Photo album - https://photos.app.goo.gl/BECUC6gKjwJMfDtWA
Started the day in Sligo, went into Fermanagh and ended the day in Derry.
Weather looked like it would be great all day!
One of the places I had on my original list was Knocknarea, the site of Queen Medb's burial cairn. However, I knew that I couldn't do everything on the list. While making plans before going to sleep the previous night, I decided to skip this spot. However, I spent some time chatting with BnB hostess before I left, and she convinced me to go. I am so glad that I did.
The route is marked with numerous markers telling the story of Medb and her role in the Táin Bó Cúailnge, which is my favorite story of all time! She's the one who lead the invasion of Ulster and was opposed by Cú Chulainn. Despite being the "bad guy" in the story, she's not really portrayed as a bad guy. The Irish continue to hold both Medb and Cú Chulainn in very high regard. Reading the story along the way was really cool.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%BA_Chulainn
The first mile or so is along the base of the mountain, but you've got to go up at some point. There's a very long set of stairs that climbs about 700 feet to the top. It was a good old-fashioned party train!
A "party train" is something I learned while a participant in Fort Wayne's Smallest Winner ... it's a lot of stair work. Great cardio! Those FWSW party trains made this party train possible. It's been ten years since I went through FWSW, and I continue to reap the benefits. It was a little extra special wearing my FWSW colors while summiting Knocknarea!
Next stop? Cuilcagh. They've got a "timber walk" that goes to the top of a mountain that's on the border of County Fermanagh and County Cavan. The views are supposed to be extraordinary.
The park is also a nature preserve, and they don't want folks trudging through the delicate terrain, so they built a boardwalk. From where I parked, I had to hike about two miles to get to the start of the boardwalk. There was about a mile of fairly gentle incline, and then over a mile with a much steeper climb. It would be the mother of all party trains!
I would came down the mountain much quicker than I went up! :)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuilcagh
While at the summit, I met a family of five (mom, dad, three girls). There were trying to get a selfie and I offered to take their pic. As I held mom's phone, I said, "abair cáis!" (Irish for "say cheese"). They said cheese! I realized later that I probably should have said "abraigí" (which is used when speaking to more than one person while "abair" is for one person) instead, but oh well ...
As I chatted with the parents, we talked a little about the Irish language. I really did very little with the Irish language while I was there. So much of my time was spent outdoors doing solo stuff that I had few folks to carry on a conversation. Most Irish folks speak English, so it was not necessary to conduct business. So ... months and months of lessons and hard work learning Irish really didn't lead to much Irish communication.
I did enjoy reading the signage as I traveled. That was fun and interesting.
And the views from atop Cuilcagh? Yes ... it was worth it.
Next stop? Enniskillen, a city on an island in Lough Erne. Very picturesque, but I didn't have much time to spend here.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enniskillen
I had to get to Derry, and was running a little late. The BnB hosts ask that you arrive before 6:00 pm, and I wound up being late. I did call ahead and they knew I was running late.
Incidentally, trying to figure out how to make international phone calls is an adventure, particularly in Ireland where some of the numbers are Republic of Ireland and others are United Kingdom.
I had some time to stroll around Derry, but I spent more time doing so the next day ... so I'll talk about that in the next blog entry.
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