The Wild Atlantic Way -Sligo & Mayo Part 2

From Achill Island we headed towards Westport. When looking at attractions along the route Colin had spotted an Oyster Farm tour where they take you out on a boat to harvest your own oysters then bring them back to prepare to eat yourself. The tour only ran at midday each day so we knew we wouldn’t be there in time. On our way we spotted the sign for Croagh Patrick Seafoods & Tours. We thought we’d see if we could have a look around even though we’d missed the tour. The tide was out which explains the tour timing. It was a lovely spot with bays on both sides, a small visitor centre and a small tastings lunch board. We managed to get a table and ordered a half portion of mussels and 6 oysters. I’ve always shied away from trying oysters, but they were absolutely delicious. The mussels were also the tastiest we’ve ever eaten as well. A very welcome and enjoyable find.

We carried on into Westport, an attractive historic town based on the shores of Clew Bay. A river runs through the centre of the town and there are busy shopping streets with pubs and eateries galore. We squeezed Lolly into a central car park with the plan to sleep there and get a nice dinner in town, but our unplanned seafood lunch had taken the edge off our appetite so we moved a couple of kilometres from the centre to Westport Quay which has a lovely parade of buildings by the waterfront. We also got free parking in a boat yard. We had a seafood box in a local pub in the evening sun.

Westport House is also here. We didn’t visit the House but walked to the entrance to the grounds which looked very nice.

The following morning we drove to Roonagh Quay to catch a ferry with the bikes to Clare Island. On the way there we passed by Croagh Patrick, known as Irelands Holy Mountain. At 764m high it can be seen quite a distance and is an important pilgrimage site. There is quite a tough hiking trail up to it.

Clare Island sits just 3 miles off the coast and the ferry takes just 15 minutes to reach it. The island is only 8km long by 5km wide so most people rent bikes or walk it. After fuelling up on coffee and a fresh cinnamon bun we set off on the bikes. It was a glorious warm sunny day. We cycled up to the Napoleonic Signal Tower but we couldn’t get near it on bikes. We returned to another road that took us past an old Abbey then on to the lighthouse. It was quite a steep rocky track to reach it. There were lovely views from the cliffs here. On the way back down we stopped for a late lunch at an organic cafe before heading back to the harbour. It had been a great day, although we agreed Arranmore Island had the edge.

It was early evening by the time we got back to Lolly so we headed a short way to Carrowniskey Beach and got a frontline park up on the beach. It is yet another stunning Irish beach. There were surfers out although the waves weren’t that big and Colin wanted to get cold and wet so joined them. I opted for a hot shower in Lolly after I ensured he’d made it out of the water safely without his glasses. The lifeguard was also keeping a keen eye on him.

It was another rare evening when we could sit out and not feel cold. The sunset was glorious too with Clare Island as the backdrop. We even had a pod of dolphins cruise past.

The forecast had promised another warm sunny day so we made the unusual decision to stay put for another day/night. We assumed being a Saturday everywhere would be packed today. We watched the morning surf school from the comfort of Lolly but when we stepped out for a walk realised it was actually quite breezy and much cooler than expected. Other visitors turned up with picnics and all they needed for a day’s fun in the beach but within half an hour we could see they had changed their mind and had moved on to find warmer activities. We got the Bromptons out to cycle 3 miles to a coffee van, walked up and down the beach and loaded photos on this blog. By the evening there were very few of us left in the parking area and there was sadly no dramatic sunset this evening .

The weather was brighter again the following morning. Colin had spotted an advert for beach yoga at the next beach down so we moved Lolly here. There was a largish group of ladies doing a fitness class but no sign of a yoga instructor. Eventually she turned up and said she didn’t think there’d be many others as they’d all had a summer yoga session followed by pizza and drinks the night before. So Colin ended up with one to one tuition. He enjoyed it and managed to block out the distraction of dog walkers coming past and dogs wanting to cock a leg on him. He had another quick dip in the sea before we set off for our next activity.

We didn’t get very far before diverting to what we thought would be a little place to get a coffee but turned out to be a bar restaurant doing delicious sounding plates. We were short on time but managed a couple of tasty vegetable plates.

We only just made it in time for our Lost Valley Tour. I’d only just realised we needed to book this that morning and we were lucky to get spots at short noticie. The Lost Valley is a privately owned piece of land made up of green fields, woodland, stunning beaches, a waterfall , stone ruins and a fjord view with mountain views as the backdrop. I can’t put into words how jaw dropping it is. Added to this was the captivating narrative the owner, Gerard Bourke, gave the group over the three hour amble through his property.

His family have farmed this land for 300 years and he reminisced how life was for him growing up in a poor rural area. He couldn’t wait to escape and worked in the Netherlands and UK for a number of years before agreeing to come back to help his aging father. Coming back he appreciated more how special the place was and with little to be made from sheep farming he saw the potential to develop it as a Natural Heritage Area and protect the flora and fauna existing there.

He weaved in how the Irish Famine in the 1840s to 1850s had decimated this area and indeed all of West Ireland, with dreadful decisions and policies being made by the government in London forcing starving people out of their homes, with many dying of starvation or disease and many having no option but to emigrate to Canada and the UK.

He gave an emotional opinion of how he believed the current situation in Gaza is playing out with so many factors aligning with the Irish famine - dreadful political decisions (or inactivity), people being forced from their homes and food supplies not being allowed to reach those in need.

He finished on a lighter note with his sheepdog Jip, who had accompanied us on the tour, doing a sheep dog demonstration.

It was such an educational and thought provoking tour - we’d thoroughly recommend it if you’re ever passing through this way.

The Lost Valley sits next to yet another stunning public beach called Silver Strand. The car park looked busy there so we returned to Cross Beach (where Colin had done yoga) for the night. We haven’t managed to escape the view of Clare Island yet - maybe we will the next day when we head into Co. Galway.