Ireland 2025 – Days 6 and 7 – 3rd and 4th legs of Hike

After a great evening at the South Pole Inn Pub, the next morning we started out on the third day of our hike. As we left Annascaul for our 14-mile hike to Dingle, we headed west, along meandering country roads with views of the Iveragh Peninsula, the fourth of the five peninsulas in Southwest Ireland. By the time we reached Minard Castle, we were drenched, but very much enjoying the hike. Minard Castle, located in a small sandy cove, was built in the 16th century. The castle was partly destroyed by Cromwell’s men in 1650. 

We then walked some scenic and quiet roads that took us inland through farmland. This is where we started to encounter some very muddy trails. We all took the mud in stride! We stopped at a Keanes convenience store where most of us were able to get some coffees and “biscuits”. Recharged, we hit the muddy trail again until we found a relatively dry spot along the trail to eat our box lunches. One of our fellow hikers, Richard, called it “Lunch in the ditch” – see photo. Just as we finished, we were hit by another intense rain shower. We would encounter these micro bursts or intense rain showers again and again during our hike. After our late lunch we finally got to pavement and took the Connor Pass road down into Dingle itself, our destination for the evening. 

Dingle is renowned for its music, seafood and culture. And with some 53 pubs and restaurants, we had plenty of choices to have a relaxing drink and a wonderful dinner. A group of us met at 4 pm to take a Dingle distillery tour, which was very informative. We then met at a local pub for another Guinness before heading to Doyle’s Seafood restaurant for dinner. One of our hikers, Leslie chose this spot, and it was a home run. We had fresh Dingle Bay oysters and scallops for appetizers. I had mussels for dinner. But the hit of the night was Elizabeth’s dish – smoked haddock with pea risotto.

On Day 4 of our hike we left Dingle to begin a 16-mile trek to Dunquin. We headed further west through low-lying farmland to the glorious golden sands of Ventry Harbor. We must have hiked almost a mile on the beach itself! While hiking on the beach we got hit by a super intense shower that had ice pellets! 

Every day of our hike has been windy, with some of us getting wind burns. It does not hurt, but your face gets really red. The wind today was especially fierce. With wind gusts getting up to 30 mph, at times you felt like you were going to get blown over. And it became slightly problematic when we were hiking some of the very steep and rocky trails on the shoulder of Mt. Eagle. 

But before tackling the trails around Mt. Eagle, we fortunate to find a dry spot at  Bakery Eile Cafe, which usually is not open on Thursdays, but our fearless leader Rolf called and convinced the young couple who own the place to open it for us. Needless to say, their warm hospitality and warm shelter was well received by our cold, wet and tired group. After devouring our boxed lunches and recharged with coffee and cappuccinos, we were ready for our final stage of the day. 

As we hiked some difficult terrain while navigating around Mt. Eagle along the Atlantic Ocean, we were rewarded with stunning views. As our eyes swept over the Atlantic, we were able to spot the mystical Blasket Islands offshore. On this part of the hike we also saw remnants of 2,500-year-old historic forts and stone beehive huts.  And I must say, this was the most enjoyable and scenic portion of our hike thus far.

As we got closer to the end of our hike we passed by Slea Head, and then we passed by Dunford Head, which is where part of one of the Star Wars movies was filmed. Exhausted from our most strenuous hike so far (seven hours and over 16 miles), we were all relieved when we saw Dunquin come into sight. After a short rest and hot showers (for some of us – Evidently the hot water ran out!), we had dinner tonight at Kruger’s across from the hotel. I had my first Irish Stew of the trip. And it was just what I needed after today’s hike. Krugers Bar’s claim to fame is that it is the most westerly bar in Europe. After having lunch in Portugal several years ago at the most westerly point of continental Europe, I can now say I have eaten at both the most westerly point of continental Europe and all of Europe!As I write this we are now at the halfway point of our hike. And I have so many reflections as I listen to yet another rain shower through our open windows, which we have had open every night of our hike.  However, that will have to be another blog, but they include the rain, blackberries, small world moments, but most of all, connections. 

Tomorrow we start Day 5 of hiking. But tomorrow’s hike will be two miles shorter and will have a 150 meter elevation change instead of 600. So, hopefully it will be easier, but with the rain, one never knows!