Livin' the life,
BagLady
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Rain, Rain, Go Away!
August 18, 2014
Lough Gamhna, Ireland
DELETED PHOTO
Camped by a lake tonight
Camped on the Shannon River the last 2 nights...2 different spots.
Camped by a lake the night before that, just out of Sligo
Camped overlooking the Atlantic Ocean from a roadside park the night before that.
Have had a lot of water views this past week. And always seem to luck out with really great wild camping spots. But can't say we've been as lucky with the weather. Very cold (50's) and raining on and off all day long, every day. We never know if it's just a passing sprinkle or going to be a soaker so each time the rain starts, we have to stop and put away our solar panels (for charging smartphones) and get rain coats on. If we don't keep our gear dry, we won't get it dry. One day we literally put on and took of four coats about 8 times an hour. Exhausting! And when those storm clouds come, the temps drop 10-15* and it gets darn chilly. I'm pretty tired of this Irish weather. You can have it! It's been one cold August, that's all I can say! And it's too rainy and cold to do laundry, so after 2 weeks of not washing and there not being laundromats in Ireland, we checked into a campground so we could wash them. Not sure $40 for the two of us to do laundry (since there was nothing else we needed there) was really worth it:/. The laundry cost alone was $13 for one load washed and dried by us. And he made us share a tent or it would have cost us $10 more! See why we don't stay in campgrounds? We just get water at pubs or grocery stores during the day and have everything we need to stay anywhere we find.
We did happen upon an Irish music festival in Sligo last Friday. It's a week long event with competitions, venues, and buskers (street performers). Tens of thousands usually attend they say. It was quite busy there. We decided to stay just shy of Sligo the night before and cycle in to spend the day there, then cycle out. With those crowds, there wouldn't be camping options. The music and dancing we're fun to watch and hear. I loved the children playing in small groups on the streets. I even got pulled in to dancing with one guy doing an Irish jig. "You looked like you knew what you were doing!"said Mark, a cycle touring guy from Texas we met at the campground and spotted again at the festival. "I faked it!" I replied!!
DELETED PHOTO
But an afternoon was enough of those crowds and we were ready to cycle out. 5 miles out of town we found a delightful picnic spot on a lake and bedded down for the night. How lucky was that?
We're dragging our heels a bit as we're heading west to east across Ireland just north of Dublin. We have more time than miles and if it was warmer and sunnier, we'd probably stay a day at one of these lake sights. But instead we dally. Sleep in. Leisurely coffee. Stop often. Stop early for the night. It's a pleasure going this pace:)
April's having a time with her feet blistering and she's suffering every day. We think it started because of all the rain and wet but even all bandaged up she's still hurting. I've had some strange hot spots in places that make no contact with any part of my sandals. Very weird but not as painful as what poor April is dealing with and can't seem to stop. She's only got less than a week left with me and I think her feet are happy about that.
Tonight I had to mend my only pants. They are favorites that I've worn on every tour. Can't find replacements that dry as quickly and fit over my bike shoes. I take these on and off multiple times a day. So when the seat seams and pockets started ripping, I decided they needed mending.
DELETED PHOTO
Well, my hands are frozen being out from under the sleeping bag, so it's time to bid goodnight.
Livin' the life,
BagLady
Lough Gamhna, Ireland
DELETED PHOTO
Camped by a lake tonight
Camped on the Shannon River the last 2 nights...2 different spots.
Camped by a lake the night before that, just out of Sligo
Camped overlooking the Atlantic Ocean from a roadside park the night before that.
Have had a lot of water views this past week. And always seem to luck out with really great wild camping spots. But can't say we've been as lucky with the weather. Very cold (50's) and raining on and off all day long, every day. We never know if it's just a passing sprinkle or going to be a soaker so each time the rain starts, we have to stop and put away our solar panels (for charging smartphones) and get rain coats on. If we don't keep our gear dry, we won't get it dry. One day we literally put on and took of four coats about 8 times an hour. Exhausting! And when those storm clouds come, the temps drop 10-15* and it gets darn chilly. I'm pretty tired of this Irish weather. You can have it! It's been one cold August, that's all I can say! And it's too rainy and cold to do laundry, so after 2 weeks of not washing and there not being laundromats in Ireland, we checked into a campground so we could wash them. Not sure $40 for the two of us to do laundry (since there was nothing else we needed there) was really worth it:/. The laundry cost alone was $13 for one load washed and dried by us. And he made us share a tent or it would have cost us $10 more! See why we don't stay in campgrounds? We just get water at pubs or grocery stores during the day and have everything we need to stay anywhere we find.
We did happen upon an Irish music festival in Sligo last Friday. It's a week long event with competitions, venues, and buskers (street performers). Tens of thousands usually attend they say. It was quite busy there. We decided to stay just shy of Sligo the night before and cycle in to spend the day there, then cycle out. With those crowds, there wouldn't be camping options. The music and dancing we're fun to watch and hear. I loved the children playing in small groups on the streets. I even got pulled in to dancing with one guy doing an Irish jig. "You looked like you knew what you were doing!"said Mark, a cycle touring guy from Texas we met at the campground and spotted again at the festival. "I faked it!" I replied!!
DELETED PHOTO
But an afternoon was enough of those crowds and we were ready to cycle out. 5 miles out of town we found a delightful picnic spot on a lake and bedded down for the night. How lucky was that?
We're dragging our heels a bit as we're heading west to east across Ireland just north of Dublin. We have more time than miles and if it was warmer and sunnier, we'd probably stay a day at one of these lake sights. But instead we dally. Sleep in. Leisurely coffee. Stop often. Stop early for the night. It's a pleasure going this pace:)
April's having a time with her feet blistering and she's suffering every day. We think it started because of all the rain and wet but even all bandaged up she's still hurting. I've had some strange hot spots in places that make no contact with any part of my sandals. Very weird but not as painful as what poor April is dealing with and can't seem to stop. She's only got less than a week left with me and I think her feet are happy about that.
Tonight I had to mend my only pants. They are favorites that I've worn on every tour. Can't find replacements that dry as quickly and fit over my bike shoes. I take these on and off multiple times a day. So when the seat seams and pockets started ripping, I decided they needed mending.
DELETED PHOTO
Well, my hands are frozen being out from under the sleeping bag, so it's time to bid goodnight.
Livin' the life,
BagLady
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