16th-century Ballycarbery Castle is a modern structure compared to two other fortifications near Cahersiveen: the ring forts of Leacanabuile and Cahergal. Ring forts are difficult to date, but archeologists believe these were built in the 9th and 10th centuries. We visited all three on a bicycle tour of the area, and also took in the…
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Skellig Michael
Skellig Michael is one of the most remarkable places we’ve ever visited. Sometime in the 6th-8th centuries, Christian monks landed on this rugged and remote island off the southwest coast of Ireland. Over the centuries they built a monastery with beehive huts and a chapel high atop the island’s peaks, and extensive steps to reach…
Ballinskelligs
Our day trip from Crookhaven Harbour to Ballinskelligs Bay took us past some dramatic coastal scenery and impressive feats of engineering, including The Bull, where a lighthouse perches atop a fantastic tunnel-pierced rock, and the well-preserved monastic ruins on UNESCO World Hertiage site Skellig Michael. Trip highlights from June 19th, 2017 follow. Click any image…
Crookhaven
Crookhaven Harbour is among the nicest anchorages in southwestern Ireland. We spent three nights there and visited Brow Head, Mizen Head, and of course stopped at the famous O’Sullivans to enjoy “The most southerly pint in Ireland”. The video below shows aerial footage of Dirona and the harbour, and trip highlights from June 17th through…
Mizen Head
The Mizen Head Signal Station was built in 1909 to sound a fog signal warning ships away from the dangerous headland at the southwest tip of Ireland. The signal station sits on the tip of the peninsula (far left on the photo above), cutoff from the mainland by a deep chasm, with a bridge spanning…
Brow Head
During the Napoleonic-era, a signal tower was built at Brow Head near Crookhaven, Ireland. A century later, the Marconi Wireless Telegraph company installed telegraphic equipment on Fastnet Rock and a station on Brow Head. Passing ships signaled the Fastnet Lighthouse and the keepers relayed the message wirelessly to Brow Head for transmission to the final…
Sherkin to Crookhaven
Leaving Sherkin Island, we checked out the tiny harbour on Cape Clear Island, then did two laps around Fastnet Rock before stopping for the night in beautiful Crookhaven Harbour, home of Ireland’s most southerly pint. En route we saw another castle and two ancient watchtowers, plus plenty of dramatic scenery. Trip highlights from June 16,…
Baltimore, Ireland
The 55-foot Baltimore Beacon, known locally as “Lot’s Wife”, marks the entrance to Baltimore Harbour atop a 300-ft cliff. James knew from the moment we arrived that Jennifer, who suffers from the extreme inability to resist a good view, would find a way to reach the Beacon. So he wasn’t at all surprised when she…
Two Sides of the Atlantic
In February of 2016, we completed our longest passage ever: 3,700nm across the South Atlantic from St. Helena to Barbados. And in May of this year, we completed our worst passage ever: 2,800nm across the North Atlantic through three gales from Newport, RI to Kinsale, Ireland. In between, we’ve cruised the West Atlantic between Florida…
Sherkin Island
Sherkin Island in Baltimore Harbour has ruins dating from the 1400s, including a castle and a friary. The island also has some excellent walking trails with views to Baltimore Harbour and the Atlantic Ocean, and two pubs, also with water views. Trip highlights from June 12th through 14th at Sherkin Island, Ireland. Click any image…
