We’re traveling through the Connemara, which is the region west of Galway. It’s full of coastal inlets, bogs, lakes, wildflowers, and hills, and has my favorite scenery in Ireland thus far. At one point yesterday we pulled off the road to take some photos, and an older Irish gentleman approached us from the sea carrying a bucket of mussels that he had gathered. He introduced himself as Mike, and told us a rambling story of his adventures in America, which included time in Milwaukee for reasons that were never made clear, before we finally had to flee due to clouds of midges. Our route then led us along a one-lane road through a bog where piles of peat were left out to dry (it is used like firewood). After that we somehow ended up retracing our steps; we passed a store that I was 90% sure we had stopped at earlier in the day, then experienced deja vu for the next 45 minutes as whatever map mistake I had made gave us a repeat viewing of the beautiful coastline.
Our lodging for the night is in the very fancy Ballynahinch Castle, which is located on several hundred acres of forest with trails throughout. The river in front of the manor is stained a coffee brown, apparently from all of the decayed plant matter that the water filters through, and is surprisingly scenic. Audrey continues to talk to sheep and pet any animals that come close (yesterday it was horses), and I continue to get up early each day to roam around in the rain. We’ve got another day here in the Connemara, so if the weather cooperates we’ll be off to drive the Sky Road and see the bogs of Connemara National Park before settling in for a beverage at the castle this evening.