This post recounts the sixth day of my Mizen Head to Malin Head cycle tour in Ireland with Peak Tours in June 2024. Read Day 5: Galway to Clifden
This was one of my best ever cycling days. The scenery was stunning, including the coast, a fjord and stunning mountain pass. Despite having cycling over the Wicklow Mountains in 1996 I had no idea Ireland had so many mountains, let alone fjords. At times I thought I was in the Scottish Highlands or Eryri (Snowdonia) in Wales.
We had a rude awakening – a very steep climb out of Clifden before following the Sky Road in a dramatic loop. This set the scene for today’s visual delights – the Sky Road was far from a direct route to our destination, but no one with soul would have regretted the detour.
This was the view from the morning’s brew stop, next to an old bridge.
I had one unfortunate moment. As I took the photo above, a sudden gust of wind rocked the gate and tipped the bike over – inevitably on the drive side. As a result, the previously flawless shifting wasn’t the same for the rest of the tour. The view was lovely though!
This was start of a magical part of the route, as we cut inland to pass Lough Fee. I loved the blend of mountains, lough and the small islands.
We were now on the final stretch to lunch at Leenane Hotel on Killary Fjord. Yes, Ireland has fjords – as indeed do Scotland (three: Lochs Long, Fyne and Etive) and Wales (the Afon Mawddach estuary inland towards Dolgellau). The meal was a real treat, and we felt conspicuous in our sweaty cycling lycra amongst the smart tourists.
As the fjord finally narrowed, we crossed the water and worked our way along the other side, with lovely views of the route we’d taken earlier. We then turned inland towards Lough Doo, before turning again onto the L1824 towards the Sheefry Pass.
This was another stunning road – the photos above show the early part of the route before the serious climbing began.
This photo gives a good feel for the terrain before the landscape opened out with Tawnyard Lough providing a nice view to savour below as we undertook the final push to the summit. The gradient was around 13 percent – we’d face much steeper, if shorter, climbs in the final stages of the tour.
The afternoon brew stop was at the summit, and I enjoyed a mug of tea watching Julia and others reaching the top with Tawnyard Lough in the background. It may not have been Bealach na Bà, the iconic climb in Scotland which we conquered two years ago but it was still an achievement. I certainly benefitted from my 3,000 miles of cycling so far in 2024 including London Wales London – all that riding and climbing helped!
The joy of tacking a mountain pass is the descent that follows. I loved racing down the twisting mountain road from Sheefry Pass as we made our way towards Westport. I was amused to see a sign for Owenwee, and with juvenile glee shared a photo of it with my son Owen…
It was a joy to reach the coast again at Westport, with the view of Croagh Patrick, the pyramid shaped mountain associated with Saint Patrick, seen in the distance above.
We approached the town via Westport Quay, and given the name Westport suggests a maritime, coastal settlement I assumed this was where we were staying. But we still had another three miles and a stiff climb to go. I was pleased to reach my guesthouse, Plougastel House after admiring the lovely Carrowbeg river in the middle of town. Plougastel sounded Breton, so I wasn’t surprised to learn that Plougastel was Westport’s twin town in Brittany.
It was a gorgeous, sunny evening and Julia, Lucy and I were determined to eat al fresco. We weren’t the only ones to have this intention, and every bar and restaurant with an outside table was buzzing. So we walked at least twice around the town centre, and back over the river, before grabbing a table at Hoban’s Bar that our fellow Peak Tours cyclists were vacating. We enjoyed a convivial meal in the sunshine – the last warm evening of the tour.
The day’s stats
59.85 miles, 3,576 feet climbing, 4 hours 41 mins cycling, average speed 12.8 mph.
The day’s highlights video
Ertblog 