Ireland – Wild Atlantic Way Route Part 1: The Joy of Adventure Travel; Boomer Style

I’m old and I can prove it. I grew up when our only telephone plugged into the wall and it was a party line (No, it doesn’t mean you’re having a party on the phone). I saw the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan show first run, not on youtube. Yes, that makes me a Baby Boomer. A child of the Woodstock generation. We were the generation that would change the world. We were free spirits full of idealism and hope. So what happened?

I guess life happened. But it wasn’t supposed to happen in the same fashion as our parents’ life. We were different and wild. And because of that, you would think that as we’ve traveled the world – adventure style, we would see many like-aged, USA adventurers. But, alas, we’ve seen relatively few, especially when compared to like-aged Europeans who are out there in droves, with worn hiking boots, weathered faces, and a grin from ear to ear. We Americans appear content with the familiar and the comfortable. When we do venture out, we do it like our parents, in the comfort and safety of cruise ships and all inclusive resorts. Not exactly the way to immerse oneself into another culture, in my opinion. Have we Boomers really lost that zest for the wild and crazy? I don’t know, but it certainly seems so to me. But, I’m here to relate our Ireland experience and hopefully, with a sense of adventure and awe like the good old days of our youth.

Rejuvenated, just having completed our 3 days in the pod (see Carrie’s post), it was now time to move on and begin exploring the Wild Atlantic Way. For those that don’t know, the Wild Atlantic Way (WAW) is billed as the longest defined coastal touring route. It basically covers the west coast of Ireland from the northern most point to the southern most point, hugging the coast all the way, providing an opportunity to drive on some narrow, curvy, and very remote roads including varying amounts of rain at no extra charge. It feels much like Scotland’s North Coast 500, but more traveled and less remote. We have multiple blog posts on the North Coast 500 on our site for those wishing more information. This post will cover the area from Muff to Donegal. Additional information on the Wild Atlantic Way can be found here.

We were feeling pretty lucky as we left Muff for our destination of Mountcharles because we were

actually seeing some blue sky between the moisture laden clouds. A rare sight in these parts. And although the clouds thickened as the day wore on, our luck stuck with us. Oh, in case you’re wondering, Mountcharles is spelled as one word and is pronounced as if it were French. Kind of odd we thought. The following pictures give a small taste of the beauty of the drive for this part of the WAW, which took 3 times as long to drive because we stopped every few minutes for another photo opportunity.

 

 

 

 

 

Carrie has us booked at an AirBnB just outside of the little village of Mountcharles located about 4 miles from Donegal which provided easy access to local sights such as Slieve League, Silver Strand, and St. John’s Point. It’s a gorgeous house with an incredible view with an equally incredible hostess. We were given full kitchen access and we enjoyed many an interesting discussions with our hostess. Our days were spent…Hell, let’s let the pictures tell the story!

Slieve League

 

 

 

St. John’ Point

 

 

 

 

The Silver Strand

 

 

 

Mountcharles

 

And so our WAW journey begins and what a great start. Hopefully you Baby Boomers out there took a few things away from this post like: 1. Throw caution to the wind and leave your comfort zone. 2. Fear not driving on the left side of the road. You get used to it. 3. Get a small car. 4. It is not too late to recapture that craziness of our youth, so get out there and have some fun!

Hike Drink Live Laugh (Apero Time!)

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