...sometimes...it's a special feature:/)
Gusty winds and heavy rains

Last night was a delightful evening up high in the mountain meadows, sleeping with the sheep. But we seem to have to pay for our good fortune. We awoke this morning to gusty winds. Fuat was up at 6 - and ungodly hour - and about 6:30 awoke me saying that it was going to rain and maybe we should pack up. Ugh! I don't wake up well. When he offered "or stay put", I put my head back down. I was exhausted still. So I slept on nestled under my warmer bag in my long johns while I heard the rain hitting the tent and felt the winds blowing in its sides. Fuat managed to get his morning coffee, eat his soaked "horse chow", and finish his book...while I slept and slept. I was content to stay there all day and wait out this storm. We knew it was coming. He was bored and wanted to go. So I agreed. Now I hadn't had my morning coffee or any breakfast and it was too stormy to prepare at this point. Just pack and go. It was raining, so I packed my panniers inside the tent then left them there to weigh the tent down while we disassembled it. Packing has it's own rhythm and everything it's particular place and we manage to finish at about the same time. Off we went, still going up the mountain. I looked ahead and there's Fuat walking his bike! What! Why? He never walks...never. I get up to him. He said the wind was blowing so strong he couldn't pedal against it. He walked the last 1/4 mile to the top. And then had to walk still. The wind was stronger on the other side. Blaze was her steady self:) When he was finally able to ride, he kept one foot out because he was leaning so strongly into the wind he feared a gust would blow him over.

We passed through the most pastoral countryside looking down over very old estates, just like in the movies. I felt like we'd stepped back in time and in fact, we had. Seeing these scenes in person is nothing short of breathtaking. There are just so many old stone houses around. We hiked up to one near our campsite last night. It was a 12x20 foot stone hut with a second story in the eaves and a fireplace on each end. Then there was a circular stone paddock attached with walls 4 ft high where perhaps their animals were kept. We joked about the difficult living conditions up there in the mountains and tried to estimate when it might have been built. With the stones it's hard to say, but the log beams supporting the second floor were still in place. It might have been 200 years old or older. There's an energy of the families that lived in these old places that's palpable to me. I feel honored to cross their paths in this way and I honor their lives and the difficult conditions under which they lived....and died. I've felt them in the castles and the manor houses, but more in these rural stone cottages.

I got a few pictures, but nothing on my iPhone...can't take it out in the rain. Moisture voids the warranty...remember?

It was a slow descent. I decided to stay behind him instead of my usual screaming down. The rain was painfully pelting our faces. I didn't need to add speed too. And down, and down, and down we went. I was getting wetter and colder. My Renaud's Symdrome kicking in and my feet numbing painfully so. I just wanted to get down, get to a pub, get warm and dry. This was a crazy idea. We could have stayed in the tent where we were warm and dry and waited out the storm. We had everything we needed. Bet you're not bored now, Fuat, I told him. Can you tell I wasn't happy. No. You don't hike out in the rain...RULE # 1 on the AT. Had to learn it the hard way. You shouldn't do it cycling either. Even if you are in Ireland and the weather can change any minute. Wait for the weather to change first. Pedaling and pedaling, shivering, and with numb stinging toes. Where is Keakill? We should have been there by now. FInally signs of civilization and signage. I catch up to Fuat and he says Bantry is 6 km away. WHAT? We shouldn't be that near Bantry! We find a map posted. Where are we??? OMG!!! We missed our turn and headed west! Not good news. I'm not happy. In fact, I'm miserable...and I'm mad...and I don't want to take it out on Fuat. I could have said No, we're not leaving this warm dry tent. I agreed. I have to own up. And I didn't take the time to check my Iphone Map App to see where we needed to go, what turns to take to get to the right spot. So I guess there must be a reason we need to go to Bantry. All I knew was that we were getting a room in a hostel for the night because I needed to get warm and dry and out of this nasty weather. I thought that if I could just get into a pub and get some hot liquid into me, I'd feel better. But when we stopped at one I realized that if I warmed up, I still had to go back out into the cold and wet and pedal on to a hostel. Let's just keep going. I don't want to stop until we find a place to stay and I can dry out. We were biking on a main road and of course with no shoulder and in heavy rains. I felt a bit scared that someone would come whipping around a curve and hit me without even seeing me. I'm not usually afraid, but these were the worst conditions to be out there. I must say that I have yet heard any driver honk at us with anger for being out there, though they have excelerated around us, probably due to timing.

