The Cliffs of Moher

Our third day in Galway was much more pleasant. The weather agreed with us on Sunday - it wasn't sunny, but there was no rain and no fog. It was the best we could have asked for.

We took a very generic bus tour of the Cliffs of Moher. Generic or not, it had some great benefits: (1) it was a warm coach bus; (2) it was cheap; (3) it took us to a lot more than just the Cliffs. The most significant downside to the entire operation: the couple sitting behind seemed to be in the process of breaking up. Even this wasn't really a downside - we listened to (and chuckled at) a ridiculous fight and were amused by anonymous drama. Fantastic.

The bus first took us through the Burren Hills, a beautiful bit of geography on the west coast. The hills are covered in limestone and were once under the ocean, as evidenced by fossils found in the mountains. They are easily the least-green thing we've seen since our arrival. The hills are still entirely covered in rocks; the only green patches were those that were cleared by farmers. And those ingenious farmers, wouldn't you know it, made fantastic rock walls out of all those hunks of limestone they had to remove. Called dry rock walls, these walls are made entirely out of stacked rocks. No cement, no wire, no adhesive of any kind. They are incredibly even in height (uniformly about waist high), solidly stacked, and still made to this day.

From the Burren Hills to a stop for lunch to the Cliffs of Moher!!

The Cliffs are fantastic. If you have not seen them in person, you really need to, because these photos cannot begin to do them justice. The cliffs rise about 685 feet high and jut out into the Atlantic Ocean. It's a sheer drop; the cliffs are very straight and create what can't be any less than a 90 degree angle with the water. Moss covers parts of them, waves are constantly crashing at their feet, and starkly white seagulls circle their bases incessantly. The height of the cliffs cannot be captured on film (er, jpeg) nor can the grandeur of the view. We wandered the top of the cliffs for an hour and every time I turned around I seemed to be taking in a view that was even more beautiful than the one before.


I know that I'm witnessing something truly beautiful when it pains me to walk away from it, and I felt a tug in my belly when we had to leave the Cliffs. My ideal trip? Visiting something breathtakingly beautiful - be it city or scenery - and being able to sit. And stare. For hours. Sitting and staring for long enough that I could truly absorb what I'm looking at, long after I've taken all the photos and explored all of the terrain on foot. I could have stared at the Cliffs all day.

Alas, this wasn't an option as our bus left promptly 1 hour and 15 minutes after our arrival. Bummer!

From the Burren Hills to a stop for lunch to the Cliffs of Moher!! to . . . Pulnabrone Portal Tomb?

This was an unexpected stop for us on the bus tour. The tomb is in the Burren Hills and dates back to the Neolithic period. Excavations by University College Galway found the remains of 16 adults and 6 children. I'm endlessly fascinated by ancient objects which continue to stand and was pleasantly surprised by this stop on our bus tour. It made for a great short and sweet photo opp!

After the tomb we carried on through the hills to Aillwee Cave. The cave is in the hills and was once a home to hibernating ancient bears. It was discovered in 1940 by a farmer, Jack McGann, whose dog ran into the cave. He explored as much of the cave by himself as he could and then kept it a secret for thirty years. In the 1970s he spilled the beans to some archeologists visiting the area, and by 1976 the cave was open to the public.

I've visited caves before and knew what to expect here. Stalactites. Stalagmites. Columns formed by stalactites meeting stalagmites. A random waterfall, markings from the river that used to run through the cave, and interesting rock formations. And, of course, turning off all of the lights in the cave to experience true absence of light (that's always my favorite part). I felt the weight on my shoulders when they told me just how many tons of limestone were sitting on top of us, and I imagined all the mystery that lay in the cave beyond were explorers were able to reach. The visit was a great stop on the tour. We weren't able to hike through the Burren Hills (which I would have loved to do) but this provided a nice alternative. It was a great opportunity to see what was (quite literally) in the hills.

SO! From the Burren Hills to a stop for lunch to the Cliffs of Moher!! to Poulnabrone Portal Tomb to Aillwee Cave. It was a full, full day and the perfect tour. Our driver was great, the bus was warm (I mention this again because that was so, so important after our trip to the Aran Islands) and the sights were spectacular. En route to Galway City our driver pulled over so that we could photograph a castle which shall rename nameless (because I cannot for the life of me remember which particular castle this was). Within a short time, however, we were back in town and settled in another coach bus. This one took us back to Dublin. From one coast to another, in 3 hours flat. You can't beat that :)

Me, perfectly (and obliviously) blocking the castle with my umbrella - a photo I have posted only because I know how it will amuse all who know me. See the actual castle below: