Drizzly rain all day
Today dawned overcast and drizzling lightly – not exactly rain, but more than mist. We donned our rain suits and pack covers, and after another “full Irish”, made our way out of Annascaul, stopping to pick up a hunk of cheese, baguettes and some fruit for our lunch.
The walk once again started with an uphill climb on the road out of town (Jim pointed out that most towns are built in the valleys, so we should expect to start each day with an uphill climb…) and stayed mainly on paved roads or gravel paths.
By midmorning, we could see the ruins of Minard Castle in the distance, at the water’s edge. This rectangular tower house was built in the 1500s by the Knight of Kerry, and then partially destroyed by Oliver Cromwell in 1650.
We walked on in the wet, stopping to commune with sheep, cows, hens, ducks and the occasional well-behaved dog (they sit down in front of you and wait to be petted – no jumping or sniffing ). A lot of sheep-herding dogs here – Peter and Lauren’s dog Lennon would be very happy in Ireland!
We were on a paved road near Lispole at lunchtime, with no shelter in sight, so we got off the road and sat in a convenient driveway to eat our lunch. Jim boiled water for miso soup and coffee, and we quickly dispatched much of the bread and cheddar. Hot food never tasted so good, but we must have looked pitiful sitting there in the rain…
It cleared a little in the afternoon, and we contoured up another hill and walked through some farmer’s fields, making sure to close each gate behind us so the sheep didn’t wander off.
Walking toward town, we saw two lambs that had gotten through a space between a stone wall and a wire fence, and were standing in the road. I yelled and waved my arms, and they jumped right back to where they belonged.
By the time we neared Dingle, I was feeling my sore feet with every step, from having walked on pavement and gravel almost all day. I’m very much looking forward to a zero mile day in Dingle tomorrow!
The Archway B&B is right in the middle of town, run by Marion and her husband Justin. It boasts an electric kettle in each room, and a hairdryer! After a shower and a rest, we were ready to go in search of dinner. It was really raining now, and not much was open on a Sunday evening. We ended up ordering an “atomic” takeaway pizza and two cans of Guinness, and we were good for the night.
We watched a little TV – a history documentary about sacrifice and cannibalism among the ancient Druids, a sitcom called Father Ted, and a bit of Irish football and hurling. Hurling is an amazing combination of cricket, lacrosse, and ??? We couldn’t figure out the rules, but it was fun to watch!
The nice thing about Irish TV only having 3 channels is there is no reason to keep remoting around looking for new programs – either you like one of the three shows, or you read a book!
