The Northernmost Point in Ireland

We stayed at Trean House, which is a quaint little B&B in Co. Donegal on the Inishowen Peninsula. It’s a working sheep farm, which was awesome. So. Many. Sheep. 😍After breakfast, we walked the five minutes down the street from the B&B to the beach – Tremone Bay (& were joined by the owners’ dog, Finn). Before we knew it, Will was in the water clothes and all (with Finn not far behind). Ella took the opportunity to jump in as well, though she was smart enough to take her shoes off. The look of pure joy on their faces is what life is all about. So, we’ve all managed to make it into the (freezing) North Atlantic and the (even colder) Irish Sea on this trip!

After walking back to the B&B, the owner asked if we’d like to see the sheep. He was very sweet and gave the kids some food to feed the sheep with. Again… the looks on their faces was pure joy! The sheep were so much softer than I expected… literally little cotton balls!

After we left we took a drive up to the northernmost point in Ireland – Malin Head. If you’re a huge Star Wars fan, this is where “Star Wars Episode VIII” was filmed in part. It was very windy and cold, and we did the walk along the cliffs -2+ miles in all. The views were stunning not only at Malin Head, but on the drive there and back as well. Ireland is probably the prettiest place I’ve ever seen in my life.

Advertisement

Family-filled and Gorgeous Views

We spent the morning relaxing and feeding the donkeys at Aunt Noreen’s next door. Because it has been unusually warm and sunny here the last few weeks, everyone wanted to take advantage to go down to the beach. My cousin, Pol, and his kiddos came in from their home to spend the day with us. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins, and none seemed to care that the water was freezing! It was such a pleasant afternoon with a view to match. On the way back, we visited Nana’s grave, and I have to say – she has quite the view. The sea in front of her and Errigal Mountain behind her. Not bad, Nana. Not bad.

After, we headed up to Bloody Foreland, an area about 20 minutes north of where my family lives. It’s gorgeous, and it’s also my parents’ most favorite spot on Earth. I can see why. It’s rugged and windy and just amazing. It’s the very northwest tip of Ireland. Ever feel like you just belong somewhere? That’s how I feel about where my family lives in County Donegal… like I just belong here. Which makes sense, because this is where my roots are.

After a dinner out with some of the family, we brought some flowers back up to Nana’s grave and cleaned it up a bit. The kids were really missing Nana lately, and enjoyed being able to put down some flowers. They wanted to give her stone a hug and kiss and tell her they loved and missed her, and I was able to capture a beautiful picture of it. I miss her terribly, and this was the thing I was most looking forward to while over here. She and I were as close as could be, and it’s been so hard for the past two years not having her around to just call or visit anymore. I spent a nice visit this morning with Nana’s sister, Noreen, and it helps fill that void a bit. 💚

Tomorrow: visiting the Giant’s Causeway and Northern most point in Ireland on an overnight before coming back to Knockastollar.

Driving the Wild Atlantic Way and Family

After a late breakfast, we took the kids out on the rowboat for a tour around the lake. It was fun (mainly because Adam did the rowing and I just got to sit back and enjoy the picturesque view). After that, we headed off on the Wild Atlantic Way route North to Donegal. The WAW route is a stretch of gorgeous road that begins in Southern Ireland and goes all the way over to Giant’s Causeway, along the rugged and, well, wild coast. So much gorgeous countryside! Oh, and lots of sheep ☺️🐑

Once in Donegal Town, we made the split-second decision to tour Donegal Castle, which was a fun segue for all. The castle was built in 1474 by the O’Donnell clan. It was so neat to see the relatively in-tact remains of a castle that old and see how people used to live (especially people with a family last name!). O’Donnell is the last name of my Nana’s sister, who married into the O’Donnell family.

After that, we were on our way up “home.” My lovely cousin, Máire Ann, had a delicious dinner waiting for us, and it was a fun evening catching up with family. We headed right up to visit Nana’s sister, Noreen, who lives right next door. To say that I was happy to see her is an understatement.

Tomorrow: family, the beach, and who knows

The Motherland, Castles, and Sheep

We landed at 0740 in Shannon and immediately searched out breakfast for the kids (and me… who am I kidding? I was way hangry). It’s been a very, very long 24+ hours with minimal sleep. After a bit of a mini-debacle with the rental car, we were on our way! Adam only almost killed us once while adjusting to driving on the left side of the road.

We decided to head to Galway for a little stretch of the legs (and of course Ed Sheeran’s “Galway Girl” was stuck in my head the entire time). We came upon a really neat 13th century church – and one that Christopher Columbus actually prayed at. We then decided on an impromptu visit to the Knock Shrine in… Knock. It was my Nana’s favorite shrine, and I always remember her Knock Holy Water Font in her house by the front door (made of Connemara marble, of course). It was something else for sure.

We finally arrived at our hotel for the evening in Ballymote, Sligo. What a fun, neat find. It’s a 16th century property, a 19th century re-designed Georgian Manor House on a lake, and features not one but TWO castle ruins – one of which happens to be a Knights Templar Castle. The kids enjoyed exploring and going on a walk, we saw some sheep (out of the 1500+ that call this 1,000 acre property home), and decided we are going to attempt to go for a row on the lake in the morning before we leave.

We finished up with an amazing four course dinner with some other couples while our kids fell asleep in the parlour on the couch after their (considerate) dinner of pasta and ice cream (every kid’s dream). As I am not a fan of seafood, the chef was kind enough to make me a starter of roasted duck leg confit, a pickled watermelon and mint salad, short ribs done two ways (braised and croquette with fried potatoes, and a delicious dessert of raspberry sorbet with dark chocolate. 🤤🤤🤤 Adam said the seafood was pretty good. We highly recommend this place and can’t wait to come back!

My family has a long history in Ireland. That’s why I refer to it as the Motherland. Both of my grandparents on my mom’s side were born in Ireland – Nana in Co. Donegal (Craugheyboyle) and PopPop in Co. Tyrone (Strabane). Most of their family still lives there and this visit is mostly going to be time spent in Gaoth Dobhair (Geeedore) and Knockastollar in Donegal with my amazing family.

Tomorrow: family!