Ireland day 0039. Saturday 06 November 2021- M1
Today’s summary | Shopping at Tesco Clarehall in the morning then coast walk in the afternoon up the Broadmeadow estuary as far as the M1 bridge and back | ||||
Today’s weather | Breezy and overcast. No sun but dry. About 14C | ||||
Today’s overview location (the red cross in a circle shows where Val and I are at the moment) |
Close-up location (Click the button below to download a GPX file of this evening’s walk): M1 Broadmeadow |
Commentary
We did this morning what we should have done yesterday. Went shopping.
Because we were in need of yet more cooking equipment to supplement our ever-expanding collection, we had to abandon our nearest supermarket at Swords and head for the spanking-new Tesco Extra at Clarehall. This was a 21st century wonder for me because it had escalator ramps for the trollies and a special clamp mechanism to prevent them rolling out of control with all your stuff when you go down them. Many readers will struggle to comprehend how someone could be as old as me and never have come across these things before. But to me they were a source of wonder and joy, even though I couldn’t work out how the clamps did their jobs so effectively.
Shopping urges suitably satisfied, we drove back to the flat, unpacked, had lunch, and then set out to take advantage of our coastal location with a quick walk up the Broadmeadow estuary.
We essentially followed the same route as our walk to the Swords cinema, but added a few twiddly bits on at the start, following a route I had downloaded from the Viewranger website. The sun was already setting by the time we reached the shoreline, but that didn’t matter as the path is well made up and impossible to lose. The windsurfers were still busy doing their thing in the lagoon, though it seemed to be a specialist form of the art, as the boards had hydroplanes fixed to the undersides which meant they could literally fly above the water at great speed when the wind was strong enough. It looked exhilarating but cold and wet.
Also decorating the shoreline were literally dozens of herons. I don’t think I’ve ever seen quite so many in one place before. There must clearly be good fishing in these parts, as the giant pterodactyls seemed reluctant to give up their favourite fishing spots and lumber airborne, even when I got up quite close.
We chose the M1 viaduct as our destination today not because it has any particular redeeming features, but simply because it is a decent distance away. We took our time to get there, inspecting the natural and human history along the way, but returned far more quickly, propelled by a freshening wind on our backs, and a desire to get back in time for a nice refreshing beer before tea.
Tomorrow’s going to be a significant day in the history of these travels, but you’ll just have to tune in in 24 hours time to find out why.
Today’s photos (click to enlarge)