Along the Coast to Doolin Harbour

The drive from the Cliffs of Moher to Doolin was beautiful. I drove down R478, Ballard Road, along the coast.  I drove through Burren karst pavements, beautiful green fields, passed ruins and castles to Doolin Harbour.

I drove down unnamed roads to Craggy Island B&B in Ardeamush. Ardeamush is a Townland, near Doolin. In Ireland, a townland is the geographic division name for small areas of Irish Gaelic origin, usually divided before the Norman invasion.

I could see this castle in the distance. I looked for it the next morning.

In every direction are green fields, divided by rock walls. Some of the limestone karst of the Burren shows through the green.

You can see why they call it pavement.  “The rolling hills of The Burren are composed of limestone pavements with criss-crossing cracks known as ‘grikes’, leaving isolated rocks called ‘clints’.” Wikipedia

Crab Island is right in the bay of Doolin Harbour. It acts as a breakwater. There is nothing there but remains of a 19th-century stone constabulary outpost.

This small pier is where the ferry leaves from to go to the Aran Islands and the foot of the Cliffs of Moher. It only runs in the summer. The rest of the year the water has high swells.

People surf and ride jet skis here. There is also a campground full of campers. I thought I had photos of that, but I don’t. It was pretty flat when I was here, but I am told there are high waves at other times.

Looking south, you can see the Cliffs of Mohr and O’Brien’s Tower from Doolin Harbour.

This is the view looking inland from around the Harbour. The round tower is Doonagore Castle, a round tower house built in the 16th-century. Doonagore, in Gaelic Dún na Gabhair,  likely means “fort of the rounded hills” or  “fort of the goats”. I did not see goats. It is on a rounded hill. At one time, late 17^th or early 18^th century, it was owned and repaired by the Gore family, so it is sometimes called Gore’s Castle. There are a lot of square towers, but this is one of only three cylinder castles in the Burren.

People use it as a landmark to get their bearings out at sea or hiking the Burren.  It is not open to the public.

The Irish Coast Guard are all volunteers. This is the station of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard. They do search and rescue both at sea and on and near the cliffs. They also monitor for pollution. To qualify, the Coast Guard volunteers prove themselves at boat handling, first aid, VHF radio operation, navigation, search management, sea survival and other skills.

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