Our trip to Dunquin Cottage
on the Dingle Peninsula,
Ireland, April 11-21, 2007
Page Three
Dunmore Head / An Droichead Beag
Sunday, April 15.
Another late morning…but isn’t that what vacations are all about? The Blasket Island ferry had been recommended by many people but we were worried it wasn’t running yet; or, was only running on the weekend, so I called and was pleased to discover it WAS running, every day that weather permitted. I made a reservation for the 3-hour eco-tour on Monday. (If you’re planning to visit, the Ferry doesn’t start until some time in April. We were lucky – most years, we’ve heard, it starts later.)
We had oatmeal with honey and cream for breakfast and set out to explore. We started out by walking down to the marker where the Spanish Armada ships sank and taking that path along the coast, looking for a way down to the beach. We never found one, but we DID see some gorgeous scenery. And, we discovered that the ground is very spongy!
Where 2 ships from the Spanish Armada sank:
We passed the dock for the Blasket Island ferry and noticed that the house across the street had a “For Rent” sign on it so I wrote down the number, 011-353-66-9156218, intending to call them because it looked like the perfect place for a family vacation.
We had seen these little ‘things’ at the top of several of the mountains and KC really wanted to investigate so we headed for Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Europe. We walked from the cottage all the way to the top and discovered that the ‘thing’ appeared to be a lookout post with windows on three sides and a small fireplace. A short distance away was an ancient-looking stone marker.
Dunmore Head on the map:
The road to Dunmore Head:
Dunmore Head:
The wall KC had to hoist Barb over to get to the path (on far left):
MOVIE: waves crashing against cliff (a new window will open).
View from the top:
Lookout post:
Stone marker:
While we were walking, the weather had started to change and clouds were moving in. By the time we got to the top, the clouds were hovering just above the hill and it was starting to rain. We were worried that the mist would obscure the way down so we made our way back. My feet were starting to hurt, too, even though my Wellies were the most comfortable boots I had with me. We were starving when we got back and tore into some bread and cheese while we cooked dinner. I roasted some potatoes and then KC sliced them up and sautéed them with some onions and spices. I fried up some sausages, and scrambled a few eggs. The meal was delicious, eaten in front of a peat fire, but neither of us was looking forward to doing the dishes….
After dinner, KC heard some commotion at the barn up the road and noticed that the farmer was herding his cows in and out of the barn. They eventually made their way down the road and passed the cottage! One was obviously a mother with a HUGE udder – I don’t know how she could walk….
Cows on the road:
MOVIE: cows in road (a new window will open).
Earlier in the day, I had called the local pubs to determine which had music and when it started. Krueger’s Pub, the closest one, was closed for renovations. An Droichead Beag (The Small Bridge) in Dingle, had music every night and recommended Thursday as the ‘best’ day that week. That night, Sunday, there would be a bodhran (pronounced bohrran – a drum) player, which I was VERY interested in. O’Flaherty’s didn’t have music on Sunday.
KC REALLY didn’t want to drive into Dingle but I REALLY wanted to hear the bodhran so I offered to do the dishes if he’d indulge me. After promising that I wouldn’t be dragging him to a pub EVERY night he agreed. We left at 8pm to insure we’d have a good seat. Sure enough, when we got there, the place was almost empty and we got the table right in front. As it got closer to 9:30 the room filled up and a local woman asked if she could sit at our table. Her name was Clare Horgan and, it turns out, she had a beautiful voice and was invited to sing with the musicians. I was preoccupied with the music but KC chatted with Clare and her companion and we bought her CD.
The music finally started at around 9:45 (we were warned it rarely started on time). Michael Herlihy on accordion, John Brown on guitar, and Eric Marini on bodhran. They were joined by a father-son duo on another accordion and a squeeze box respectively. The music was lively and John had a nice voice but the amplification favored the other instruments and I could barely hear the bodhran even though I was right in front of it!
There was also this hippy-type person who horned in on the band, playing things like shells and spoons. Although the array of tones he produced by rubbing two shells together was amazing, and KC thought it added a zydeco flair to the music, I found it to be very inauthentic and bothersome. Clare told us later that he was a local.
Left to right at An Droichead Beag: Eric, Michael, John:
MOVIE: music in An Droichead Beag (a new window will open).
Clare Horgan:
LINK: Clare’s website (a new window will open).
LINK: write-up on An Droichead Beag (a new window will open).
When the music stopped, Michael came over and gave us his card. He owned the music store up the street and asked us to stop by. Clare introduced us to a man she described as the local champion oarsman (I wish we’d gotten his name) who crewed the black-bottomed "naomhóg", or canoe, used by the Blasket Islanders. We pumped him for info on the islands and he recommended camping on them! Maybe next year. He confirmed that the lookout post on Dunmore Head was WWII era and that they had been built on several mountains along the coast. The ancient-looking stones were a pre-Christian boundary marker.
The musicians left and invited us to join them at a wine bar up the street but we were tired and begged off.
When we got home, KC noticed that there was a hole in the clouds through which we could see the sky, brilliant with stars. He suggested we take a walk and grabbed the flashlight. There were NO lights, of course, and no moon either, so it was pitch black and I couldn’t see my feet in front of me! We had to use the flashlight to see where the road went and I didn’t see any point in continuing so we went back.
Even though KC admitted that he’d had a good time once the music started, as promised, I did the dishes when we got home. All in all, it was a wonderful day.
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Last Revised: May 2, 2007
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