Oars-as-oars

We biked for 10 days from Schärding to Vienna along the Donau (Danube), mostly in Austria. About 60 kilometers (36-40 miles) a day.

And now for something completely different

We decide to go on a walking tour of Northern Ireland, along the Ulster Way.

Part 1: The glens of Antrim and the north coast

1 June

2 June

Larne to Glenarm, along the hills and glens of Antrim

3 June

Ray had problems with his leg the previous night and we didn’t think that a long, hilly walk would be a good idea. Thanks to the people of Water’s Edge B&B we stayed in Glenarm and eventually got a taxi lift to Ballycastle, along with our backpacks.

4 June

We went from Ballycastle to Ballintoy via the rope bridge of Carrick-a-Rede. The stay at Sheep Island View was a joke. Fullerton Arms prevented us from dying of hunger or stupid excuses.

5 June

It’s a long walk from Ballintoy to Bushmills. We were glad that the tide was out along the coast, otherwise we would have had to swim.

In Bushmills we were allowed to eat in “Tartine,” shortly after the head waiter chased us away.

6 June

We walk from Bushmills to Portstewart. Nice beaches! The hostel in Portstewart is another joke. We don’t even come across the owner. But it’s “sleep cheap.”

7 June

We have the whole day to go by bus to Coleraine and then by train to Belfast. Then from Belfast by bus first to Newry, then to Rostrevor. It rains, but we have few problems with that. We wind up at B&B Oystercatcher, with James, the most eccentic of our hosts. Renske didn’t think he was eccentic, just recently divorced and fairly sloppy.

Part 2: The Mountains of Mourne

8 June

We walk from Rostrevor via Hen Mountain to Hilltown. As you can see, the sky has turned grey. We wind up at Clonmurr B&B, run by Ciara Fegan. Ray likes her because she understands his sense of humor and throws her own back at him.

9 June

It’s a nice long walk to Newcastle. This walk takes us over two peaks, maybe 500 meter high. For the rest it’s not too much up-and-down. Mountains in the mist!

10 June

It’s an easy walk from Newcastle to Dundrum, with the largest mountain, Slieve Donard, in view in the background. We go to Dundrum Castle with 60 (other) children. We stay at Carriage House B&B with Maureen and her cat Orca.

The stone walls in the whole country were interesting, especially those in Newcastle, which were topped by a double row of sharp stones.

11 June

We take a taxi from Dundrum to Ballykinler. And it’s a nice long walk to Ardglass. We stay at Burford Lodge B&B. On internet it sounded really chic, but it was simply a larger B&B with extra help.

12 June

A change of plans: No busses ride on Sunday, taxi’s have to come from Downpatrick and there’s a soft rain. We decide to walk from Ardglass directly to Downpatick instead of to Strangford (and taxi to Downpatrick). We stay at B&B Number Nine. We drink and eat at Denvir’s. The pub was really bustling!

13 June

We bus back to Belfast and have plenty of time for a bus tour of the city: a good way to get to know it. The Unionist and Republican communities are really interesting. We drink and eat at the Crown Bar and disappear the next day.

Celebrating a vacation in Simpelveld, Limburg.

We travel to Edinburgh for Burns Night

We didn’t have a camera on Burns Night. Pity, it was really nice, cultural and entertaining. Here are two links to films on Youtube, one of the storytellers we saw and one of the actor Donald Smith reciting and performing Tam o’Shanter by Robert Burns. Check it out!

All good things come to an end. As we arrived at the airport, it started to rain. After four days of good weather.

One week Schiermonnikoog.
A quiet week on an island. Only one afternoon of rain. For the rest, plenty of sun.

From 2 to 8 June we were in Lisboa, Portugal. A great city for walking. Definitely recommended! And a day-trip to Sintra, by train.