Carrauntoohil

Some shots from bombproof monkey-camera. Full of joy climbing, hill walking, mountaineering – you name it, great weather no matter what was announced in stupid forecasts day before. At own pace, enjoying the views and stuffing SD cards with pics and videos, but first of all – gaining unbelievable satisfaction. Ascend via Devil’s Ladder, descend through Zigzag. Gorgeous day finished with mouthwatering rib-eye steak grilled next to lake in Black Valley and all of that was major but just a part of Beezee Bee’s birthday. Lovya!

Entrance to Hags Valley

This is Him, Carrauntoohil

approaching to Devil’s Ladder

Exhausting but beauty ascend

Happy Birthday Beezee!

His Majesty, still above us

top od Ladder

ZigZag

Peak

False track

up to Cnoc na Toinne

Devil’s Ladder overview

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Cycling on Croagh Patrick

Actually there was pushing bike up the mountain, 2/3 track done, then it’s crap – loose big stones and uphill become really steep, enough that I gave up, perhaps if I’d go not alone, the peak could be reached but..  I know, I know, all the excuses 😛

Anyway, great people encouraging on the way up, all positive comments, people are just great. And because it’s pilgrimage destination it seems I’m a big sinner suffering a lot on the way up. At the end I discovered nice place to stay, cheap and well organised with proper space – Connemara Hostel with friendly staff.

Cycling on Croagh Patrick

Target seen from distance, Westport

Different way of campervaning

Campbell’s Pub

St Patrick with chopped off wrist

Shattered land

1001 isles

going up

approaching to shelter

rocky writing

stop

view

ascending

steepest part of Patrick

happiness

and now just driving through the Connemara

Into the darkness

Kippure by night with Kris

Morning cycling along Barrow River

To start my day with energy I rode a little loop enjoying Barrow Way. Lots of birds, some game and this feeling “I should be paddling now, awwwww” 😉

Before breakfast and shower

chilly morning

be seen – be safe

take just randomly first turn – here’s the reward

under helmet’s visor view

foggy

A! Habemus Papam! Actually it looks like modern church architecture

St Patrick’s Day remains

downcast on Barrow

Barow Way leeds through nice locks

Ballyellin Lower Lock – some of names comes from parish or barony

request

a night in roofless house right at the riverside with sky full of stars and fire in fireplace….? one day…

old school

Three-Boobs-Way

I’d like to invite one of these baby lamb for a dinner 😉

Evening cycling loop near Stab City

Plans were to reach longer distance but, as always, SMILES NOT THE MILES rule brought me to different routes. I met rusty fox in abandoned quarry, fat guys enjoying dinner in pub, local MILF with her “byyyye” that can cause a troubles 😉 and most missed thing from this trip is drying line full with sport team shirts – too dark for my mobile.

Oh, and choosing your stay you never know who’s behind the phone during booking but it’s great to have surprise like I had with old cars collector – just cause I said one word too much 🙂

beautiful crossroads with dance platform run in previous century by Guerin’s Family

especially for Plane-maniacs dept. of my secret Cycling and Titsing Family 😉

live on river island, seems to be cool

washing old aerocraft

as local said – former hotel and children’s hospital, now private, imagine what’s inside!

…it wasn’t abandoned! pretty scarry

a stylish car with soul

catching moments of joy on the road

Morning short loop on the bike

Land of dozen lakes and friendly people, no matter what stereotype you met. Trails that requires wider tires than the road-one and when it comes to go down – you really missing  these fat 2.5″ bitches…

Moment in the forest to calm yourself interrupted by carillon from 15km away church, that plays the same melody that you knew as a kid, from mum’s whistling…   priceless goosebumps

Evening among local hunters that prepared game dinner so I had about 8 different meats and none was farmed, and I tried the bird that I never heard of – a Woodcock. I felt there like I imagine Canada must be like…

road cycling spiced with the views

so you’re sayin’ your tires to ride down the hill are lying under your bed… such a pity! 😛

hello ladies!

if you consider to come to Ireland for cycling or motorcycling – here’s shot from that day

rurbex – that’s what in Polish we call “Wiśniówka na torcie” 😉

Late sunday urbex

rUrbex in the jungle 😉

On mill water wheels you’ll see descriptions: P.Murphy Wexford 1877 and T.Jessop Davis engineer (unclear) Enniscorthy. This is an old mill in woods at Owenavoragh river.

little cycling

little walking

and – voila!

