Heat & Hills

 Saturday nights in Clonakilty are quite something. The bars and restaurants were packed out and I eventually opted for takeaway pizza eaten at a table in the adjacent beer garden. It’s a popular arrangement which seems to suit both pub and pizzeria.

I then went in search of some live music, found some, and spent another couple of hours listening to Glen, a medical salesman who packed it all into play music. Fair play. 

This morning therefore started slightly slower than I was anticipating, however I was tucking into my pastries by 9:30 and on the road just before 10. Not too bad. 

The first few miles were straightforward, hugging the coast and traversing causeways before the road inevitably heading up. I say inevitably - Garmin very proudly showed me in great detail all 18 climbs which today would hold in store. 

The sun was already beating down and the heat was bordering on uncomfortable. I needed to not wish it away as the weather forecast showing the traditional Orish wet stuff (no, not Guiness) making a significant appearance.

The miles ticked by and my thoughts as ever turned to Carbohydrates. I passed a fantastic looking cafe think it best to get a few more km under my belt before stopping. In the next town, a car in front of me suddenly and for no obvious reason came to an abrupt halt. I swerved around it and insodoing hit a pothole, shaking everything on my bike, including in turned out my rear pannier bolt. 

I turned around to try to find said bolt without success but I did find out why the lady in front of me stopped. She’d seen a friend and decided that she must engage an immediate and lengthy conversation, her car still abandoned in the middle of the road. 

Since my first tour through France I’ve meticulously carried a box of spare bolts, having never needed it. I was truly delighted therefore to prise the box open and select a bolt which was just right. 

Since I’d stopped opposite a shop I went in and emerged with 2 bottles of water, a coke and a pack of 4 Rocky Roads. Not quite the lovely cafe overlooking the harbour but not bad either. 

I then joined a busy road which wasn’t much fun, but saw a Eurovelo sign to the left so took a chance. The road was small and quiet, and seemed ideal but for the fact that it had recently been resurfaced by presumably a blind man with one hand. Eventually I gave up and took another turn back on to the busy road. Hey ho. 

Soon enough I was on Mizen, one of the many peninsulas which make riding the coast of Ireland so “sporting”. I hadn’t planned to ride all the way to the head, partly because the last piece of road is a seemingly pointless out and back, but primarily because I was on the clock. If I explored the whole WAW route I’d need another week…

My “shortcut” took me over the spine of the peninsula up a stiff and fairly long climb but with incredible views. 

I was by now tiring the heat and hills having taking their toll. I still had about 40km to go so popped a gel and buckled down to cover the distance along a beautiful fast flowing road with the sea to my left and hills to my right, stopping every now and then to admire the views. 

I’d promised myself a coke & a snack in Durrus, about 10km from home. 

Unfortunately Durrus had other ideas, feeling that their large village didn’t need anything extravagant like a shop. 

With that then I headed out onto the Sheep peninsula (so named as it looks like a Sheep’s head. Which it doesn’t. 

This was another one which I’d decided to cut short so after riding 5km or so down the coast road I headed right and up to another spine, this one slightly less gnarly than the last. 

My destination was Goats Pods campsite, hidden in the middle of nowhere but with camping pods and tent pitches. And goats. And sheep. And cows.

“Got any space for a small tent?”

“Yep.”

“Great, thanks.”

“That’ll be 25 euro”.

WHAT??  

“But the showers are free”

The kind chap also told me that they do pizza.

“Excellent. Got any beer!”

“No. Hang on, yes”.

Turns out they have no licence but some previous campers had left 2 cans of Peroni in the fridge which I was welcome to.

It was a lovely spot, infinitely better than last nights. Pizza and Peroni done, I headed back to my tent. After last nights excursion and today’s hills I feel an early night may be in order. Once the cows stop mooing.