recap of the weekend

Sorry this has to be short again, but we had a meeting on the west side of Dublin and we had some other business to which to attend when we got back, so it's late again and we're still getting caught up on our rest.

But I'll go ahead and start where I left off on the 19th...

So Saturday we left Galway and drove straight through to Donegal Town with a few stops and diversions to take pictures. As we drove out to the west part of County Donegal we were struck by the beauty of the landscape. It was unlike any we had yet encountered in Ireland. Rugged and wild - yet marginally tamed by farmers long ago who built an elaborate web of stone walls which divide the fields and keep the livestock close to home. This area is also Gaeltacht.

As we approached the area of Sliamh Liag there were impressive mountains, some with snowy peaks, becoming more numerous. When we found the turn-off to our scenic destination, we were greeted by a narrow winding road, which only got narrower and windier (is that a word?) as it steepened. Soon we found ourselves driving along the edge of a precipice and around sharp curves with a steep grassy slope on our right and a 1000 foot drop to the ocean on our left. There is no guard rail. Who needs it?

We finally reached the parking lot at the top and got out to explore. The icy wind was stiff and bracing, but we were so awed by the sights that we hardly noticed. It was the most spectacular thing we've seen yet. At 600 meters (about 1800 feet) these are the highest ocean cliffs in Europe.

But the highlight of the day was still to come...