Today I'm going to tell you the second part of my trip to the west coast of Ireland. You can read the first one in the following link «West Coast of Ireland, an essential trip (I)«.
If the first day I went to the Cliffs of Moher and the surrounding towns, located south of Galway city, in the following I always headed north.
The north and west of Galway is less touristy but for my taste more beautiful. It is a mountainous region, full of lakes and small towns. This is where I saw the real Ireland.
Day 2: Kylemore Abbey and Ireland's N-59 Road Route
The second day of my trip through the Irish Atlantic I destined it to travel the entire N-59 road from Galway to Kylemore Abbey.
My goal was to visit the castle and eat in Clifden, to be able to do everything without haste I left my hostel very early, at 7 in the morning I was already driving.
From the beginning of the route the landscape becomes a continuum of green meadows and mountains, for nature lovers like, a visual spectacle.
Once I crossed the town of Maam Cross and after a few minutes I took the R344 county road, which runs largely around Loch Inagh and mountains of considerable altitude (in December they were snowy). It was a great success to detour down this road. If you want to visit kylemore abbey, please take a detour this way. 15Km 100% nature, sheep crossing the road and side and side of the road, almost no cars. A way to enjoy the landscape and the tranquility of the area.
This detour takes us directly to Kylemore. Another option would have been to continue on the main road (which I already used to return to Galway).
La Kylemore Abbey is a former castle and private residence of Mitchell Henry (a wealthy English doctor and businessman who moved to Ireland) built to mid XNUMXth century and then converted into a cloistered nunnery until 2010.
Now you can visit its entire premises, its impressive Victorian gardens, the family mausoleum, a neo-Gothic church and some rooms of the castle. It really looks like a castle set from a Harry Potter movie.
One thing that may surprise you is the change of scenery at this site. In general there are not many trees in the Irish West and here it is packed. Everything has its explanation, the forest that surrounds Kylemore is of trees planted during the construction of the same.
The entrance is not free, prices are around 8 to 12 Euros per person, you can see everything in half a day. I think it's very worth it. The enclosure has a bar and restaurant in case you don't have time to get to Clifden.
At the end of my visit to Kylemore I continued on the N-59 road towards the seaside town of Clifden, a pretty seaside town where I ate and walked. In the afternoon I continued on my way back to Galway.
Very close to the abbey is the Connemara National Park, one of the best trekking spots in Ireland, gentle slopes and unique landscapes. If you have time I would dedicate 1 day to visit the area as I did and a day to hike through Connemara.
Day 3: Leenaun, Westport and Newport via R-336
Another great day of landscapes. Again I started my route on the N-59 road and right in the town of Maam Cross I took the detour to a local road R-366 direction Maum and Leenaun.
If the day before I saw few cars and few people, this day even less. Without any problem I was able to stop the car in the middle of the road to take photos of what I was seeing, again the landscape dazzled me. Colorfully painted free sheep, small lagoons on one side, mountains, forests, green meadows, ... a non-stop for my senses.
The goal was to reach the seaside town of Leenaun. There it seems that we are in a Norwegian fjord, the sea enters Kilometers and Kilometers inland as if it were an estuary, a village that seems taken from other times.
Leenaun is a very small fishing village, a good place to have a pint in one of its pubs and listen to the Gaelic. It is one of the last corners of the country where people still speak this language.
After finishing my visit to this small town, I headed north along the N-59 road, my next target, Westport.
Westport is a larger and more dynamic town (more than 5000 inhabitants), close to the sea and with a special charm. I decided to eat there. There is nothing spectacular about it, but I really liked it.
In the afternoon I went to Newport, a few miles. A very nice little town full of history. To highlight the viaduct, the Roman church and the Carrickahowley Castle.
At the end of my visit to Newport again back to Galway.
Without a doubt, the west of Ireland offers 3 great things: Cliffs of Moher and its coast in general, Kylemore Abbey and all its nature in general. I recommend you go to this region and take a quiet route, enjoy the landscape and little by little visit the points of special interest, relax with the tranquility that is breathed and go hiking in the area.
Do not travel to Ireland without seeing the west, spend at least 4 days to see it.