Karen at Fifty Four

This would have been the last day of riding, but I choose to sit this one out as well. Too hilly, and far, and windy. Plus, I didn't want to sit in the van for hours on the drive back to Dublin in my cycling clothes. I'm very glad I didn't ride. It looked brutal. Instead, I had a lovely walk and was able to have my last Guiness in the northern most pub in Ireland (got the T-shirt to prove it!). A Bee B&B. Found this on my morning walk while we were waiting for those cycling to head out. Cold and windy.  Marker for the Germans not to bomb during WWII (Ireland was neutral during the war and the Germans were trying to bomb Northern Ireland, since they were part of Great Britian). This one was numbered 80, which was the last. The entire coast of Ireland was marked and numbered (1-80), excluding the coastline that was part of Northern Ireland.  Wild Atlantic Way sign. Really cool that they had this entire 1600-mile route marked this way. We didn't see too many other cycl...

 This was day 9 of riding and I decided to sit it out. The route looked quite hilly and I was afraid Ciaren would have more ideas of us all staying together again. To be honest, I think I was biked out. It was a good day to be in the van because we had beautiful scenery and got to visit a national park. It was a castle and gardens. Absolutely amazing. I wish we had more time to spend there.                                                                    Cold and windy. Had to break out my winter coat! Glenveagh National Park:

Hmmm.... didn't take too many pictures today. I don't actually remember the ride, but I do remember the B&B we stayed at. It was one of the best on the trip (but that may have been because I had a room to myself).  Wait, I do remember the ride. Ciaran decided it would be good for us to stay together as a whole group on this ride. They promised they would go slow so there was no need to worry about the pace. Right! I'm sure they were going much slower, but I was going much faster than I felt comfortable with. I had to absolutely race down the hills to keep up. It was not enjoyable at all. When we finally got to our destination, I was exhausted and thrilled to hear I had a room of my own. Dinner that night was on our own so I walked down to the beach then over to the pub.  Low tide, so I had to walk forever to get to the water's edge. Hardly any birds out there. Not impressed at all. Again, I'm a beach snob :) B&B for the night. Very nice, but the little town ...

Seventh riding day; another favorite stretch through the country. I actually left before the others because I wanted to take my time and enjoy the scenery. I figured they would pass me by eventually and I wouldn't feel like I had to chase them the entire time. And it worked, though they caught me sooner than I expected. It was so beautiful that they were stopping more as well, so it felt a little more leisurely. The wildflowers were amazing, and I loved all the stone walls. They were lining every road and field.  Such friendly cows. Whereas the sheep completely ignored us, or slowly walked away when we approached, as soon I stopped to take a picture, all of these cows stood up and came to the fence. They must receive regular treats from the neighbors. The FL group, minus Vinny. They caught up with me before this point, but we were leap frogging the entire time. My bike on the trip. I loved it!! 

This will be Day 6 on the riding calendar. This was the day we got lost trying to get out of town and during all that confusion, Vinny fell and that was the end of her trying to cycle on this trip.  The morning prior to setting off, we all wanted to get t-shirts from a cute little shop, Wild Atlantic Wear so we agreed to set our departure time for 10-ish (which probably turned into 11-ish). Ah, back out in the rolling hills. Saw more cows mixed in with the endless fields of sheep. Our pickup point for the day. I took a picture of this cute little butcher shop (everything was "cute little" in my mind; they called it "wee'). I wish we had specialty shops in Orlando, not just the mega size grocery store where you can walk in, wander around for an hour, and walk out without ever even speaking to one person.  Our stopping point this night was near a beach, but I was not impressed. This stretch for some reason had lots of flies. I think I must be spoiled when it comes to b...