Turns out my raingear is still useless. My whole body was wet, my fleece underneath was wet, my longjohns were soaked. And Fuat said only the edges were wet. His rain pants look just like mine. What gives? I've never found a good rain jacket. Even my $200 eVent fabric coat I bought in Damascus while hiking the AT got wet on the inside. Breatheable means the water soaks through.

We managed to find the hostel and for 15 euros per person per night we have a nice room overlooking the harbor. Felt bad hauling all of our wet gear upstairs but what could we do. She said she didn't mind but then she brought up newspapers to soak up the water from the carpet. Sorry:( A warm shower, tuna sandwich, and crawled into bed to get warm...3 hours later I awoke. Still cold when out of bed. I asked Fuat to go see if he could find a laundromat we could use to dry our gear since the lady here said she didn't have one. We have everything hung all over the shared bathroom and our room. I could not find anywhere to hang a line. (Brought back memories of the many times in Nepal that Bluebearee, Apple Pie, and I hung lines across the rooms to dry our gear:))



No, laundromat...just a launderette - where you drop off and pick up your clothes...and they do shoe repair. My well worn Keen bike sandals are falling apart. Why didn't I think to check and see if I should have gotten new ones before leaving. It took me years to find those (no other bike shoes did I like) and I probably can't replace them over here. I'll have to see if I can stitch them with my needle and dental floss.

After a nice dinner of soup and Banaffee Pie for me and cod for Fuat and some free wifi and some weather reports and a stroll around town...and short one because it's raining of course, we're back hanging out in our room. Ah, such memories of long distance hiking, many similarities.

We'll just have to see what tomorrow brings, whether we bike on or wait a day. If there's any chance of clearing, we'll bike I'm sure. Probably 2 days (90 km) to Cork. Poor Heike D. (who's a friend of Heike B. - the German woman I met last summer on the Olympic Peninsula and biked with and then went to Hawaii with last winter)...well I've been trying to give Heike D and estimation of our arrival day and it keeps changing. Making this wrong turn today added a day to our schedule...if we had a schedule:)

But this is an adventure and it unfolds to us...we just have to open our arms and receive it, in all it's glory.

BagLady

p.s. the itching continues - last night when I tucked my legs into warm socks and a warm bag, it set off the hives on my ankles and feet. I swear this is systemic...just like poison ivy...and it itches as much!

...and I had to take Ibuprofen today to kill my caffeine headache...I've got to find some decaf and get off this caffeine again. and off the ibuprofen which may be the culprit causing this outbreak...or I'm allergic to Ireland!


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Showers and Clean Laundry - Life's Simple Pleasures

Wednesday June 13th
East of Kenmare Ireland
21 miles...hilly, quite hilly, miles
mix of weather, but no rain to speak of...just a sprinkle, but that hardly counts



Today we cycled through Killarney National Park for about 20 km. Slow and steady were Blaze and me. It gives Fuat lots of time to sit and look at the countryside. Have I told you bike like a Slinky Dog? He cycles ahead and waits for me until I catch up...all day long, stopping several times an hour. What a patient man! He could do many more miles in a day if he were cycling alone. Blaze and I are the slow pokes.

I didn't know Ireland had this kind of wilderness mountains and lakes. It's unbelievably beautiful! After passing through a delightful town of Kenmare (south of Killarney) we cycled into some serious mountains, the Shehy Mountains northeast of Bantry.



We've opted to start heading east to Cork and should be there this weekend (heads up Heike:)) How long it takes is weather and hills dependent. We love where we're camped tonight up in the rocky, treeless mountains with the sheep baaing in the distance. And those no-see-ums stayed away long enough for us to cook up another fantastic meal. Patient and he can cook! I'm a lucky woman to be traveling with this guy:) Tonight it was barley with chickpeas, Kalamata olives, oil, vinegar, and tomato paste. I could have eaten more of that, but I had to share. I haven't mentioned the cheeses and breads we've been picking up along the way for lunches. Even their mature cheddar tastes wonderful...and then there's camembert and today St.? cheese - the sharpest cheese either of us have ever eaten! It needs crackers, not bread.

