This trip was wrapped around a canal boat trip in Scotland, in late September. Yes, the canal boat trip is likely to be cool, and wet. My packing list for this trip can be found HERE. A brief summary of our trip:
- 1 day in London with Craig guiding us on an extra long walking tour.
- 4 days Cinque Terre in Italy
- 9 days in Ireland
- 7 days on canal boat (Falkirk/Edinburgh/Glasgow)
- 4 days UK (drive to Isle of Skye, and then London)
Some Maps
Driving around Ireland (September 17 to 26)
Canal Boating in Scotland
Driving around Scotland and England
Day by Day
- Tuesday, September 10 – Flew to London
- Flights were uneventful. Highlight was Craig continually passing us extra goodies.
- We dozed a little bit on the flight, but not much
- Wednesday, September 11 – Play in London with Craig (Photos)
- We arrived in London on schedule around 6:30 am, and were just as groggy as expected.
- The Underground to the Dannubius Hotel was okay, but included a lot of walking, wearing double pack, along deep corridors and packed subway trains. We tried to occupy as little space on the trains as possible, but the packs definately made things awkward. Overall, the trip was reasonabley quick and we arrived at the Dannubius WAY to early to check in.
- We had a few hours before meeting up with Craig, so we walked towards and through Hyde park. This took a few hours, and included a stop for coffee at Harrison’s Coffee.
- Then back to the hotel and pick up our guide, Craig for a long wander through parts of London that we have never seen. We got home well after dark, and fell asleep quickly, after booking tickets on the National Express for the ride to the airport.
- Thursday, September 12 – Fly to Pisa (Photos)
- The next morning we got up early (for us) and the National Express bus stop was much closer than we expected. And the bus was gorgeous, and relaxing. Even with a small congestion delay, we arrived at Stansted pretty much on time.
- RyanAir (and Stansted Airport) were just fine. Low budget seems to be about our speed.
- Arrived Pisa on time, luggage showed up, and we loaded ourselves up for the 1 km walk to our accommodations. Which turned out to be brilliant. Not so good from the outside, but the inside was wonderful. We were thrilled.
- We relaxed for a bit, and then wandered off downtown to visit the Leaning Tower, and find dinner. The main shopping street was bustling, and made Pisa more than just the tower. Our Pizza dinner at Kiste was great. And the walk in the dark back, through the train station to our home was pleasant enough.
- Friday, September 13 – Train to Cinque Terre (from Pisa to Manarola) (Photos)
- We mosied over to the train station around 10, no rush because we didn’t want to arrive too early in Cinque Terre. We got there too early anyways, and had to hang around the door of our accomodations… Got in after an hour or so. Place turned out to be wonderful. And extrememely busy. We wandered the town, explored the harbour, bought groceries and Sandy made a pasta dinner. Manarola is very nice.
- Saturday, September 14 – Hike Montorosso to Venezza to Corniglia (Photos)
- We took an early train to Montorosso, and then had to wait some time in Montorosso to buy our trail passes. No problem, coffee and sea glass collecting
- Wandered along and up and down along the Blue Trail. Lots of variety, in the quality and views of the trail, and of the people hiking the trail. We took our time. Most of the towns were packed with people, but the trails weren’t bad. Usually a few people 50 feet in front of us, and the same behind us.
- We went out for a fancy dinner just a few doors down from our home base. Food was just okay, but we were glad to go out at least once. Sandy was fun to watch wrestling with her King Prawns.
- Sunday, September 15 – Manarolo to Riomaggiore and back (Photos)
- First we hiked the steep mountain route. This was the only route between Manarolo and Riomaggiore until 1931 when the Via dell’Amore (Lovers’ lane) was built. This was an excellent and hard hike, lots of very steep steps which went on for forever. Loved it.
- Explored Riomaggiore, and then spent a few hours on the rocky beach, evening swimming in the big surf. We used the ladder to avoid getting crunched on the rocks.
- Wandered back along Lover’s Lane, which dissappeared under a landslide in 2012. Twelve years later, it has finally re-opened, just for us,which is pretty much a concrete path your could roller blade along. Impressive construction, but underwhelming otherwise.
- Sandy and Kim cooked another pasta meal, which we ate outside on the balcony again. Desert was a single Magnum icecream bar which we cut into many pieces. It was excellent. Life is good.
- Monday, September 16 – Travel by train to Genoa (Photos)
- Trains are definitely the way to go in Italy. The first half of the ride was quick and luxurious. Then things hit the fan, as the next train, a slow regional one, suddenly changed to a different track at the last minute. Lots of running/rushing/questioning as we finally got on to the TR train… Which didn’t leave for another 20+ minuites. This train was SLOW and stopped everywhere. We had bought tickets to one of the first stops in Genoa, and were expecting to take an hour long bus ride across town. However, enroute, we discovered that our train was likely to continue to a station which was just a 15 minute walk from our next home! And it did. Life is good.
- We expected to meet up with our host to get into our Bnb, but due to s series of miscommunications, we ended up waiting for an hour and a half while we figured out what we had done wrong. Eventually, we got into Casa Leonardo, which turned out to be an awesome little apartment, furnished with espresso and cookies and milk.
- A big open pedestrian mall was also 5 minutes away. We did a test walk to the airport to prepare ourselves for the 4 am walk the next day, then set off looking for a restaurant. Finally returned to a nice kebab place which we had passed by several times. We enjoyed the food, even it was a little different from what we are used to.
- Tuesday, September 17 – Fly to Amsterdam + Dublin, drive 2 hrs to Belfast (Photos)
- Today started ridiculously early. We woke at 3:30 am, and were out the door, loaded up with our backpacks by 4 am. The walk to the airport was quick, and much easier even in the dark, since we had just done it.
