As some of you may know, Amanda and I drove cross-country in the States (we're good travel buddies) from Florida to Oregon. However, while driving through Kansas, we decided on the "scenic route" so we could enjoy the fields upon fields of sunflowers versus the dull and void route of the highway. Well to no surprise we became very, very, very lost in Kansas (no map or gazetteer could help us find our location plus all the sunflowers were dried up and dead). To make matters worse, our surroundings resembled those from a horror/thriller film like something from Jeepers Creepers or Texas Chainsaw Masacre. Needless to say, our "ability" to wander off the beaten path has followed us to Ireland.
We had arrived in the quaint town of Doolin. Upon checking into our hostel (Aille River Hostel--my all time favorite!!) Emily, the hostess, suggested we visit the Cliffs of Moher by footpath. What a great idea! We love to hike, we're much better at it than biking, and the weather was actually partly sunny for a change. The directions she gave us were easy, "Continue on the main road into town, when the road forks take the left road up the hill. At the top of the hill you will see a cattle gate on the right-hand side with a sign stating 'Warning: Dangerous Cliffs'. Simply walk around the gate and sign and follow the footpath up to the Cliffs of Moher".
Well, that seemed simple and since the sun doesn't set until 2130 (9:30pm yeah it took us awhile to adjust to that) we felt we had plenty of time. Things began well, we took the left-hand road and saw the warning sign along with the footpath we were to follow. However, we began to question our path when we had to limbo under barbed wire and jump numerous electrical fences/wires which isn't easy when you're just shy of 5'2". Apparently all those fences keep in the barnyard animals like the goats, horse and cows we were passing. Not such a big deal until they're staring you down and you're hoping they won't charge you as you dance around all the fresh manure piles they've left. Emily hadn't mentioned any of this but we continued onward. Our walk was suppose to be 5 km which sounds easy but when it's a steep uphill climb (after all they are called CLIFFS & we are from FL) and you're questioning if you're even going the correct way it begins to feel a bit longer (by the way the 'path' gradually disappears so you're looking for evidence of human traffic like a footprint in dirt or manure). And of course, in true Ireland spirit, it began to rain. After all the obstacle-coursing we finally made it to the top only to be greeted by a group of French tourists who don't speak a lick of English. We tried asking them if we were near the official Cliffs of Moher viewpoint but they keep speaking French and pointing towards the path we'd just taken. Apparently we must have inspired them because they began to retrace our path back town (they were in their mid 50's so I hope they're good at limbo!)
By now the rain was really coming down on us, we were freezing (more of those gale force winds coming off the Atlantic) and completely lost and uncertain where to go from here. Feeling defeated we could see the main road and decided to follow it back into town, our hearts weren't into the ducking and weaving and running from the cattle. We finally made it back to the Aille River Hostel (My Favorite!!) only to learn that all we needed to do was follow the main road uphill and it would run into the Visitors Center for the Cliffs of Moher...... AHHHHH!! Only 10 minutes away and success would have been ours. Determined not to be defeated we decided to tackle the Cliffs again. The next day we cheated and took the bus to the top of the Visitors Center where we took some photos, enjoyed the scenery (it was sunny again), and then walked down the pavement to where we had ended the previous day. Fortunately, we were able to find the true path (which is literally the Cliffs Edge, be careful as people have been blown off by the winds) and enjoyed the rest of our downhill course.
