The Cliffs of Moher

Yesterday we went to the Cliffs of Moher, which is one of the most beautiful natural areas I have ever seen.  Of course I am partial to Ricketts Glen near Scranton, PA, but these came quite close.  Regardless, I loved them and they were sooo incredibly beautiful.

We left for a tour of the Cliffs and the Burren area at 9:25.  They picked us up at Dunaras and we headed around town to pick up some fellow students.  Our first stop was Dunguaire Castle, which was home to King Guaire.  We just walked around the stone walls and looked out on the bay.

After the castle we stolled along making stops at the Ballyalban Fairy Fort.  I was soo excited, however I did not spy any leprechauns or fairies.  But we did manage to get a nice picture together in front of some lovely Irish countryside.

Eventually we then made it to the Poulnabrone Dolmen, which is an acient tomb.  It is the Burren's most iconic landmark and was constructed by Neolithic farmers approximately 5800 years ago, making it older then the Egyptian Pyramids.  Pretty impressive, I must say.  The Dolmen is located amongst the Burren which is basically a rocky range of limestone.  You'll see what I mean in a few moments.

We then made a stop at the Kilfenora Catedral, which was a 12th century cathedral.  This cathedral was home to a few old Celtic Crosses.  If you want to see pictures of these, check out my facebook album. 

Our next stop was in Doolin for lunch.  We went to Gus's O'Connors Pub for lunch.  I got chicken goujons and fries, aka chicken tenders.  SO exciting!  I've been craving them for a while.  Afterwards we went to a little homemade fudge shop next door, and of course, I bought some yummy fudge.

Finally, we were at the Cliffs of Moher.  They are located along the Atlantic Ocean on the western bay.  The water here is sooo blue--I wish it were blue back home!  We were 200-213 meters above the ocean, and if you slipped, you were a goner.  So it was quite dangerous and you had to be careful--but well worth it.  As you are going to see, it is magnificant and beautiful.  The path was pretty rigorous at times, but wellll worth the climb.  There are two areas, the actual park and then a private path.  You're not supposed to enter the private path, but everyone does, and I can see why.  That was the best view.

There were also spots where you could see different areas of the cliffs.  I believe the actual trail went 8-10 km or so, leading you to Napoleon's cave.  However, it would have taken a good 2 hours to get there, so we did not get to visit his little hideout.  There's also a little castle as you can see in the picture above--it's more of a watchtower, but its still neat.

After the Cliffs we visited more of the burren.  We also saw the Leprechaun cathedral. To see more pictures, check out my facebook!

It was a great time and I'm so glad we went!