Connemara and County Mayo
Guided Walking Tour 2010 – Special Saturday 12th June 2010
This tour is based between two places: staying in the beautiful town of Westport and staying in the lovely village of Leenane situated at the head of Killary Fjord Harbour, Ireland's only fjord and surrounded by mountain and sea.
From these two places we will travel to and through Connemara, to Clare's Island and realize some of the most beautiful walkings this authentic and amazing area can offer.
Westport and Leenane are special places. Westport is the essence of Irelands magical west. Nestling under the shadow of Croagh Patrick, overlooking Clew Bay and its enchanting islands, the town weaves its spell around everyone it meets. It has the distinction of being one of the few planned towns in Ireland and its design and layout are credited to James Wyatt (1746 - 1813) an English architect who made his name with his Neo-classical design for the London Pantheon.
Leenane is a place of constrats. Situated at the head of Killary harbour, a 16km Fjord, it nestles under the Maamtrasna and Maamturk mountains on the Galway-Mayo border. The area has been inhabited since pre-history, evinced by ancient tombs and the potato ridges climbing the mountains.
Duration: 8 days (7 nights)
Tour Dates: Starting on Saturday 12th June 2010
Level: Moderate walking, with some hills
Group Size: Individuals (minimum of 2 and max of 12 in final group)
Equipment: This is a guided tour but correct rainproof gear and walking boots are essential to bring with you.
Accommodation: B&B
Meals: All Irish breakfasts, 2 dinners, 5 packed lunch
Transfers: All associated transfers to and from walks and the ferry ticket to Clare island.
Miscellaneous: Services of a walking Guide & Driver
Meeting Point: A representative will meet you at the bus station or train station in Westport.
Departure Point: You depart from Westport
PRICE 2010:
Price per adult €750.00 per person
Please note that this tour is also available in 4 or 3 Days break:
- 4 Day Break is the 4 first days of this tour and price is €425.00 per person sharing (Single Supplement €15.00 per night)
- 3 Day Break is the 3 last days of this tour and price is €299.00 per person sharing (Single Supplement €15.00 per night)
DAILY ITINERARY
DAY 1 - Saturday
Arrive Westport train station on the afternoon train due at 16.15 hours and transfer to your B&B.
Dinner tonight is in your B&B followed by a briefing of the coming weeks activities. For anyone who wants some musical entertainment. Westport is a veritable Mecca for traditional music with a member of the famous Chieftains owning a bar in the main street.
DAY 2 - Sunday
Breakfast at 8am and depart at 9am - The wonderful quartzite coned mountain of Croagh Patrick has been a sacred place for almost 5000 years. As far back as 3000 BC our megalithic ancestors worshipped there. Before the birth of Christ, the festival of the god Lugh was held on its slopes. Lugh is the god whose name gives us the Irish word Lughnasa for August, and it would seem that there is a connection between the pagan worship which took place at the end of the summer and the date fixed for the present day Christian pilgrimage to Croagh Patrick. Croagh Patrick is Ireland’s holy mountain where Patrick, the patron saint, spent 40 days and nights praying and fasting in 441AD. While on the summit Patrick was tormented by blackbirds which surrounded him and in later stories became demons and serpents. Ancient chroniclers say that Patrick threw his bell at them and banished them into the hollow known as Lug Na Deamhan, which is located on the North side of the mountain. It is a common belief that this is why no poisonous snake or reptile can be found in Ireland today. The plain iron bell said to belong to the patron saint is preserved in the National Museum.
Walk Details: 8 miles, 1750 feet, uphill climb on a loose stoned, pilgrim track, small section of bog and country lanes.
*Please note that we do not ascend to the summit of Croagh Patrick mountain at 2500 feet as owing to the steepness and erosion of the track near the top we consider it unsuitable. Our walk takes us to 1750 feet where we turn south and descend.
Dinner tonight is in a restaurant of your choice in Westport.
DAY 3 - Monday
Breakfast at 9am and depart at 10am - We take a short sailing to Clare Island this morning. Clare Island is synonymous with Grace O’ Malley, the formidable ruler of the Clew Bay district during the second half of the 16th century. One of the most interesting places on the island is the remains of the late 12th century Cistercian Friary, founded by the Monks of Abbeyknockmoy in Co Galway. According to local folklore, following the death of Grace O’ Malley in 1603, her remains were interred in the decorated O’Malley wall tomb in the Friary. The Chancel Vault was once covered in wall paintings, patches of which remain. The walk will take you uphill on a good quality bog road from where you will view the island's cliffs before returning to the quayside for the return ferry. (Please note that the crossing to the island is subject to wind and weather conditions and may, in some cases be taken earlier in the week at the discretion of the guide.)
Walk Details: 8 miles on good level surface on back country roads.
Dinner tonight is in a restaurant of your choice in Westport town.
DAY 4 - Tuesday
Breafast at 9am -Today is your Free Day. Some of the many things you can do are golfing, fishing and horse riding but they need to be booked in advance and transport organized to get there and back. It also gives you the opportunity to catch up on your emails and laundry. Dinner tonight is left to your own choice and in Westport.
DAY 5 - Wednesday
Breakfast at 8am. Depart the B&B at 9.00am, tonight you will stay in the lovely village of Leenane for the next 2 nights - A 60 minute transfer South to Connemara in County Galway where you will visit Connemara National Park. After visiting the interpretative centre we will set out on the first hike of the week.. Diamond Hill, so called for its glittering quartzite top that glistens in the sun is today's objective. A well defined path leads us gradually upwards to 1600 feet. The views from the summit are majestic, Afterwards we will visit Kylemore Abbey (please note a small fee of about €8.00 applies to enter the Abbey and Cathedral.) with its completely restored Victorian Gardens, The Abbey, now a girls boarding school, is run by the Benedictine nuns.
Dinner tonight is served in your B&B in Leenane.
DAY 6 - Thursday
Breakfast at 8am and depart at 9am – Today your walk starts just outside the village of in Leenane - the Western Way - and finishes in the Inagh Valley. On the route you will clearly see the ruins of famine villages and lazy beds, the name given to the potato ridges where the starving Irish peasant tried to provide food for his family
Walk Details: 12 miles, some ascent on mostly good track's and forest paths that can be wet and boggy in places. This hike can be shortened to 9 miles and can be done in reverse sometimes depending on the wind direction.
Dinner tonight in the village of Leenane.
DAY 7 - Friday
Breakfast at 8 and depart at 9. Our final days hike is a half day. We head North to the foothills of the Nephin mountains where a sequence of bog roads take us through peat bogs where you will see the traditional methods of turf cutting still in evidence. The walk also offers great views of Clew Bay and the Islands.
Walk Details: 9 miles on good track. By early afternoon we will be back in the accommodation where after showering you will be taken to town for some shopping.
Tonight you are back to Westport to spend your last evening.
DAY 8 - Saturday
After breakfast the Minibus will take you to Westport train station if you are planning on going elsewhere in Ireland.
Please Note that the itinerary may be changed at the discretion of the guide and that the walk's listed may not always take place in the sequence indicated as determining factors such as weather conditions, tides may prevail.
SouthWestWalks Ireland
28 The Anchorage, Tralee, Co.Kerry, Ireland
Tel: +353-66-7128733 Mobile: +353-87-6538548 (24hrs)
Fax: +353-66-7128762 Email:
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