Tollymore, Northern Ireland 🇬🇧 2019

Date: 8th July 2019

Travelled: 92 kilometres from Newcastle in Northern Ireland to Clogherhead, County Louth, Ireland.

Visited: Tollymore Forest Park, Bryansford.

Stayed: Clogherhead Marina/Pier, free +B+T+W. N53.79918, W06.22252

Budget: 36 days @ €77 per day

We wake to another grey morning in Northern Ireland. It was a good night’s sleep given our our car-park is reasonably close to the road. Whilst having a coffee and planning our day, we hear the drizzle on the roof of the Hymer.

Our loose plan for today was a walk in the Tollymore Forest Park. But that now looks a bit iffy. We decide on driving up to Tollymore and having breakfast whilst the weather decides what it’s doing.

Tollymore National Mountain Centre, Bryansford, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

Map showing Tollymore Forest Park,

Tollymore was the Roden Estate in its previous life, the seat of the Earls of Clanbrassil. The Clanbrassil’s liked a fancy gate.

The entry fee is £5, but I explain to the gate guy that we just want to have breakfast and see what the weather does. He tells us to pay if we decide to stay and to enjoy our breakfast.

After a couple of slices of maple syrup infused bacon on toast, the weather lifts a little and we make for the river trail. It’s 5.7 kms about 90 minutes according to the guide. I should explain I was obsessed with the Irish Whisky Infused Bacon until the maple version caught my eye. Pam nods with disapproval !

No point adding captions, its just a forest walk but you can click any of the following photos and they should open in a gallery.

Quick video crossing the stepping stones.

Yes, Tollymore has been used for Game of Thrones !

So we make it back to the Hymer without getting wet and the day has brightened whilst we walked. The Tollymore was certainly a beautiful walk. Anyway we have another coffee and turn the Hymer for Newry taking the scenic route over the Mourne Mountains. The coast road was the alternate but the €30 ferry across the Carlingford Lough made Pam’s head spin.

We cross back into Ireland stopping at Dundalk, do a supermarket and buy another 3 sim as our last one expired yesterday. How the internet has changed, in Ireland a 3 mobile sim is €20 for unlimited 4G internet+calls+sms. It has 8GB of EU data, so we can use it in Greece next week. We set the GPS for Clogherhead and continue south.

Clogherhead, Leinster, Ireland

Map of Clogherhead, the icon on Port Oriel.

On the pier at Port Oriel, Clogherhead. There is a large car-park just up the way but it has a boom on the gate. I speak to the guy at the C0-Op he says parking on the pier is Ok just keep over one side.

The best thing about Clogherhead apart from being free is the colony of grey seals in the harbour, very entertaining.

The is nothing at Port Oriel but the Fisherman’s Co-Op. The Co-Op does a fabulous fish chowder at €5 a serve and the Chipper next door (part of the Co-Op) has great fish-n-chips if your passing. So our day concludes with a beer and wine watching the seals.

Michael and Pam

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