In town, the most important thing for me was getting a shower and laundry done. Neither are easy on this trip because laundromats are rare and we're not staying in campgrounds (not that there are very many around). I was hoping a hostel would let us shower and do laundry for a fee, but the one in town said no. We couldn't find out from anyone if the campgrounds had shower and laundry facilities, but we did find out there was a self-service laundromat so we went there to at least do the wash. And since they had a sink, I'm not too proud to wash my hair. I can bathe the rest of me in a pot of water (and I did just that the other night), but washing the hair is more challenging, for one thing we don't carry that much water with us extra for such frivolties.

The other thing I've learned while cycling here that I didn't know before was about burning turf after it's been cut from a bog and dried out. It's a common source of fuel for the fireplaces.

Goodnight,

BagLady



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Killarney National Park

Tuesday, June 12th
Killarney National Park
15 miles
heavy rains early

Last night we camped in an unmaintained field. Fuat tried to find a farmer to ask, but gave up. We spent a wonderful evening with the sun strolling the meadows and checking out the birds. Fuat thought he saw a new bird, a long-tailed tit, but he just told me it wasn't in his book. (That info is for any bird watchers reading...Laura:)) So we tucked in around 9 and were to sleep at 10. In the morning I told Fuat that I had a dream that the farmer woke us up last night asking for money to camp there. And that you offered him 5 euros and he wanted 15=20...then you offered 10 and he begrudgingly took it and wished us a goodnight. I told you that I thought it wasn't even the farmer that owned the land, just somebody who wanted to get some money off of us. Fuat said it wasn't a dream! That's a first for me and I've done this a fair bit. Oh well. You come across folks like that every now and again. I still don't think he owned the land, but we weren't about to pack up and we sure didn't want a tussle.

Today was a day of sightseeing. We rode into Killarney in a heavy downpour. We needed to find fuel for our camp stoves so headed to the outlet mall downtown (we were told they had outdoor stores there). It was a great place to get in out of the rain, get some wifi, and wait for the stores to open. But they didn't have what we needed. After finding our fuel at another store, we strolled the streets a bit, got some soup and bread, looked at the most beautiful Aran Island woolens, got groceries and got info on the Killarney National Park. It's right on the edge of town with delightful bike trails throught the area nearby. There's a castle from the 1400's that we toured. This castle was restored and furnished. So old, so unbelievable that people could live under those cold, harsh conditions (and they were living the good life). Would love to have gotten some pics but no photography allowed. Do they mean me???



It was a day of 3 seasons, but Fuat said he didn't think we had any summer today:) Jacket on, jacket off, fleece on, fleece off, pants rolled up,pants rolled down, buff on my head, hood up, hood down, buff off. Cold then hot, then cold again....as the sun went in and out of the clouds. It was raining so hard this morning while we were running our errands that we decided to get a room in a hostel. We could use the shower and laundry and it's just not fun biking in heavy rain. But as we finished up at the bike shop, the sky lightened up and the rain stopped. No sense in getting a room now, so we didn't.

At the castle I had my rain jacket and my fleece, my 2 iphones and my battery pack for charging all in my pockets. A lot to keep track of even for me...oh and my Buff. I lost my Buff on the tour but the tour guide went back for it for me.

We got back to our bikes and I went to hook my Iphone up to the solar charger (yes, some sun!), but couldn't find it. Did I leave it back on the bench in the exhibit? I run back, look on the bench and it's not there. A bit of panic. Let's ask at the desk. DId you find a phone? Yes, and he's looking at it. He tells me he looked at the pictures to find out who owned the phone and found pics of the inside of the castle...oops! Caught! I'll delete them. I was just glad to get my phone back.

So with the guy last night asking for money to camp in a vacant field and getting caught taking pics today, this bad karma has got to go.

So where are we tonight? Camped illegally in the Killarney National Park. Well, in our defense, we're camped behind the johns at the Denis Cottage Tea House which is closed...at least tonight it is. And the johns are locked darn it! OMG but the no-see-ums are out in full force and it was hell getting the tent up and getting in...and they managed to join us and continue to nibble away as I type.

