The first leg of the Mizen to Malin cycle took us 119 Kilometres, from Mizen Head, near Schull in Co. Cork, to Killarney, Co. Kerry. In between those two places lies the sleepy (at that time on a Monday morning, at any rate...) village of Goleen, the historic Bantry, Kenmare and Dromyrourk. There was also the small matter of the beautiful Ring of Kerry, with its' 1600ft mountain passes and "seasonal" weather conditions to contend with... and it's only the first day?!
The lads attacked it right from the start at the Signal Station at Mizen Head, setting a good pace straight away. After two hours they were rolling past Bantry Bay, after three they were almost to Kenmare. From there the ascent really got serious, over Moll's gap was tiring to drive, so I can imagine how it was to cycle (see the pics if you don't believe me!).
Still, at 3pm the lads were done for the day, it was one of the longer legs of the trip over some of the toughest terrain, and both Phil and Rob seemed happy with how it had gone.
Even in spite of unconfirmed rumours of nappy-rash, Robert had this to say: "Yeh, that was grand". Hardy, hardy man... Phil ran out of food and had an energy dip coming into the last 10K, but he dealt with it like the trooper he is. After arriving in Tralee, he had this to say: "Jaffa Cakes, and Skittles. Stat."
And so, we camp up in Killorglan the night. The casserole that Doris has prepared smells great, the beds are comfortable, and we should be in good form striking out for Limerick in the morning...
Tom
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment