Day - 5 Dublin and the backroads North

Overview

For no obvious reason the updating of this page has been the last to tackled - I do apologise for those good fold (especially in Ireland) who have been curious to follow how we got on, with this most challenging leg!  As ever with us - we were trying to get the maximum out of a day - so as you can see from the plot we meandered everywhere - chaining together some of the very best tourist destinations in this region of Ireland!

Having stopped in Dublin overnight a the luxurious business hotel the Clarion Hotel, in Lucan just outside the city limits - courtesy of a bargain deal from Hotwire.   Our tour of Dublin, I confess, was perfunctory - having been born in a city- I now avoid them - like the plague!  We then headed N to Navan and made a couple of detours before picking up the Boyne Valley Trail.  The onto the motorway to eat up miles giving us a chance to complete the Carlingford Peninsula - and link into the Mournes Coastal trail, that would take us to our eventual destination, in Newcastle, Co Down.

Clarion Hotel

The previous day had been fairly relaxing - a late start - a gentle ride across the Irish Sea and a fine seafood meal overlooking the Dublin Bay - hard to better.

Our hotel had been a very pleasant revelation, considering it had been bought online.  OK a bit large and impersonal - the sort of place you might go for a seminar or major conference.  At the price we paid - considering teh preice we paid - it was outstanding.  It has long corridors and 100s of identical rooms; however, it was certainly of a high standard - almost immaculate.  The staff gave us a friendly welcome - though arriving by EV from UK didn't raise a eye-brow.  Maybe we are not pioneering and they see UK EVs on a regular basis!

The location suited us well - arriving from Bray to the S; visiting the city to the E; and eventually departing to the NW!

Sadly, on a mild Saturday morning, we were denied an early morning swim - we thought it strange as clearly many people fitness regime starts early.  The answer became clear when we saw the crowds ourside - it appears that the pool is leased out to the local swimming club.

However, our car was full charged in teh hotesl underground parking - the charge was free - but parking was an extra.

The charging service was one of the best of its type) that we have seen - well marked, close to the stairway and seemed to be engineered very nicely with a nice small-sized box - with only a go button and status lights.

In our view this is precisely how the service should be provided in hotels, shopping centres - modest charge rate, free of charge and no complex communications functionality.



Morning in Dublin

We only had a few hours to spare for a Dublin Tour and lots of interesting possibilities had to be eliminated.  However, we did have a hint (from the Irish EV Drivers Association) that we should visit the Glasnevin Cemetery - at least to take a photo for their photo competition - see all their entries here!
















Glasnevin is by far the largest cemetery I have ever visited - its a multi-faith resting place for Dublin's great, good and otherwise noteworthy.  I've copied the list from the above reference and I certainly recognise the names of some of the residents: Daniel O'Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins, Éamon de Valera, Arthur Griffith, Maude Gonne, Kevin Barry, Roger Casement, Constance Markievicz, Pádraig Ó Domhnaill, Seán MacBride, Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa, Frank Duff, Brendan Behan, Christy Brown and Luke Kelly of the Dubliners.

Believe it our not Glasnevin is one of Dublin’s most visited tourist attraction - with over 1 million people interred in this one cemetery - it certainly had attracted huge numbers - dead or alive!  I've got to say that graveyards have never been a place that my wife and I have had much experience in visiting.  Now that we are both beyond retirement age - the connotations of mortality are something we can go without. 

Having paid our respects to the graves near the entrance - we decided to 'take our leave'.

Downtown Dublin

So - on with the tour around the centre, with a drive along O'Connell Street and then past St Patrick's Cathedral.  Saturday morning traffic was very stop-go, so I have to confess that we were impateient to get to th highlight of our Dublin stopover - a visit to the Guinness Storehouse! 

Despite Dublin's huge place in history and the many intersting sights, museums, parks and zoo - I feel sure that 90% of all male vistors make a pilgrimage to what used to be known as the "St James Brewery".  For generation those who like a glas of porter knew to buy the bottled variety, which was to ally authenic having been made here - using water sourced from the Liffey River.  There was much scorn passed on the draft beers made under licensed and presumed to use local tap water!

Although our charge level was high, we could resist 'blagging' from a charge at the Guinness parking lot.   Unfortuantely ESB has not yet sold its services to Guinness - but at lease we were able to connect, through an office window.

All it needs is a 'bit of Blarney' and everthing is possible!


The visit to Guinness was fascinating - but nothing could possibly compare with the visit I made as a teenager many, many decades ago - when out to sight of parents I could sample the 'demon drink'!

It was a fairly rushed tour and there was a certin amount of guilt having a Guinness before lunch and before a long car journey.  However,
Like like every well travelled Irishman, there is nothing that quite compares with the authentic Liffey-Water 'porter'!

To Guinness lovers - everywhere: "Slainte'!

Saturday p.m

Whilst many EV drivers might prefer the predictability of the motorway network and its readily available EV charging services - it is not for us!  When time premits (and infrastructure tolerable) we will always take the by-ways.  So after a short stop at the Claron Hotel we started heading our NW towards Navan.   We found many intersting villages along the N3 - places with character and history. If only we had time to loiter.  The roads were very quite indeed and we reached Navan in quick time and easily found the Maxol Service Station with the ESB Rapid Charger tucked away in a corner - plug-swipe-and-go, we had our first public charge, in Ireland, up and running!

It was a novel experience to thread though the queues for the petrol pumps will - such a shame to pass those still willing to part with hard-earned wages for a few gallons of petroleum.  For us (Sep 14) the charge was free!

Rock Farm

We had an appointment p.m. to see the the Eco Resort being developed at Rock Farm, near Slane.

The postal address did not really define it with any accuracy - certainly fooled our GPS!  So we followed teh directions on thier web-site - with mixed success!






They advertise a wide selection of activities based around their site, high on a bill above the Boyne River - they describe their offering as "Glamping", so this is how they define it:

"Rock Farm Slane, an undulating wild meadow with a hidden grove of sculpted sycamore, aged and wizened oak, ash, chestnut and hawthorn which form sheltered natural enclosures around the yurts and shepherd’s huts and an open flat pasture below perched on a ledge of land overlooking the turrets of the infamous castle. From here you drop down to a secret bathing spot on the mighty but languid Boyne river. This is Ancient land. This is Ireland!"

The reception was housed in this beautifully crafted Eco-House - we are sure this was a 'labour of love' crafted with local straw and covered with a lime render.  A turf roof, solar panels and a recycling water supply!

A great example of a sustainable building and no doubt a treat to live in!

We checked out these guest lodges too - obviously designed and constructed for comfortable eco-living - neatly furnished in an 'arts-and-crafts' style!

We thought the location to be stunning and the range of activities suitably challenging; however the concept of an 'outside lavvy' would not be our choice for nocturnal visits!

Boyne Valley

Having come down the hill from
ndalk and onwards from the Rock Farm, we picked up the Boyne Valley Trail.  Few of will be aware that the Boyne Valley is a UNESCO Heritage site and even fewer will know why!

Its not the many ornamental gardens or historic houses - not is it so because of the defining moments in Anglo/Irish history, when King William of Orange defeated King James, at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

In fact it turns out that the land around teh Boyne has been signifcnt to ciilisation since man first stood on Irish soil.  The excellent Bru-na-Boinne heritage centre - here you can read about settlements in the 5th century.  The establishment of both churches and monasteries in eh 10th century!

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