PLAYING FOR BAGUETTES: Connemara Penincula

Kylemore Abby sits majestically in the middle of the Connemara Penincula

As we moved north from the Burren and into the Connemara Penincula, the Irish landscape became much more lush as we left the limestone rock behind. The goal was to hike to the top of Connemara National Park, however the weather decided not to cooperate and we had the opportunity to experience a nice little Irish rain storm. Rather than get soaked, we headed for the town of Clifden to check into our B&B and see if we could find a nice little pub.

Connemara National Park hidden in the rain

And of course there were some sheep wandering the road

Entering the town of Clifden

The Hillside Lodge is a fantastic little B&B with excellent service and beautiful rooms

We checked into the Hillside Lodge, which is located just outside the town and then headed into town for dinner. We had another fantastic meal accompanied by a little bit of Guiness before spending a quite night in the Connemara country side.

Our room at the Hillside Lodge. If you are ever travelling in the Connemara region, give Ruth a call at the Hillside Lodge. You will not be disapointed.

The view out to the Atlantic from the Hillside Lodge

Sampling the Guiness.

Mindy was tempted to try and order a Bud Light, but decided the smart thing to do was stick with the local specialty

The next morning we woke up early to check out Clifden castle before breakfast. The castle was built about 250 years ago, however it has not been maintained and is starting to crumble. It was still pretty neat to check out.

Mindy at the entrance to the castle road

Clifden Castle

The princess surveyed the property and decided that she would stick with the new castle being built back in Canada for her.

After breakfast, we headed to our final destination of our Irish adventure as we returned to Connemara National Park to take in the hike that we missed the day before. The scenery was once again stunning and we had the trail to ourselves. It was a great way to end what had been a fabulous trip.