9 July 2024 Cliffs of Mohre

 

9 July 2024                 Cliffs of Moher

 Today is the last full day of our OAT Ireland tour.  After breakfast, we drove to what some might say was the highlight of the trip – The Cliffs of Moher.  Over 300 million years old, they have featured greatly in the local folklore since the Celtic Age.  Five miles long, they rise 702 feet from the Atlantic Ocean.  You might recognize them as the Cliffs of Insanity from The Princess Bride.  On a clear day you can see the Aran Islands from here.  On top of the left side of the cliffs stands ruins of the Moher Tower, a stone Napoleonic-era watchtower that was built in 1808.  It was built on the site of an earlier fortification called the “Mothar of Moher.”  Also located near the visitor center on the right edge of the cliffs is O’Brien’s Tower.  It was built in 1835 by Cornelius O’Brien who realized the potential the Cliffs of Moher had for tourism.  Today it is the high point from which are spectacular views of the area.  We arrived at the cliffs very early – in fact our bus was the first one there.  Although it was cloudy we still had great views of the cliffs.  Some of our people rented binoculars and walked to the top of the cliffs on the left side to see the nesting puffins.  As I have already seen puffins, I decided that the steep walk up to the viewing area was not in my knees best interest.  We took a golf cart up to the top of the right side of the  cliffs.  From the top we we could even make out the outline of the Aran Islands.  It was very windy on the top but the views were spectacular.  We then walked back down to the visitor’s center where they had a 3D video of the Cliffs from a sea gulls perspective – complete with a misty spray from the waves.  It was just a short video, but I could see how some people might become a little dizzy watching it.

 As with other places we visited in Ireland, there is a story associated with the Cliffs – the Witch of the Cliffs of Moher.  A sea witch named Mal of Malbay fell in love with the Irish hero Cuchalainn.  She chased him across Ireland but was never able to cast a spell on him.  When they reached the Cliffs of Moher, Cuchalainn was able to escape by hopping across sea stacks to an island, but poor Mal, as she tried to catch him, fell to her death on the rocks below the Cliffs.  That section of the Cliffs of Moher is now known as Hag’s Head.  Legend says that she took the form of the rock to warn other smitten lovers of the danger.  It is said that you can hear her protest at her fate in the crashing of the waves below the Cliffs of Moher.  We did not hear any crashing waves or the witch’s cries.

Cliffs of Moher

Cliffs of Moher

Cliffs of Moher

O'Brien's Tower

 From the Cliffs we drove to Caherconnell Fort, a well- preserved stone ring fort.  Ring forts are small circular fortified settlements that were built during the Bronze, Iron, and Middle Ages.  During excavations of the site, archaeologists found jewelry and glass from Vienna, amber from the Baltic, and pieces of the earliest pen found in the British Isles.  These discoveries have led the archaeologist to believe that this site had been inhabited up to the 16^th century by well educated and well cultured people.  With a local guide we explored the ruins of the fort and learned more about the history of this area.  Our guide explained the stone fence that surrounded the fort that has stood for over 3,000 years.  As with all the other stone fences, this was a dry stone wall, that is no motor was used to bind the rocks.   However, unlike most of the stone fences, this was constructed of layers of perpendicular stones.  The space between the vertical stones allows the wind to pass through the fence, thus making it stronger.  It certainly has stood the test of time.  There was very little to see inside the fort except for some stones that outlined a few rooms or buildings.  That is because there is an archeological law (do not know if it is an Irish law) that dictates that once an excavation has been completed and all the necessary artifacts have been collected, the area of the dig must be covered up again.  So, in reality, what we were walking would have been the top of the fort.

 

Stone Outline of Buildings within the Ring Fort

Fire Pit Inside the Ring Fort

Celtic Grave Inside the Ring Fort

Food Storage Pit Outside Ring Fort

Stone Fence Around the Ring Fort

We then made a short stop at another archaeological site – Poulnabrone Portal Tomb.  A Portal Tomb has two large stones that stand on either side of an entrance that is capped with a massive sloping stone.  Located in the Burren region on one of the region’s most desolate and highest points, it is the oldest dated megalithic monument in Ireland.  Archaeological excavations have revealed the remains of 33 people that date back to between 5,200 and 5,800 years ago.

 

Poulnabrone Portal Tomb

Poulnabrone Portal Tomb

Returning to Ennistymon, we had a little free time to pack before our Farewell Dinner.  The dinner was held in our hotel and after the dinner, Tom had arranged for a trio of musicians to come and play for us and explain their instruments.  There was an accordion player, a violinist and a harpist.  They basically play be ear as they had no written sheet music.  Most of what they played were jigs.  It was the perfect way to end our tour of Ireland.

 Where did the time go?  What a fabulous trip.  So, as we end this part of our journey, we say “Slainte,” which means cheers in Gaelic, to our fantastic Trip Leader and our fellow travelers for helping to make this such a memorable trip.  Tomorrow, we fly from Shannon to Denver with a stop in Chicago to change plans.

 This trip covered everything we wanted to see.  The highlights included Belfast and the Troubles, the Giant’s Causeway, the Aran Islands, and finally the Cliffs of Mohor.  Along the way we saw beautiful lush green fields where cows and sheep (and their babies) grazed, ancient stone fences, and lots of ruins of castles (too many to remember their names).  On the bus we listened to Irish music and enjoyed the many candy treats Tom provided.  And at night we feasted on Irish dishes like fish and chips, cottage pie, raw oysters, and Irish stew.  We also loved our little stops where we toasted our trip with Irish whiskey or Irish Country Crème (my favorite).   We were really lucky with the weather – temperatures in the 60s to 70s (down to the 50s on some nights) and mainly overcast days with some sun and a few 5-minute rain showers.  The only two minor downsides were that most hotels did not have air conditioning (but fans were provided) and it stayed light until almost 11 PM with the sun beginning to rise about 4 AM.  But those did not detract from the tour itself.  We highly recommend a trip to Ireland – the scenery is beautiful ,and the people are very friendly and welcoming.