Day 8
Saturday, August 12th
Cork to Toormore
132km
Ryan, Jenn and I cycled 5km to the hotel where Ian and Sara were staying. Ryan and Jenn (and my panniers) rode in the van with Ian and Sara to Toormore. I cycled down with Derek, an older guy from Bristol that is part of our tour.
Another great day of cycling. It was cool early in the morning, but the sun was soon out and we had bright blue sky all day. Wondeful scenery again today. The highlights were the estuaries we rode around. These are bodies of water where rivers meet the sea, forming tidal lakes nestled in between rolling hills. There were little fishing boats in each harbor and cute little villages to cycle through where each building is a different color.
The cycling was pretty tough. Lots of short, steep climbs to get over and a few bumpy roads. Derek was a good cyclist and we made good time...cruising along at 35km/h on the flats. He had riden the Lands-End-to-John-O'Groats last year, so were shared stories.
At lunch time, I had a misterious puncture. I was in the store buying my lunch at the time. Derek said that he heard "pop...hisssssssss" and saw my tire go flat. Very odd. Found a small cut in the tube where the air was leaking. Replaced the tube without further trouble. That's my second flat of the trip. The first was on day 2, as we approached Carlingford and the bike like we were on was covered in glass.
I'd left a bag of clothes with Bike Adventures at the end of my UK trip. Sara brought it today, so I now have two additional cycling outfits and two more casual outfits as well. Such luxury!
The Irish end-to-end section of the trip starts tomorrow after we ride down to Mizen Head. Ryan and Jenn will be back on the bikes after four days of rest. Ryan seems to be doing really well, so we'll have to see how he makes out this time around.
posted by Daniel Longo @ 5:23 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Dan I'm glad you've made out well on your own. It's fun hearing about the trip through your eyes. I sure hope to hear that Jenn and Ryan were able to get back on their bikes. Wish them well for me. Maureen
Ryan, your ancestors can be traced back to Thomas Patrick (1st)of Roscrea, County Tipperary 1760. Family also lived in Cork and Limerick City. Good luck on the next leg of your journey. Heather/Mom
Hi Dan;
I have just caught up on all of your posts to date. I went out west to vancouver the same day you started your latest trip. I was otherwise distracted [and just plain forgot] that you, Ryan and Jenn were over there!
Hope you figured out that the orange was OK for the north, but less so in the south.
I agree with your Mom's comments that Ireland sounds like it possesses fantastic scenery.
Katie was in Dublin for the last two weeks of July taking a Celtic studies credit course. Moira and Jess visited her there. Paul-David was also there visiting...so a lot of Longos have preceded you there.
Hope Ryan is back on his bike and that you all enjoy the final leg of your trip.
Post a Comment
<< Home