Benefits of Being Lost

17. 09. 2017     Tralee

Well, well, we awoke to sunshine this morning. Not exactly hot but no rain and no wind and a large yellow ball in the sky! Al already had our route for this day sorted. ‘a really pleasant 38 kms of relatively flat riding along well surfaced roads. After an early lunch (let’s not rush these things) we geared up and took to the road. Cycle paths are very intermittent in Ireland. I am assured that in London, if a car is parked in a cycle lane, it can expect at the very least a scratch down the side. In Ireland, not only are vehicles parked in the cycle lane, they are in the cycle lane and on double yellow lines. Dicing with death for cyclists it seems is all part of the adrenaline rush. Maybe?  Irish speed limits are generally much higher than the continent (100kms regardless of the width or condition of the road! – more Irish logic) and many car drivers see it as their mission to keep as close as possible to these speeds. I have to comment on the many who remained patiently behind two elderly cyclists until the road ahead was clear and given us a wide berth.  Many thanks!

Spot Mary

We have been lost/misplaced many times today and were in sore need of Brendan the Navigator who we didn’t meet until the ride was almost complete.( Where are you Bren when we need you the most!?)  It has to be said that each misplacement was an opportunity to explore otherwise ignored parts of the coast and thus, much appreciated. For example, trying to locate a small road through the dunes that had been obliterated by a considerable depth of sand, resulted in a turn back and spying a notice extolling the nearby beach as the’ best in Ireland’. We could not pass up this chance to explore. Hoisting bikes on our shoulders we overtopped the dunes and were rewarded with the view of a glorious sandy beach, rolling breakers and surfers. Deciding that the road through the dunes was un-ridable, we pushed the bikes along the beach and through the kelp to the next solid access point. Sand in between your toes!

Easy now – just follow the road through the wiggles. Mmmmm…… arrived in the wrong spot but we knew where we were! Follow this road – nope. Wrong again. But now we found St. Brendan the Navigator in Fenit; another venue we had not planned to visit! Altogether getting lost seems to be the way to go. It was to continue. Tralee is not huge but one wrong turning left us meandering around the town centre for some time and having no idea which direction to follow. Stopped a lot. Turned around a lot and then found locations that we recognised. Thankfully, the camper was where we had left it and our ride of 35 kms morphed into 50. Feeling good though.

St Brendan the Navigator

And all this time not a drop of rain!