Ireland's scenic routes?

arybvtcw0eolkf

So as another year begins and we start to dream about places near and far to visit, where in Ireland do you like to ride?.

Or where would you take a visitor/visitors riding here?.

Personally I love the Wicklow Mountains, a bit lazy of a Dublin man you might say but there ya go.

The Cooley Peninsula is also a fav or mine, I also think the Sky Road, Connemara is breath taking.

I'm largely ignorant of West Cork and Kerry.

So lets throw out a few suggestions for those thinking of touring Ireland.

listermint

Rivka Microscopic Guava wrote: »

So as another year begins and we start to dream about places near and far to visit, where in Ireland do you like to ride?.

Or where would you take a visitor/visitors riding here?.

Personally I love the Wicklow Mountains, a bit lazy of a Dublin man you might say but there ya go.

The Cooley Peninsula is also a fav or mine, I also think the Sky Road, Connemara is breath taking.

I'm largely ignorant of West Cork and Kerry.

So lets throw out a few suggestions for those thinking of touring Ireland.

Get to Kerry!

I have never been on the bike as im near new to it, But spent years driving around Kerry on Holidays.


Cant beat it.


Id like to see the north west though. Donegal, havent been in about 12 years.

serious3

There is this new route a few heads are doing, it's called the wild Atlantic way or something.....

TeaBagMania

Im happy with anywhere in the west of Galway, Clare, Kerry, or Cork

A leisurely ride to Mizen Head is nice. They have a big car park, beautiful views, and a small cafe

arybvtcw0eolkf

serious3 wrote: »

There is this new route a fI'ew heads are doing, it's called the wild Atlantic way or something.....

Ok, I'll admit it. I've bought into the whole 'Wild Atlantic Way' thing (I wish Limerick was included, my fav city outside of Dublin).

Shamefully I know more of Europe, and even a few fecking war zones than I do of my own country.

I've spent a good deal of time from Galway to Donegal, but as a soldier its usually with work and have had precious few chances of sampling the west coast for real.

That, plus we're so weather depended too :mad:

serious3

I liveon the wild Atlantic way so I'm biased......head west lads it's lovely out here even when it rains!

CJhaughey

A great spin is from Bantry down to Adrigole, turn Right after the bridge and head up over the Healy pass, this is a fantastic set of curves through an amazing landscape.
On the Kerry side, head for Ardgroom and go out to Pallas pier and ride along the coast road for Cleandra and west out to Dursey Island, then back to Castletownbere.
Great spin and very scenic without the hordes of tour buses that plague much of the Ring of Kerry
https://goo.gl/maps/xP5sPbhZ3io

Wonda-Boy

Ring of Kerry is an absolute must if you are a biker, so is the Ring of Beara and sure throw in the Gap of Dunloe for ****s and giggles. Antrim coast is meant to be lovely too but I have not done that yet.

Cienciano

A2 around the north Antrim coast is my favourite. From Larne to Portrush is fantastic

mr chips

If doing the Antrim coast road, take a slightly indirect route to get there, up the west shore of Lough Neagh: Stewartstown - Coagh - Ballyronan, Moneyglass - Cullybackey - Rasharkin - Garvagh - Coleraine, then head for Portstewart etc to pick up the coast road for the trip south.

The Mournes is great as well if you're heading back that way - Strangford Lough, Newcastle, Spelga Dam, Silent Valley, Hilltown, Rostrevor and the likes - pick a route around there, they're all good.

Big shout out for the Mayo coast run - start at Ballycastle and head west past the Céide fields, through Belmullet and down to the tip of the peninsula (on the map it's Blacksod & Glosh, but there's nothing there apart from a few cottages) to look across at Achill a few miles across the sea. Then go on round to Achill, another 100km by road. :pac:

Coast road from Spiddal and round through Ceathrú Rua all the way up to Clifden. Then up past Letterfrack & Kylemore Abbey. Flip a coin after that.

Magic. :cool:

Tigger

So back in 96 I decided I was gonna move out of Dublin and as a bike courier I was used to serious time in the saddle. I decided to do the 26 counties over a month and see where I wanted to live. This was before the good Friday agreement so the north was a bit scary I want sorta zigzag down the coast and in to the land locked counties
Long story short the Wicklow mountains and the whole coast is amazing
Kerry and Donegal are incredible ( the locals seemed insular at the time) but I decided on Sligo the beaches and coast roads are incredible
I work in Mayo live in Sligo and the drive is amazing still after commuting all these years
The wild Atlantic way is great for a starter so I'd recomend that you recommend it

two wheels good

Ride magazine has included a few Kerry routes in this month's edition. They're in the Portugal Routes supplement!
Also available as GPS downloads here but they're easy enough to follow on a basic road map.