This park is beautiful...what fabulous views of the mountains on the other side of the lake. Reminds both of us of the Adirondacks. We also toured Muckross House which was built in around 1840's. Loved seeing how they lived back then. These tours taking you right into the rooms and the guides provide a ton of information on the period, the lifestyle, the furniture, etc. I really enjoy the experience and the fees for the tours are very reasonable and affordable. It was 3 euros ($4) for the castle and 5.5 euros ($7) for the house. There's no charge to enter the park...in fact no entrance to it at all.

And we toured an old Franciscan Abbey,...that was cool too!



Okay, I'm pooped so I'm signing off now to go scratch my new sun bumps and no-see-um bites!

BagLady

P. S. dinner was another delicious meal by Fuat...this time quinoa salad. As I cooked the quinoa, he chopped cucumber, green peppers, tomatoes, and radishes. We mixed it all together and pour our olive oil and vinegar and garlic dressing over it. YUM! I record our meals so that I can remember them the next time I go off alone:) Also, so you can drool!!!


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Tis Ireland After All!

Monday June 10th
just north of Kilarney
about 35 miles
damp start to the day, but a gloriously sunny finish!

A friend suggested I take a photo of a map upon which I'd drawn the route we were traveling. I didn't know how it would work, but tonight I drafted it up. In order to see any detail I took a picture of just the western side of Ireland and the last few days of travel. Let me know what you think.



Our route west out of Dublin, then north to Trim Castle (off the map).


Continuing to bike westward across the country.


The last couple days getting to the ferry and Inis Oirr of the Aran Islands...then south to Cliffs of Moher.


Above is the last couple of days of cycling southward towards Kilarney.

Feedback, please...about the maps.

At lunch we were in a health food cafe and I asked the waitress if she knew what the weather was going to be for the next couple of days. She shook her head and said "Most likely raining, tis Ireland after all. The sun doesn't shine here much!" Then looking out the window, she added, "It's gonna rain this afternoon." Cracked me up!

I'm getting much better at using this darn map app. As long as I can figure out where we are, I can map a back country route to where we want to go, but I couldn't do it without a large map too! Tonight I figured out how to use it to actually map out a route and it will read it back to me turn by turn. But it behaves funny, flipping around if I try to do the Walking Mode. I can use it now for estimating distances though and that should be helpful.

We're winding our way down to the Kilarney National Park. There's quite a lot to see down around there, but that means Tour Buses too...or as they're called here, Coaches. But so many folks have said we must see West Cork (the county, not the city, we found out) so were working our way down there.

Because we're going so slowly we've decided to look at taking a train or a bus from Cork to Waterford so we can get the ferry over to England sooner.

For a bit today we biked on a main road. It was no fun. We got to the next town faster, but didn't enjoy the process as much. Later as we were winding our way southward, I told Fuat we needed to go straight at a particular intersection. When we got there, he didn't want to because "Did you see that hill?" So we looked at the map on my phone and I routed us around so that we'd end up on the same road further south...it was the most direct route towards Kilarney. Don't ya know, the alternate route had not one hill...nope, it had THREE! I said that's the last time we go around a hill. We did more hills AND more miles! Met a farmer on the alternate route that was cracking up at fact of us trying to avoid hills. He said it would have been better had we just gone straight...hehehe! He the richest, twangiest Irish accent I've heard yet. Everyone's seems to be different. Some people are easy to understand and some I can't make out a word. Fuat was chatting with this farmer while waiting for me and he said he understood not a word. Might have been speaking Irish.

I wanted to try and learn some Irish. When we were at Pat and Mary's we talked with them about it. I told them I couldn't even sound it out because there seemed to be no correlation between the letters and the sounds. Pat agreed. He had a dictionary at the house and it didn't have any pronunciation clues. On Inis Oirr, all the signs are in Irish only. Mary (who's American) types the notices into Google Translator to find out what they're saying. So I"m gonna leave Ireland without having learned any of the language, sadly so.

Tonight we're camped in an abandoned field. So delightful with the late lingering sun. And dinner was chickpea curry over rice. It surely is delightful traveling with a man who can and likes to cook! I'm a good chopper and dish washer. I do help with ideas too, especially lunches...and treats:)

And that's all she wrote!

BagLady

P.S. update on the blisters...problem continues...they never go away and when the sun returns they flourish and itch...and the skin gets tender...got them on my face now too. It's gonna be a long summer at this rate. Does anyone know if turmeric could be causing this? I've stopped the ibuprofen but am continuing a daily dose of turmeric for the thumb arthritis.


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The Hills are Killing Me!

Sunday June 10th
Athea, Ireland
37 miles.
Overcast then sun then sprinkles

I'm gonna be short and sweet tonight (oh, I already am!) because my phone battery is low and we may need the maps on it tomorrow. I'm getting better at finding us on the maps, so they are a bit of help but we still wander.

Today was easy for the first 20 miles down to the ferry at Killimer to cross the Shannon river, but the next 16 hilly miles were steep and my legs are just tuckered out. Lots of granny stops on even short hills because of the grade.

Tonight we're camped beside the Hall, a town rec center right at the 3 corners. Everybody can see us, but the yard looked pleasant and there were trees for our tarp. Got to always put up the tarp in case of rain.

I have a major squeak on Blaze and I can't for the life of me figure out what's causing it. I listen to music or an audiobook to drown it out. It doesn't happen going/: up hill or if I push her and am not on it...or when she's unloaded. It's got me buffood (is that a word?)!

Met three darling Irish children tonight when I took Blaze out for a spin.



Jamie, Molly, and Calum all got a chance to ride on her. I gave them my biker card and told them I'd put them on my blog tonight. Aren't they adorable? If you kids read this, please send me a comment in the section below. I'd love to hear from you!

Walked in to town tonight to get water and a small amount of sugar for my coffee. (I often just grab some packets every day.) The little shop that was opened filled all 6 of our watre bottles, gave me a small jar of sugar and we managed to buy only a can of tuna. Didn't need anything else. She was so gracious! I just love the people here! Smiling, happy, and kind to us.

The world is good.

Changed our plans a bit today and decided to head towards Cork. Heike, if you're reading this, we figure it will take us about 3 days to get there. I'll try and send you an email from town tomorrow. That's rough estimates. We've been told to see West Cork, but we can't find any info on it, like where it is exactly:) That may alter our arrival time by a day or two.

Off to sleep to sound of pitter patter on the tent. If it's raining, it must be Ireland:))

BagLady

P.S. the sun blisters returned big time this afternoon. And itch! If anyone knows anything about this please share. It's on the tops of my thighs and my hands around the thumbs where they face the sun. At least tonight they're not burning.


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Up and Down and Up Again

Friday and Saturday, June 7 & 8th
Inis Oirr then Kilfarboy, Ireland (just south of the Cliffs of Moher)

Fri windy, Sat sunny and gorgeous

We spent the day on Inis Oirr (Inisheer) going to the Arts Center to see the exhibit of native clothing...lots of wool, jackets, shawls, pants and skirts. They wore the same clothes every day with little or no washing. Sounds like hikers and touring bikers:) Makes total sense to me!

I also saw a flyer on the wall for a play that had come through last month title "Bag Lady" by Frank McGuinness...now they're writing plays about me! "You see them in the city. You see them in the town. Old ladies in crumpled clothes. Carrying their lives around. All with a story. This is her story..." It's done it's circuit. Wish I could see it.



It's a small island with these narrow roads leading down the stone wall-lined lanes going this way and that. So we went this way and that, checking out the cows and horses, stone buildings and fishing supplies.




All the shops were closed because with the ferries not running, no tourists were about. So we went back to the campground ladies room where I gear was stored and fixed up some lunch. I'm kind used to eating in bathrooms now. They're warm and dry. What more do ya need?

Then we met up with Pat as he was walking back from the store (he doesn't have a car) and shared with him what we'd heard down on the pier that the ferries wouldn't be running again until the morning. They had already invited us to stay another night if that turned out to be the case, so we walked back to his cottage with him. Pat's a musician and plays in the local pubs during the summer. Quite funny and talented. Google "Pat Quinn is playing 2" on YouTube to hear his funny song about Angelina Jolie. He writes all his own stuff. We've got his CD, too.

Fuat is interested in the local boats called currachs made of canvas and tar. Pat sent him next door to the local boatmaker to check them out. Found out the local lads were going to be training for a boat race down on the lake later that evening...so of course, down we went.



Pat's quite the cook and fed us both nights, bless his soul! Thurs it was spaghetti and garlic bread and last night roast chicken with potatoes, peas, and carrots. Thank you Pat for such delicious meals!!

Mary spends most her days tending her 2 grandchildren while her daughter works the cafe. Along with that she's starting a quilting business, trying to make some money from a hobby she loves. I'm sure she'll succeed!

So off to the boat training at the lake, then to the pub to hear Pat play. Ran into Shelbi and Cory...Shelbi's an intern from WIsonsin working at the daughter's cafe. We got to know her a bit the rainy afternoon we spent there. Such fun in a small town 'cause you keep running into the same folks. Cory we met at the Arts Center, also an intern.

Today started with an early rise to make the ferry by a little after 8. Even though the water was fairly calm at first it managed to get quite choppy near the far shore and didn't I find myself hanging my head over the side while the boat docked and the bikes were unloaded. Fuat tried to find me a barf bag, but either they didn't understand or there were none to be had. I was green. A sailor I'm not!

So down the coast we headed to the Cliffs of Moher. Man, these hills are steep. My little legs were getting quite a work out. Easier to bike across the Rockies then down the coast of Ireland...go figure! The Cliffs of Moher are too much of touris attraction. Tour buses everywhere. I like the architecture of the visitors center. It was built into the hill so that it had minimal visual impact on the site. Quite innovative! But I've seen cliffs before and needed to get away from the people. Fuat agreed, so off we pedaled.

Tonight we're camped just outside an old cemetary, there are even graves inside the ruins of the church...they're packed cheek to jowl in there.

And tonight's dinner was tossed salad and snow peas over rice in a soy sauce rue. Ya, we eat good! Fuat's a good cook and we like the same kind of food so that works well. We're good traveling mates. It's easy between us.



Ok, enough for tonight.

Goodnight one and all,

BagLady

P.s. Update on the sun rash. From my research it appears to be a drug interaction with the ibuprofen, so I stopped taking it. Got more blisters today: thighs, chest, and hands. They itch slightly but are quite tender. I tried to see if sunscreen today would help and I think it reduced the amount of blisters. Still a bit of a problem since being out of the sun nor wearing long pants are going to work. Suffer on and hope they don't mar my skin too much.

Stranded!

Thursday June 7th
Inisheer, Ireland
Blustery rain and cold

Yup, we're stranded on the Aran Islands! A storm came in today and the ferries were halted. Seas are too rough. Gale force winds forced us to pull down the tent. The tarp ripped. We huddled in the laundry room washing our clothes when Pat, the keeper of the campground stopped by. He offered to take us in from the storm. Trail magic strikes again! Turns out his wife is from Wisconsin. Her daughter also lives here and is married to an island man. The daughter met her future husband while traveling with her grandparents when she was in college. They were only in Inisheer for the day but an exchange of addresses took place. Several years later, the daughter brings Mom to Ireland and the come out to Inisheer. The daughter had been in contact with the young man over the years, but mon didn't know it. They stay here about a week and mom meets Pat who was living at the young man's place. The daughter goes home, packs her things, and moves to the island. She and her husband own a cafe here Mom eventually moves here too. Got that?

So when the laundry's done we decide to brave the storm and go your the island on foot. Reminded me of cold, rainy days on the AT: feels good as long as you're moving. Was really a delightful walk through the fields of walls and small pastures. The cows were even huddling against the walls to block the wind. We eventually ended up back in the village: no main street, just a scattering of houses. The first place with an open sign was for us. I needed hot chocolate and soup and to get warmed up. I was soaked through! And don't ya know, it turned out to be the cafe the daughter and husband owned!

"Victims of inertia: bodies at rest tend to stay at rest". That was us today after our hike out amongst all the stone walls in the cold wind and rain. We found a delightful cafe and had lunch, then spent the afternoon. It was here or in the laundry room at the campground...so we chose here.

Pat picked us up there later and brought us to his place and to a delicious spaghetti dinner, warm fire, hot tea, and enriching conversation. Talk about serendipity!! Couldn't have made a better visit to the Aran Islands, that's for sure!



www.teachantae.com to see where we had lunch.

So now eyawa... Goodnight. Don't ask about the spelling, that's phonetic.

