Ireland day 0215. Sunday 01 May 2022- UKvisitors02

Ireland day 0215. Sunday 01 May 2022- UKvisitors02
Today’s summary Took the bus and train to Howth then completed a circular loop of the eastern half or the headland.   Very enjoyable but very wet.   Kathmandu Kitchen for curry in the evening
Today’s weather Rain more or less all day.   Heaviest in the morning.   no sun, hardly any wind.   About 12C
Today’s overview location
(The blue mark shows the location of our route)
Close-up location
(The green line shows where we walked)
(Click button below to download GPX of today’s walk as recorded, or see interactive map at bottom with elevations corrected):
Howth 2 and the Ben
Commentary

The second day of our guests’ visit was mirrored in the weather – the second day of continuous rain.   Actually it didn’t disrupt our plans too much – more disruption was actually caused by Iarnród Éireann who chose this busy bank holiday weekend to close the DART between Bray and Greystones for engineering work.   So we had to fall back to plan B – an exploration of Howth Head on foot instead of our favourite Bray to Greystones clifftop walk.

Yesterday’s alcohol-fuelled whistle-stop tour of Dublin had left us somewhat hazy this morning.   So we enjoyed a leisurely morning with brunch at the flat then took the 102 bus down to Sutton and jumped on that bit of the DART that was still working, to speed us the last leg of the journey to Howth.

The path round the headland – one of many in fact – starts right opposite the train station and heads straight up the hillside alongside the park.   After winding through a couple of smart looking housing estates, we quickly emerged into open countryside and with a bit of careful navigation we soon found our way up to the top of the Ben of Howth – the highest point on the headland – and the superb views (somewhat cloud-obscured) in all directions.

From the top we struck out more or less due south in the general direction of the Baily lighthouse, picking our way through the tidal wave of slugs that today’s rain unleashed, and onto the network of paths that criss-cross the headland.  From there we could pick up the main circular path round the eastern part of the headland, and follow it all the way round back to Howth village.   We paused a couple of times along the way, to enjoy a hasty lunch, and to to watch the ferries beavering their way across the Irish Sea from Dublin to Holyhead and back.

Once back in Howth, we spent a few moments exploring the harbour and its impressive breakwaters, then paused in a café to dry out before re engaging with the public transport network and the return journey to Malahide.   After a quick pause for a shower and a couple of pre-prandial drinks, we rounded off the day with an enjoyable curry in the ever-excellent Kathmandu Kitchen before deciding to call it a day just before the witching hour, and heading off to bed.   A day lived fully, and as all agreed, very enjoyably.

 

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)

Two weeks ago on Wicklow Head, the sea thrift was still in bud.   But after a fortnight of sunshine, they were in full bloom on Howth today Looking over Dublin Bay to the Great Sugarloaf, on the horizon, centre right
Today’s path, with Lambay Island on the horizon.   Despite the rain, it was still quite busy.   But it was a Bank Holiday Sunday, I guess I’ve decided I want this house.   It’s high on the cliffs on the south side of the Howth peninsula, with magnificent views over Dublin Bay away to the mountains.
Heading off down the sneaky little alley we discovered which leads down to the Baily lighthouse headland A different lighthouse, this one down at Howth harbour
The full view of Howth harbour
Interactive map

(Elevations corrected at  GPS Visualizer: Assign DEM elevation data to coordinates )

Total distance: 10896 m
Max elevation: 163 m
Min elevation: 0 m
Total climbing: 444 m
Total descent: -442 m
Total time: 03:39:16
Download file: Howth Again corrected.gpx

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