SeamusG97

I used this site to plan a trip in Wales last year and found it good.
These are the Irish roads. I know one or two of them near where I live and the descriptions are about right.

http://www.bestbikingroads.com/motorcycle-roads/motorbike-rides-in-ireland-/ireland-__2948.html

blackbird 49

Donegal, beautiful scenery

SeamusG97

two wheels good wrote: »

Ride magazine has included a few Kerry routes in this month's edition. They're in the Portugal Routes supplement!
Also available as GPS downloads here but they're easy enough to follow on a basic road map.

Excellent. These are going onto the Garmin for when the fine weather arrives. 😎

Wonda-Boy

SeamusG97 wrote: »

Excellent. These are going onto the Garmin for when the fine weather arrives. 😎

The gap of Dunloe is not the best for motorbikes TBH, well it would be if it were not for tourists.

If doing it start from the TOP of the gap not the bottom as the road is better and no tourists and the start of the gap from the bottom you would need a 4x4 for about 5 miles to get through.

Be VERY WARY of horse and carts and Americans who are just not thinking about their safety or anyone else's for that matter.

SeamusG97

Wonda-Boy wrote: »

The gap of Dunloe is not the best for motorbikes TBH, well it would be if it were not for tourists.

If doing it start from the TOP of the gap not the bottom as the road is better and no tourists and the start of the gap from the bottom you would need a 4x4 for about 5 miles to get through.

Be VERY WARY of horse and carts and Americans who are just not thinking about their safety or anyone else's for that matter.

Yes I did it in first gear in August a few years ago in a sea of pedestrians and tourists in hired cars. The latter especially dangerous around a bend on a quiet road where they tend to panic and stop dead in the middle of the road - one ran me up on the grass verge in Glencar on the same day.

Wonda-Boy

Well I found that the tourists can "hire" a horse and just fly along the gap which is absolute madness. Was there last year and an American girl 15 or so was on a horse she clearly had no idea how to control was galloping along a high ridge with a terrible drop one side into lake with cars, bikes and people all around.....recipe for disaster TBH.

Muahahaha

Highly recommend the Beara peninsula. I reckon the scenery is better than the Ring of Kerry and also the Beara has the huge advantage that it cannot fit tour buses. The Ring of Kerry is mobbed with them in the summer but they can't fit around the narrow roads of the Beara which makes it much better for biking.

Can also recommend the Inishowen peninsula in Donegal. If your doing the northern Irish coast theres a ferry over to Greencastle on the Inishowen. Also anywhere around the Donegal gaeltacht is superb, check out Five Finger Strand, also Fintra Beach further south. Glencolucille is a superb village to stop/stay in.

Muahahaha

Highly recommend the Beara peninsula. I reckon the scenery is better than the Ring of Kerry and also the Beara has the huge advantage that it cannot fit tour buses. The Ring of Kerry is mobbed with them in the summer but they can't fit around the narrow roads of the Beara which makes it much better for biking.

Can also recommend the Inishowen peninsula in Donegal. If your doing the northern Irish coast theres a ferry over to Greencastle on the Inishowen. Also anywhere around the Donegal gaeltacht is superb, check out Five Finger Strand, also Fintra Beach further south. Glencolucille is a superb village to stop/stay in.

Cienciano

Muahahaha wrote: »

Can also recommend the Inishowen peninsula in Donegal. If your doing the northern Irish coast theres a ferry over to Greencastle on the Inishowen. Also anywhere around the Donegal gaeltacht is superb, check out Five Finger Strand, also Fintra Beach further south. Glencolucille is a superb village to stop/stay in.

I'd love a week purely to tour around Donegal. If you go to the Inishowen Peninsula, check out Dunree Fort, definitely worth a visit. Slieve League cliffs not far from Killybegs are worth a visit too.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Cienciano wrote: »

I'd love a week purely to tour around Donegal. If you go to the Inishowen Peninsula, check out Dunree Fort, definitely worth a visit. Slieve League cliffs not far from Killybegs are worth a visit too.

Yes, Donegal is beautiful but the natives are fooking nuts :pac:

I've spent a fair bit of time up there with work, and well ~ they don't like ''free staters''

brianfagan

Any good routes around limerick for a spin tomorrow??

Hotblack Desiato

Take any road out of Limerick, and keep going :pac: :pac: :pac:

Seriously though, there's a nice road from Foynes down to Tarbert, or at least there was five years ago but as it's by the coast I presume they haven't managed to straighten out the twisty bits.