It’s WILD out WEST
A storm only brings out the best of nature as our writer discovers...
I’D love to one day meet the marketing person behind the ‘Wild Atlantic Way’ concept and shake their hand. It truly is a stroke of genius.
In that one phrase, it excuses anything the Irish weather can throw at visitors — and throw has certainly been the operative word this summer.
As we drove to Clare a couple of weeks ago, it felt like large buckets of water were being hurled straight at the windscreen as we navigated our way towards the coast.
My one investment for this year’s ‘summer holiday’ had been a raincoat — it was starting to look more priceless by the hour.
We travelled with three children — a 10-year-old girl, and 12 and 15year-old boys. The three have vastly different interests so we had our work cut out.
The weather gods finally began to smile on us just as we neared our destination, Ballinalacken Castle Hotel (ballinalackencastle.com, doubles from €150) near Doolin. In fact, the rain stopped just long enough for the children to spot the sign for the Hazel Mountain Chocolate Factory (hazelmountain chocolate.com) in the heart of the
Burren.
We pulled in and got out to explore one of the smallest and most remote chocolate factories in the world. We watched on as that day’s batch was lovingly prepared and then indulged in a couple of samples before buying a handful of truffles and a jar of hot chocolate — I’d a feeling we were going to need it.
From there it’s just a short drive to Ballinalacken — but oh, what a drive. Winding roads take you through rugged hills, with each corner opening up to reveal a stunning Atlantic vista.
You’ll spot the remains of the 15th century castle long before you get to it, as it weaves in and out of view, before you come to the sweeping driveway up to the hotel nestled at its base.
The panoramic view is spectacular, revealing the Aran Islands to one side, right down to the Cliffs of Moher on the other. Many of the hotel’s windows are strategically placed to take advantage of it and if you book early enough for breakfast and dinner, you can too.
The hotel has a warm, homely, familiar feel that was evident as soon as we walked in the door. The original house was owned by the renowned O’Brien clan, descendants of Brian Boru. Now run by a third generation of the O’Callaghan family, Declan and Cecelia are wonderful hosts and eager to help as much as they can with directions and recommendations.
A short trip back through the Burren took us to the Aillwee Caves
(aillweecave.ie, tickets from €7). On the way there, the 12-year-old asked where we were going. When I said to some underground caves, he was decidedly unimpressed and asked, ‘yes, but what is there to
do there?’ ‘You don’t do anything,’ I told him, ‘you just walk through them. They’re ancient caves, it’s fascinating that they still exist.’
He wasn’t convinced until, moments after we stepped inside the caves, I had a brainwave. ‘Isn’t it just like The Goonies?’ I said.
‘Oh my god, yes!’ he enthused and was suddenly far more interested. It’s a tip I’ll offer to any parent — and if your children haven’t yet seen The Goonies, well I’m afraid that’s on you.
In fairness, even without the cajoling of a movie adventure, it’s a great tour. The guides are friendly and informative and know how to hold the children’s interest.
We found it fascinating too — just the idea of how long these caves have been around for and how long it takes to make up just one small stalagmite is enough to bring the universe into fine focus and make you feel like an insignificant speck on civilisation! We trekked through the dramatic underworld, over caverns, across bridges to the thunderous waterfall.
The caves are very dark and damp, just in case you have children that struggle with such environments, but the guide is great at leading the way and making sure everyone adheres to distancing but still get the full experience.
Back up above ground, there’s a Bird of Prey centre and a Farmshop offering local produce.
THAT night, as we all snuggled up in bed, Storm Ellen hit hard, with rain lashing off the windows and the wind howling around the hillside. The following morning, we sat in the window seat in our room and watched as she continued to rage — it was a spectacular sight.
Unfortunately it meant that we had to cancel our trip to Inis Meain, one of the Aran Islands. But that didn’t mean we couldn’t head to Doolin Pier anyway.
It’s in a fabulous setting, with the waves lapping on huge rocks, which the kids actually loved climbing over. We spent more than an hour there, just clambering over the rocks and watching the waves crash into the nearby cliffs as the wind howled — this was wild at its best.
It continued as we made our way the short distance to the Cliffs of Moher. We thankfully managed to miss huge rainshowers just before and after we climbed up, and were bathed in sunshine as we took in their incredible beauty.
My social media feeds had been filled with pictures of the cliffs for weeks ahead of our trip so I expected them to be packed and
was unsure how distancing would be adhered to. But thankfully, they were what I would call pleasantly busy and everyone gave each other ample space to get around safely and comfortably.
Another short drive away from the hotel is Fanore Beach, where we took the children clad in their wetsuits when we finally got a break in the weather. It’s a stunning small beach and they enjoyed a short dip before Ellen returned and practically blew us all back to the car park.
As such things go, however, far from ruining the day, this ended up being one of the funniest parts of the whole break as we tried to gather things up as the wind howled around us.
We were howling too by the time we got back to the car.
With nature in such abundance in the area, it’s safe to say the food is going to be local — and tasty.
That was definitely so in our hotel, where we enjoyed breakfast made from fresh ingredients sourced nearby and an evening meal of freerange beef and lamb that left our mouths watering. There was plenty for the children to enjoy too — with all awkward requests met.
There are also a myriad options in nearby Doolin, with Fitzpatrick’s Bar in the Hotel Doolin (hoteldoolin.ie) offering delicious gastro pub fare that will suit all the family.
It’s the kind of bar I can picture filled with live music and happy customers in times gone by — and hopefully it’ll return to that in the near future. For now, it’ll settle for being a friendly, spacious restaurant offering great food.
The highest praise I can give for our trip is that the storm took out the wi-fi in our hotel — and the children barely noticed.
There is no better description for the area, weather and outlook on the west coast of Ireland than ‘wild’ — and once you’re ready to embrace it, it’ll capture your heart.
Linda Maher was a guest of Fáilte Ireland, whose Make A