Murphy

driver had worse place in this crash scenario

Jessop

couldn’t resist 😛

driver wouldn’t say it was – as the tyre name says – GOOD YEAR :p

i was easiliy standing UNDER this axle

spare axle

Black Cobra? – hellyeah!

Sunday afternoon cycling

Today I chose to cycle in direction that doesn’t appear as an interesting area. Bored with all these guys in lycra overalls, looking like an acrobats from Russian circus, i decided to cycle in a bit different gear 😉

Forgoten tower on Ballynastragh House property (frequently misspelled), some woods, monk’s grave and little talk with nice 77’yo guy – new saying “East wind doesn’t goes around you, it goes through you”.

How many km? Enough to get back home. How many calories? Enough to burn the burger I had this noon 🙂

bollocks from beach at Cé na Cille Móire

nice burger

trailer contains snow and sleds necessary for Santa

comments 😉

Old tower

dogs may be destroyed… WTF? dogs are not a luggage, cars, goods or things, it’s a creature, form of life, so , as far as I know and speak English, they can’t be destroyed

here I saw fight of pheasants

Coill an Iarainn woods

to spot red cat, to hear the ravens, to feel sun shining – priceless

a bit offroad

Ireland loves numbers – every car, bridge has own reg, even road signs or electric poles – here you are

Russian Fashion 😉

coxcomb on his bike

one of million pics of Irish roads for my cycling friends

River Bann

that view makes house a home

lamb 😉

baby beef 😉

hard to find

grave of John Francis Sweetman

they made thic picture black and white

when offroad riders nature meets road tyres 😉

Saturday cycling

From Martin’s stats: 5 hours, 63 km. Now, we had gale warnings, yellow weather alert so cycling close to sea was pretty hard today.

beat the hangover

weird ruins, old man who lives there said it was already like this when he was a kid

entrance to meadow, any questions? 🙂

smart stairs – popular way in Ireland to separate crossing people from animals

cycle way in County Wexford

it’s not a $ sign even it looks like, that’s combined letters I H S

some nice rurbex (rural urbex)

first rule – take only pictures.

windy

target achieved – Kilmore Quay

most houses in town kept thatched

ruins of church, actually we passed about 6 more but battery was nearly dying

comfortable traveling with bike – on train

Lazy Daisy

How to extend your day off? – get up earlier to enjoy gap in rain 7-10 AM 🙂 Today I got on my bike first time after 4 months gap caused by sore of Achilles tendon. Pain in ass, literally, my bottom forgot taste of the saddle. I cycled lazy almost taking more pictures than km. WARNING: contains outnumbered selfies!
I came back home wet but happy as always 🙂

shoes neoprene protectors gave me great comfort at cycling in rain at low temperatures

playing with camera

hooooah!

crossing Bann River

that is southern Wicklow Gap – settled between Croghan Mountain (called also Kinsella) on right and Annagh Hill (not Anal Hill) on left

imagine winter here: – son, just grab a shovel and make way to the gate 🙂

Oh, even if there’s no sign CUL DE SAC it may happens that road ends up among plowed fields

cabrio excavator

some folk instalation

…what happens in Santa Ponsa, stays in Santa Ponsa…

modern architecture hidden in rural space

next second brought decision to be made: hold camera or hold the steering bar, 2nd options choosen, camera survived luckily swinging on strap

in that particular moment if you’d ask me how do I feel i could use the F-word

crest of water

warming up