After breakfast, I bid goodbye to my hosts at the B&B and Pat picked me up to head out for the pasture. If anything, it started raining harder. The horses were soaked, and all of us were pretty miserable. I know that there was some question on whether it was safe for us to go out at all. They finally decided that we would ride, but on a slightly shortened trail and we’d end at our lunch break. All of us were a bit disappointed, but they promised that we would see all the important things, and that Pat would take us to see the Cliffs of Moher in the afternoon before dinner. That kind of made up for it a bit.
Of course, barely half an hour after we set out, the rain stopped and the sun came out. Unfortunately we still had to follow the shortened trail because we’d started out so late. Tacking up horses in the rain isn’t easy.
The Burren is an area of Ireland that is made up primarily of limestone and was formed during the Ice Age. From a distance, it looks very bleak and desolate, but as we began to move through it, I could appreciate the beauty of the place. Up close, it’s apparent that there is actually quite a lot of life in this region – plenty of plants and flowers growing amid the stones and a significant amount of wildlife. This is also an area rich in Irish history, specifically for the early Celts.
We followed an ancient trail known as the Green Road due to the fact that it was bordered by a lot of trees and bracken and road to the site of a wedge tomb. There we had to dismount and hike on foot to the tomb itself. It was a marvelously preserved remnant of the ancient times, but not a whole lot was known about who might have been buried there. I am assuming that it had to be someone of some significance or social standing but there was little real information on the signs. Promised myself that I would try to research it when I got home.
Nelly and Chelsea had a bit of a fight on the trail. We were watering the horses in some clean rain puddles and Nelly decided that if Chelsea wasn’t going to share, neither was she. When Chelsea got too close, Nelly spun around and kicked at her. Neither Chelsea or Denise got hurt, but it was a little unnerving. We have to make sure that there’s a bit of space between the two of them until they calm down. As Denise would say, “Mares…”
After a bit more riding, we came to the evening pasture and took care of the horses and settled them in. After grabbing a quick bite to eat, Pat did something absolutely beautiful for the group. We’d all be cut off with no television for the trip, so we really didn’t have any idea what was going on the in world around us. He reminded us all of the anniversary of the 9/11 attack in NY and Washington DC, and informed us that the Swedish Foreign Minster had been murdered in Sweden the night before. All of us were shocked at the news, and offered our sympathies to one of the members of our group, Marrianne, who was from Sweden. We had a moment of silence in memory of the victims, and all of us could only hope for some peace for the world in the future. I was in tears by the time he was finished.
Once we’d helped put the tack away, we all were transported to our new hotel, the King Thurmond Hotel in the town of Lisdoonvarna where we spent the last two nights. We were just all glad for a chance to get a good shower and to fix up our bags, which we all agreed were complete messes. Mine looks like a bomb hit it and I couldn’t find anything!
Of course, my luck with Irish hotel rooms is still holding. I’ve once again been given the “the-room-where-they-send-you-when-you’ve-been-bad-in-Ireland”, down in the lower level where my view was of a stairwell. Had to remember to keep that blind closed so I wouldn’t give the whole world a show while I’m getting dressed.
Spent an obscene amount of time in a really hot shower, then met the others for our field trip to the Cliffs of Moher. We drove down to the sea where we were treated to what had to be the most spectacular view in Ireland. I would have to place this on the same scale as Niagara Falls, they were that grand.
The cliffs towered over Galway Bay, and we could watch the waves breaking on the rocks below with remarkable power. The wind howled, and even high up on the cliffs, we would get the spray of the ocean in our faces. We could even see some of the many varieties of sea birds that make their nests right on the cliff walls, and there was a small tower castle that we could walk right up to. Denise and I wandered all over the area, taking tons of pictures and just had a wonderful time. This was worth an hour less of riding, and I was glad to have had a chance to see it. Just one more thing in this country to fall in love with.
Back at the hotel, we all met for dinner in the hotel dining room. Denise and I wanted to head into town to check out the local festivities. There was the annual Matchmaking Festival going on that week, with people coming from all over to get set up. We dolled ourselves up as best we could, then strolled into town to see what was happening. Being a Thursday night, it was pretty dead but we were told things would be hopping tomorrow. That night, though, it was mostly tourists and geriatrics.
Walked back to the hotel and enjoyed a cup of tea before turning in. Our last day of riding was facing us, and I was already a bit depressed to see it all end. We’d been having such a wonderful time and made a lot of friends with this group. I was really going to miss this.
