Thursday, April 10th - The Burren and the Cliffs of Mohr

 

Day 2: Day Trip to Cliffs of Moher from Galway

Although only about 10 miles long, the R480 road is the ideal road to travel for any of you looking to get a good snapshot of the Burren. Linking Ballyvaughan in the north and heading south towards Leamaneh Castle, this road is littered with historical sites covering the major periods of Irish history.

For this post I have linked eight sites, excluding the Ailwee Caves, but including the Poulnabrone Dolmen and the Caherconnell Stone Fort. I have outlined them via the Google Maps links detailed below: They are, thankfully now well signposted, but If you click on the relevant link this will illustrate the street view, making it easier to locate the lesser known sites. If you wish to do some further research on these particular sites, the internet contains many websites with additional material.

This is the main Google Map with an overview of the road ----- https://goo.gl/d2Uglk

(1) Ballyallaban Fairy Fort ----- https://goo.gl/grUlVb

(2) Cahermore Stone Fort ------ https://goo.gl/sldjVt

(3) Gleninsheen Wedge Tomb ----- https://goo.gl/H3y3eH

(4) Poulnabrone Dolmen ------ https://goo.gl/PlLsAK

(5) Caherconnell Stone Fort ---- https://goo.gl/PSom4N

(6) Poulawack Cairn (off the R480 Road) ----- https://goo.gl/LUp0Z5

(7) Carran Church ---- https://goo.gl/WcIe5j

(8) Leamaneh Castle ----- https://goo.gl/d0kH6q

 

On our second day, we set out to see one of the top sights in Ireland, the Cliffs of Moher. If you have a car it is easy enough to drive to. We might combine our trip with a trip to see the Burren. It’s well worth a visit though, it’s an otherworldly landscape.

Dunguaire Castle

The first stop of the day is at Dunguaire Castle. Just for a quick look around, this castle was built in the 16th century and looks like the classic-style of castle that children would draw or build-out of sand.

Dunguaire Castle in County Galway Ireland. This is a popular castle to visit when you are in Galway and is easy to visit on a day trip to the Cliffs of Moher.

Burren National Park

After Dunguaire Castle, we head towards Burren National Park. Burren National Park actually gets its name from the Irish word Boíreann, which means rocky place. And indeed when you arrive, you will see that it is very rocky indeed. It almost looks like the surface of the moon. This unique landscape is full of plants that can only be found in this area as well as sights like dolmen – megalithic tombs.

Driving on the R480 road, we will begin to see the large rock covered hills of the Burren. The first stop here is at the Ballyalban Ringfort. We will just need a quick stop here to see the large earthen mounds that were at one point, a defensive wall. If we have enough time in our schedule, the nearby Ailwee Cave is also an option for stopping.

Just after the ringfort is the Poulnabrone Dolmen, which is a huge draw to the Burren area. This large dolmen dates to the Neolithic period between  4200 BC and 2900 BC, which makes it even older than the Pyramids of Giza. Dolmens are burial sites and when Poulnabrone was excavated, they found 33 skeletons. Besides the dolmen, this area is also known for unique orchids.  Reportedly, it feels really interesting to walk around and experience.

The Poulnabrone Dolmen is a Neolithic tomb that is older than the Pyramids of Giza. This is one of the top sights to see when you visit Burren National Park in Ireland. It is easy to see as a day trip from the city of Galway on a tour to see the Cliffs of Moher.

After the Burren, we stop in the cute town of Doolin for lunch. After a bite to eat, we will head to the main sight of the day, the Cliffs of Moher.

Cliffs of Moher

The Cliffs of Moher, or the Cliffs of Insanity if you’re a Princess Bride fan, are one of the most popular day trips from Dublin or Galway. Given that, it’s often quite busy with other tourists. Crowds aside, it’s big enough we can get some space to yourself and lots of great views.

Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. The Cliffs of Moher are an easy day trip from Galway and one of the best day trips from Galway. You need a couple of hours to properly explore the cliffs and see the sights.
The Cliffs of Moher, Ireland

We should take at least 2 hours to explore the cliffs as well as the museum in the visitor centre. We should also be sure to climb up to O’Brien’s Tower where we can see as far as the Aran Islands and mountains in the distance. The cliffs are 214 m (702 feet) tall and from the top, it definitely feels like the Atlantic Ocean is far away. Because we'll be there in mid April, we may get to see some of the more than 7,000 puffins that breed on the cliffside.

O'Brien's Tower at the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. You get fantastic views from the top of tower so it is worth walking up to.

When done exploring the Cliffs of Moher, we should drive along the coast for great views of the Wild Atlantic Way before returning to Galway for the night.