Aran Islands, Ireland

[Amanda P]

I'm off to see Mrs Uncle Phil in Ireland next week. She proposes a long weekend trip across to the Aran Islands - with bikes, of course.

I'd never heard of them until today. Anyone been there? What should we see, and what should we not bother with? Any advice on campsites/B&Bs/hostels?

 

[snorri]

I'd never heard of them until today. Anyone been there? What should we see, and what should we not bother with?

You surprise me Uncle Phil never heard of the home of Aran jumpers? I've never been there, but I would imagine you should look out for the sheep.

 

[Gerry Attrick]

Can I come too please? Mrs A and I have been to Inisheer and Inishmore. These islands are well worth the effort of getting there. There are very few motor vehicles so cycling is a joy. Unsurprisingly these days, I think the islanders make the majority of their living from tourism, so prices for food and drink can be steep, but then Ireland is generally expensive these days anyhow.

There are not many "sights" to see other than the glorious scenery, but Dun Aengus is a breathtaking construction on the clifftop on Inishmore and is a must. Other than that, just enjoy the feeling of cycling in an alien landscape, get yourselves on and isolated beach and wallow in the wonderful feeling that you are the only living things within miles.

 

[Cathryn]

Now I want to come too. Shall we have a Cyclechat trip to see Mrs Uncle Phil?

 

[Yellow Fang]

I got stranded on one of the Aran islands for some hours when I was cycling through Ireland a couple of years ago. I thought I'd be smart and cut a corner by taking one ferry to one of the islands and getting another one off, only I had to wait till about 4pm. It seemed like craggy island. I cycled about half a mile in one direction before it became impassible. I didn't bother cycling the other direction.

I liked Doolin, which is a sort of holiday village that has grown up where the ferries leave from.

 

[Amanda P]

You surprise me Uncle Phil never heard of the home of Aran jumpers?

I'd always assumed they were Arran jumpers, from the Scottish Island of that name.

Is Aran a sort of general purpose gaelic word for island or something?

Ah, no - that'd be Ynys/Inch/Insh/Ins/thingy.

 

[Amanda P]

This is going to be a sort of prelude to a longer trip. We plan to spend three weeks bummelling around the south-west generally at the end of August/beginning of September, and then head back for the Moulton owners' weekend at Bradford on Avon (although our elderly Moultons are still in a state of being-done-up-ness. We'll just gawp at everyone elses and think up new ways to spend money on them...)

 

[Twenty Inch]

You'll be able to see the Plassey, the shipwreck that features at the start of the Father Ted episodes. Indeed Craggy Island is loosely based on the Aran Islands.

You might also hear some Gaelic being spoken, as this is one of few areas where Gaelic is a native language.

 

[Amanda P]

Well, I've been. And come back.

I missed the Plassey, but we heard plenty of Gaelic, and the place did have a faint aura of Father Ted. The subject of Father Ted came up on the way back to Banagher, as we went through a town that had very mildly rude words spray-painted on the road signs. "Knickers", said one; "Arse" was another.

We pictured a party of tipsy priests coming home from the pub, daringly writing the rudest words they could think of.

To be honest, there isn't much to see - most of the reccommended "sights" are ruins of one kind and another - apart from the seal colony (which contained no visible seals when we got there. No worries - we've seen seals aplenty elsewhere). As a place to just pootle around and chill out, but with some good pubs, good food and good craic, I'll reccommend it.

Forget the campsite. €10 per person per night for a field and some rather grotty loos is way too much. I would guess other accommodation is similarly pricey. Find a discrete spot away from the villages by the sea and pitch your tent there; just take your own loo roll and a trowel.

There isn't much traffic, as there aren't many roads. What You Do is to hire a bike as soon as you step off the ferry (assuming you haven't brought your own) and Do The Ring of Aran. So on an Irish bank holiday weekend, the place is full of people on bikes, wobbling rather erratically around in the wrong gear, stopping and turning across the road without warning, and not being sure which side of the road it's best to be on (lots of continentals there). All good fun.

The only motor traffic is the mini buses which career around the island at top speed, fetching visitors and their luggage to and from their B&Bs from the ferry. The quicker they do this, the more trips per ferry-load they can fit in, obviously. And when that's done, they do whistle-stop bus tours of the island.

Fortunately, most visitors' response to any approaching vehicle is to stop and get off the road. Given the standard of minibus driving, and the average level of bike control, that's probably just as well....

Anyway, here's some pics to get you drooling:

Oh yes, and guess what these whacky French people are doing: