Mizen Head, Ireland, April 2009
For Easter this year we decided to go to the very southwest of Ireland - Mizen Head in County Cork.
At 2800 square miles, Cork is the largest of all counties in Ireland. Since we were travelling by
car, not air plane, there were more seats available, so we were joined by Ernest the White Valentine bear,
Kevin the Irish tourist bear and Sniffy Lovelysmell, a retired air freshner from the car. McBear had
hoped to sneak in more TA's, however, it might have caused a riot between our owners! So only
5 bears and a dog...
Click each photo to enlarge
Mizen Head, Ireland, April 2009
Mizen Head is located at the end of a long stretching peninsula and at the very tip is on old
weather station with a light house. Due to strong winds we couldn't have our photo taken at the
weather station itself, but at least we had our photo taken at the car park. In the background
we could hear people giggling and talking about us.
"Fame comes at a price...", Roger said.
Drombeg Stone Circle, Ireland, April 2009
We stayed at a Bed & Breakfast in a small town, Clonakilty, on the south coast. Clonakilty was the
home town of the famous national hero, Michael Collins, who fought for Irish independence in 1921.
Not far from Clonkilty was the famous stone circle, Drombeg. This stone circle dates back around
2,000 years.
Drombeg Stone Circle, Ireland, April 2009
Roger was fascinated by the circle and its symbolism. He leaned against one of the stones in an
attempt to sense what may have happened thousands of years ago...
Timoleague, Ireland, April 2009
We went to visit the old abbey in Timoleague and had our photo taken on the graveyard. This oldest
parts of the abbey dates back to the 12th century.
Kanturk, Ireland, April 2009
On our way back from Clonakilty we took the opportunity to visit another of many old castles and
fortresses in Ireland: Kanturk. Its history dates back to the 1500s, but it is believed never to
have been completed, thus it's a ruin today.
Dooagh, Achill Island, May 2009
The first weekend of May we went to Achill Island, an island off the coast of County Mayo. The
last time we had been here was in 2002. At 688 meters Croaghaun is among the tallest sea cliffs
in Europe. From our window we could see the east side of Croaghaun.
We were joined by Tutty the pharaoh bear, Goldie
the Tivoli bear and Kayna the Marks & Spencer seal. We also had the company of Goye, a
poor pet parrot, who Brownie, our monster of a cat, used to play with years ago.
Now Goye had retired and McBear insisted on respecting Goye's rights to be enrolled as
a member of the Travelling Bears and of TARF with equal rights.
Dooagh, Achill Island, May 2009
We were staying at the Westcoast House, a bed and breakfast in Dooagh on Achill Island. In
the lounge Roger discovered the most amazing bear sized sail boat one could imagine.
"Wonder how much it would cost..." Roger mumbled, half to himself.
"We wouldn't be allowed to bring it with us", McBear said. "To much bear stuff in this house!"
McBear continued citing one of our owners...
Keem Bay, Achill Island, May 2009
Next morning we went to the famous Keem Bay at the foot of Croaghaun. It was a lovely
morning, and we enjoyed walking in the sand.
Achill Island, May 2009
With the rest of the group we went uphill to enjoy the splendid views. Tom was concerned about
the small amount of tourists we met on the way as it could affect his business: Tom Teddy
Tours. Roger on the other hand didn't believe recession had such an impact. He pointed out
that there was a lot of new movies being made. Roger was willing to stand for the elections
this year as he believed he could sort out the economy.
Achill Island, May 2009
Then McBear and Roger went off. They were hoping to reach the west side of the island as it
is only from west it is possible to have a view of the sea side of Croaghaun. Phew,
it was tough walking through the tall grass and we constantly got wet paws from invisible
streams...
Achill Island, May 2009
We reached the west side, however, due to strong winds and gales, we couldn't go any further.
But at least we could see parts of the sea side of Croaghaun. To document the event, we insisted
on having our photo taken with Croaghaun in the background. Frances had a tight grip on us
to make sure we weren't blown away...
"Is my hair a complete mess?" Frances asked.
The bears politely kept silent...
Dooagh, Achill Island, May 2009
That night McBear and Roger went to bed before the rest of us and immediately fell asleep.
Belmullet, May 2009
Next day we went to Belmullet which is an island or peninsula north of Achill Island. From the
beach at the southern tip of Belmullet we could see the sea side of Croaghaun. It was an
amazing view.
Dooagh, Achill Island, May 2009
After a couple of days with lovely weather we woke up to a dull day Monday morning. It was
bucketing down and clouds covered Croaghaun in mist. Oh, well, we felt we were back in Ireland
and it was time to head home...