BagLady



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"Not a Day to Do the Washing" or Skylights and Sun Poisoning...Take your Pick

Wednesday June 6
Inishmeer Island of the Aran Islands

19 miles

Rain early then glorious SUN!

Waking up to rain is a bit daunting. I just want to stay in bed...well, I just want to stay in bed every morning, but especially on a raining morning. ANd this morning was a rainy morning...and I had a hard time going to sleep last night (he said it was decaf!) so I was shorted a few of the usual 10+ hours I've been sleeping. But after listening to a bit of the audiobook Wild, I dragged my tush out of bed to join Fuat under the tarp for our morning coffee. I thought it would be good if we did a load of laundry seeing as how it was raining anyhow and biking wouldn't be as much fun.

So off I went to find out where the laundromat was in town, it being a larger town on the map than most we'd cycled through. I spotted the Postman at the gas station. He oughta know if there's a laundromat in town or not, don't ya think? Yup, right across the street, but I don't think he opens until 10. That works. So we pack up and pedal over at about 10 and it's open...but it's not a laundromat, it's a launderette...he does the washing. He didn't think we'd find a laundromat until we got to a city. Oh well, off we pedaled. A few more stinky days won't matter much.

And the town we were departing from, Ballyvaughn, was right on the Bay of Galway, we just hadn't gotten to the water the night before. What a beautiful ride we had down the rolling coast, past the sweetest stone cottages ya ever did see, and oh, the views. Up and down, and up, and down. Oh my aching legs.



And the sun came out, and the day was delightful. One thing I've noticed is that most of the houses have skylights, even older ones have had them put in. Good thinking, these Irish:) One house had 6 panels next to each other in 2 rows of 3. Now that's a well lit room!

Our plan for the day was to get to Doolin so we could go out to the Aran Islands tomorrow. If we had a plan. We got into Doolin about 3 and the woman at the visitors center said we could catch a ferry out tonight and camp on Inisheer (the smallest and nearest island) and return tomorrow night. When I kidded with her about what a beautiful day it was and how I thought I should have done the wash so it could have dried in the sun, she shared what a friend had told her..."Too nice a day to do the wash!" I hear ya, sista!!! Then I told her how I thought the Irish dried there clothes in the rain...that gave her a chuckle.

So we paid her 25 euros each for the ferry roundtrip and hustled down to the dock. Come to find out we'd been ripped off in town by at least 10 euros too much. Lesson learned. Oh well.

It was a bit scary for me seeing them lift Blaze off the dock onto the small ferry. I know how tippy she can be and I had visions of her landing in the drink. But they managed her and then I had to leap across the crevasse between the dock and the boat because they didn't want to put down the gangplank for just the 2 of us.

So here we are in the quaintest of villages. We're at the "campground" and we're the only ones here. 10 euros for the night and free showers! And they have a washer and dryer so tomorrow, when it's suppose to be raining (surprise, surprise), we're gonna get some wash done.

We took a quick ride around the east end of the island. Oh, I've never seen so many stone walls...and so high. The actually wall in very small corrals, they're too small to call them pastures. We met a local woman (born on Inishmore - the largest island, but has lived here for 30 years... summers... winters in Dublin. She told me she walks 5 miles around the island every day. She has to walk on EVERY road to do that! Asked her what we should see here and she said "the sunken church". So we checked it out on the way home. Of course the first problem was finding a lane that led there. We could see it, but the lanes ended at someone's house. This church is on a high plot of land in the middle of a cemetery and can't be seen until your at it's door. It's really built in a hole in the middle of the cemetery. I think it was to hide it from attach. It's from the 10th century.

Ok, it's after 10 pm, and still light out and you can here the children playing at the park. I can't get used to all this daylight, but I love it!

Another day in wonderland,

BagLady

Oh, ya, about the sun poisoning. I've got these painful bumps all over my chest and tops of my thighs that were exposed to the sun today. I've got a good tan so I didn't put anything on them but tonight the skin feels lumpy and raw to the touch. Ouch. It's not burned. It's more like hives that hurt. They'll heal. My body's strong.

And now, goodnight!!


And, for anyone who cares, I was able to charge up all my devices today with all that sun. Now we'll just see if the batteries that said they were fully charged have any juice when I need them.


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