Letterfrack

Belmullet to to Letterfrack

After a good breakfast, we found a mobile phone shop in the town as my phone which was still to recharge. David spent two hours there with the owner, Mohammed, who came to the conclusion that my motherboard had ceased to function and he transferred all my information onto David‘s phone and sold David a new phone. So we did not leave the hotel till 11:30

.We then drove to Achill island which was very picturesque and beautiful. Also horrifically windy when one got out of the car, but the scenery was well worth it. Then we continued southwards and stopped at the site where five ships of the Spanish armada had been wrecked due to gales. Once again the scenery was incredible. Then we went through Westport and finally got to Letterfrack.

We stayed at the Rosleague Manor Hotel.were we had a very pleasant room there which looked out over the water. Unfortunately the Internet did not stretch to the room. So David had to go downstairs for an hour or so to finish transferring data from one phone to another whilst I had a siesta. We then went for a walk down to the waters edge. There were some overgrown gardens And we got our feet somewhat wet. After this, we had a lager in the bar. Finally, at 8 o’clock we went in to a crowded noisy dining room, but the food was exceptionally good and we had a pleasant evening. Back in the room we enjoyed a hot bath in their original bath tub. And I did some washing as we were going to stay here for three nights so plenty of time to dry.

Staying at Rosleague Manor hotel.

We were disappointed at breakfast, as the coffee machine had broken and the coffee they offered was not palatable. But the surroundings were very civilised and David enjoyed his scrambled egg and smoked salmon and I tried devilled kidneys with a poached egg. The scones were not up to scratch though,

We set off, for a long day of adventure, with the weather, alternating between rain and sunny periods. We first stopped at Killary Harbour before heading off to Lehane where we thought of having a coffee, but David walked out due to another customer wanting to go ahead of us..

We then headed for Cong where we parked in a car park at the far end and walked around . After this, we drove to Ashford Lodge via the back gate. We had stayed at the Lodge many years ago, but since then it has been hugely enlarged, however the broken sofa that we remembered is still there. From there we drove past Ashford Castle and on through the grounds to Cong Priory . I did not remember this and we had a very pleasant walk over rivers into the woods.

Then we drove to Clifden and walked around and had a coffee and a delicious chocolate and raspberry tart between us. We then went to Cleggan where there were fishing boats and a sub aqua boat.

Our final stop was at the car park at Coney Island but David was still having trouble with his hamstrings. It would have been possible to drive across at low tide, but we just walked to the wet part; quite a long walk and then back again. Coney Island is the largest and the most famous of the three islands off the northern coast of the Coolera peninsula. The island lies in Sligo Bay between Rosses Point and Ben Bulben in the north, and Strandhill and Knocknarea to the south. The island which is 1½ miles long by ¾ mile across is accessible by boat from the pier at Rosses Point, but the most popular route is by way of Cummeen Strand when the tide is out. This strand is exposed at low tide and is marked by 14 stone pillars for a distance of 5km leading to the island.

We went down to dinner again and enjoyed their two course menu - three courses have proved too large an intake of food.. We had trouble with the receptionist who thought we had not booked dinner and David took exception to this. The meal itself was good; David, having a starter and the roast rack of lamb. I had the roast rack of lamb, followed by the cheese.

Letterfrack

After a kipper for breakfast, we had a chat with the receptionist who was a local and told her about our problems of the previous night. Also the unhappiness at the lack of a coffee machine and the stale bread at breakfast.

We then went out and headed for Renvyle , which had a lovely beach: this was the place that David‘s parents went to for holidays about 1960. From here we headed to Roundstone where we had a walk down to the harbour and saw the restaurant where we had lunch many years ago.

We continued along the coast, stopping at several points. We had a picnic lunch beside a church at Lettermore, overlooking gorgeous water and then continued to Coral Strand Beach down a very, very narrow road but it was well worth the journey and delightful spot. There was also a lovely garden that someone had created amongst the boulders there.

Next stop was at Oughterard on Lough Carrib, where we had stayed before around 1975 and had been bought a drink by a Catholic priest from England. We went into a little delicatessen there and had a very agreeable almond croissant and coffee on a pavement table outside.

We returned home via Kylemore Abbey, which we had visited twice before. Here we saw the new monastery being built for the nuns: it was meant to be completed in December 2020, but seems a long way short of completion. Once back at the hotel we discovered a bottle of sparkling wine in our room, which is obviously been given to us due to our problems of the previous night. .We enjoyed dinner, but it was once again quite noisy.

There were fires in the lounges tonight, which had not been lit the night before, and afterwards we sat in the lounge which had a turf fire.

There are various drives in Connemara, but we just did our own thing and covered it all

Rosleague Manor Hotel, Letterfrack Rosleague Manor

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Achill Island

Achill Island is the largest of Ireland's islands, lies off County Mayo, and is reached via a short bridge. A bridge was first completed here in 1887. The island is marked by rugged mountains and peat bogs, the island is known for its tall sea cliffs and clean beaches. Its breezy shoreline makes it a popular spot for water sports. The strand (beach) at Keem Bay inspired visiting writers Heinrich Böll and Graham Greene. Keel, the island's main village, has a sandy surf beach. The land is not very fertile, and is some 87% peat bog

It is believed that at the end of the Neolithic Period (around 4000 BC), Achill had a population of 500–1,000 people. The island would have been mostly forest until the Neolithic people began crop cultivation. Settlement increased during the Iron Age, and the dispersal of small promontory forts around the coast indicate the warlike nature of the times. Megalithic tombs and forts can be seen at Slievemore, along the Atlantic Drive and on Achillbeg.

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