We’re heading south from Galway into an area called the Burren. This is a very rocky, limestone invested piece of the land that has it’s own strange beauty. But…before we get there we have to stop for a photo op of Dunguaire Castle near Kinvarra.
The scenery along the coast is stunning as we head to our next stop, the Hazel Mountain Chocolate Shop.
We are given a brief overview of how chocolate is made and advised that this is the best chocolate in the world. Not being a chocolate connoisseur I have to take the tour guides word for it. A sample of the 70% though has me longing for a wee single malt to go with it….so early in the morning too???
Limestone, being a sedimentary rock, often has it’s share of fossils. There are so many limestone walls it’s hard not to explore some of the surface rocks to see if there are any fossils of note. This appears to be something but I’m not sure what it might be, although it does appear to be different from the rock itself. They’re yelling at me to get on board so I must forgo the discovery of the century.
As we are travelling along our guide points out “dolmens” scattered across the land. I managed to capture the one below out of the window.
A dolmen or “portal tomb” is a type of single chamber megalithic burial chamber, usually dating from the late neolithic period around 4000–3000 BCE. They are fairly common and it is known that there are over 35,000 of these in Europe alone and there are examples in other parts of the world. They remain a mystery though as it is not clear when, why or who erected them.
Our next stop is another historical site, Caherconnell, where we find a cashel, more commonly called a ringfort. It is not a fort as such but really an enclosed drystone wall farmstead. It is bigger than most ringforts and is dated from the 10th century AD. The size of it implies that it might have been the home of a “royal” family, that is someone who ruled in the area.
The remains of house foundations and a communal fire are clearly identified. Not far from the ringfort is another structure called a doline, a natural sinkhole, which is the site of an early bronze age timber frame house and a another stone structure that may have been a food storage area.
There were two options when visiting this site, one to explore the cashel and the other to learn how sheep dogs herd sheep. I opted for the former but some of my aussie pals opted for the latter.
Our next stop is the word famous “Cliffs of Moher”, clearly recognized from afar by the number of tourist buses parked in the parking lot.
A truly spectacular site but one that has it’s share of danger. A few days after our visit a 20 year old student fell to her death from the top of the cliffs. Such accidents are quite rare as the place is clearly marked and there are substantial walls away from the edge. Getting closer to the edge is not a necessity.
We’re going to spend two nights at the Benner Hotel in Dingle and tomorrow we’ll explore more interesting things in the area.
Stand down.