Sketches from the France and Ireland Adventure

 

France & Ireland Adventure - Approximate Route Maps & the Gear

 Theses are the approximate route maps for our trip using Google Maps.  We generally tried to use the smaller roads that may not appear on Google Maps.   For more information contact me directly. 

France Segment, 1,251 km:

Ireland Segment, 924 km:

And the gear from the trip!

Over the years I have learned to just put up with the load! I was probably carrying around 50 Pounds of gear, including the water and daily foods and additionally the bicycle weight was also 38 pounds.

We did not carry any camping equipment. We stayed in small hotels, a few fancy ones, and B&Bs. We eat breakfasts at our lodging (usually included in the price), lunch was a picnic on the road. We either carried food from the night before or bought stuff on the road for lunch, dinner was at restaurants in town. My lunch was usually a sandwich bought on the road or one I made with cheese & smoked salmon, and a banana, and an apple for snacks.

By the way I carried maps (generally at 1 to 100,000, or maximum 200,000). In France these were the Michelin Maps (best maps ever).  For Ireland, I found Irish Survey maps which were the most detailed and had all of the small roads identified, but they did not have names or road designations on them that existed on the actual small road.  So may be the next generation of the survey maps will include the small road designations and names to make life easier.

The electronic systems (Garmin & Phone GPS) sometimes got confused and send us in wrong places or identified roads that were not actually roads!   We also relied on local people which appeared out of nowhere when we were lost (or sent the wrong way by the electronic devices) and looking to find which way to go.  People of Ireland are amazingly friendly and helpful and will always help if they can in anyway. 

 

France & Ireland Adventure - Final Trip Statistics

 Here are our final trip stats for our recent France and Ireland adventure.  You can see all of the trip information in the previous blogs, from the oldest to the newest below.  

Thank you for coming along with us.  

Sligo to Dublin, Days 68-74, End of an adventure

 Today marks the end of an amazing bicycle adventure, when after we rode 56 km, and a  total trip of 2,140 km, we rode into Dublin, dropped off our gear at the hotel and quickly took the two bicycles to the closest bicycle shop "Penny Farthing Bicycles" to have them boxed for the airline return trip to Seattle on Thursday.  

We started five days ago in Sligo on the NW coast of Ireland and headed SE.  Our first stop was in Carrick-on-Shannon, a 54 km hilly ride with EG of 1,460 ft.  It was a semi sunny day, hilly, with views of farms, lakes and creeks.  After arriving at our hotel I was outside watching the bicycles while Anne as usual went to check us in and work her charm for a nice room.  

While waiting, a bar attendant from the hotel bar saw me and came out and started a conversation about our trip. Then she asked if we knew about the  canal path to Dublin. Since we hadn't, she told me about the Royal Canal that runs all the way to Dublin! 

At dinner that night we heard from our waiter that his mad bicyclist girlfriend had ridden from Dublin all the way back on the Canal Path.  We we went back to our room, Anne got on Booking and cancelled our planned stay and booked us new rooms along the Canal.  

The next day we left Carrick at 10:00 am and followed N4 which had a shoulder for 18 km. Then small roads for another 40 km for a total of 59 km EG of 1,400 ft, to Rathowen.  It was a sunny day and the elevation stayed above 400 ft going  to 700 ft then down and up again.  

From Rathowen we rode south for 12 km and connected with the Royal Canal and rode on the path for the rest of the day.  We rode 31km and EG was 427 ft.  At about 20 km we stopped at Lock 26 and met Wesley, the shop owner and had drinks and Ice cream with our lunch.  It was a warm sunny day and the path flat.  We arrived in Mullingar for the night.  

We left Mullingar at 9:45 and on a bright, warm, and sunny day and rode on the Canal Path all day.  We stopped at one point and had a long conversation about our trip and bicycle touring in general with Andrea and her daughter Aoife along the Canal.  We rode 38 km and EG of 290 ft. We arrived at Moyvalley Resort Hotel and Glof Course at 2 pm.  

That night at dinner we met a very nice e couple Paul and Caroline whom had bicycled from outside Dublin to the resort for the night.   

We left the resort at 9:30 am and rode along the Canal for 28 km.  Then the path turned into a footpath . We then got on highway R148 for a while, then run into Gareth who told us he will show us the safest way into Dublin.  Another 28 km along the bicycle paths and streets brought us to Dublin and the end of this amazing adventure.  

Traveling the back roads.

Our hotel in Carrick-on-Shannon.

 no

I'm telling the dad about our trip after he asked, and his son

 is covering his face and shaking his head in disbelief!

Typical road side lunch picnic.

Ridding on N (National) road. 

My typical road side lunch, bread, cheese, and smoked salmon. 

Royal Canal Path

At Lock 26

Our hotel in Mullingar.

The daily activity of getting the panniers back on the bicycle.

Andrea and Alice on path.  

On the path to Dublin. 

The last stop for our bicycles to get packed.

Celebrating the end.