- Getting on our flights (KLM to Amsterdam, then to Dublin) was actually pretty smooth and easy. As was picking up our rental car.
- We took off towards NewGrange. Looks like an awesome set of neolithic passage tombs, but we were only able to see them from a distance. All of the tours were booked solid for the next several days. At least the visitor’s center had an excellent audio/visual presentation.
- Visited Carlingford, and explored the town along with several medieval ruins.
- Arrived at Bloom 19 and discovered that Sandy and Karin has found yet another awesome BnB.
- We decided to eat in again, so Sandy and Karin visited Lidl for groceries. Karin whipped up butter chicken for us!
- Wednesday, September 18 – Drive to Londonderry (Photos)
- Before leaving Belfast, we took in a walking tour. Brian of Yellow Umbrellas was awesome. We really enjoyed the trip, and learned a lot
- Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. Cool to see. The bridge itself was okay, but the scenery around it was great.
- Giant’s Causeway. A truly remarkable natural rock formation. The columns themselves tended to be about a foot in diameter, and resembled those from Devil’s Postpile in California. But you can walk on these, as far out as the tide will let you. And they go on for hundreds of yards. Awesome
- Arrived at Windsor House only to discover that the lockbox code didn’t work. Contacted owner and we figured that text to Sandy’s old phone number went nowhere. Got a new code and all was good. Place was at least 100 years old, with some of the original plumbing. Plenty good for us. Two huge master bedrooms, one on the 2nd floor, one of the 3rd floor. Comfy and warm, once we managed to crack the heating system.
- Dinner was a set of MONSTER donair/gyro wraps from a Turkish place 100 feet from our front door. No-one managed to eat more than half.
- Thursday, September 19 – Drive to Sligo (Photos)
- Again, before leaving we took in a walking tour This time, John took us around the walls of the Walled City. Also very interesting, but the accent and fast talking made this tour less relaxing than our previous one. Also lots of dates and people. Still worth doing. John’s biases were not hidden.
- The boys went disc golfing at a very cute, 9 hole course. Very short, tight and wooded
(LondonDerry St. Columbs). We then walked back to the car via the swoopy Peace Bridge - We then drove to Donagal Castle, which turned out to be a nicely restored castle. The tour included lots of info about why and how the manors in this area were built, and a whole whack more info about the clans which dominated northern Ireland in the early 1600s. The O’Neals figured prominently!
- Had a quick bite in a pub and then drove to our next BnB, the Station Lodge. Found it easily, and had no problems getting access this time!
- Dinner was the 2nd half of our giant donairs from the night before. Still pretty good. Still didn’t manage to finish it.
- Friday, September 20 – Drive to Galway (Photos)
- Quick visit to Tesco and a walk around “downtown” Sligo.
- Strandhill Beach is a huge beach, lots of sand and pebbles at low tide. The surrounding grassy sand dunes are impressive too.
- The Glen in Sligo is advertised as hard to find. We found the trail head easily, but the trail in the woods quickly became confusing and we ended up somewhere else. After we gave in and stumbled back up the trail, we blundered in to the Glen. Pretty cool with the two tall rock faces on either side of a flat chunk of land. Nice to have succeeded.
- Aughris Beach was entered into the Google Maps, and we spent a lot time time driving along smaller and smaller country roads to the ocean. Got squeezed into reverse by a large tractor. Ended up with our front bumper looking out ever a big beach and some rocks. Not worth rock collecting but cool to see.
- The Aughris Coastal Walk was nearby and we drove along a bunch more tiny roads to get there. We started on the walk, meandered along the top of some cliffs. Then found the perfect rock collecting spot, a small bay, full of rounded pebbles and boulders driven up and down the beach by the waves.
- Finally found St. Bridgets Apts. Check in was in the lobby of the Western Hotel, which wasn’t described anywhere
- Galway was a zoo, and lots of fun. Wandered downtown into the party, looked for dinner in a pub, failed all because they were ALL shutdown for food. We found a very nice Moroccan restaurant up a narrow staircase.
- Saturday, September 21 – Drive to Castle View House on Carrig Island (Photos)
- First, Sandy had to climb out the window of our apartment because she got locked inside due to some checkout confusion.
- Dunguaire Castle was cool to walk around. I didn’t realize swans were happy in salt water. We also got a chance to see some thatched-roofed houses.
- Drove up into the mountains to see the Corcomroe Abbey, founded in 1194. The monks wanted a remote and isolated location. Mission accomplished.
- Cliffs of Moher is an impressive geological formation. Tourism is in full force here, and safety is paramount. It was also very crowded. Still impressive.
- We had a quick coffee and lunch at Foodie Korner in Ennistymon. Nice little spot and good food too.
- The Flying Boat Museum in Foynes was closed, but the giant Boeing B134 replica was easily visible over the fence.
- We drove past the castle and crossed the causeway to Carrig Island at 5:30. Castle View House is a very cute BNB and we liked the rooms. The early arrival gave us time to check in, and go for an exploratory walk before dinner.
- Sad to say, Carrigafoyle Castle closed before we got there and we only got to walk around it. This was partially compensated for by visiting a nearby abbey, which was totally overgown with ivy.
- Dinner was an excellent home cooked meal, roasted chicken and lots of vegies. And apple pie and coffee.
- Sunday, September 22 – Drive the Dingle Ring (Photos)
- Garnet served us a wonderful breakfast
- Stumbled across what looked like a working windmill. Very impressive.
- We started the drive in drizzle, and by the time we summited Connor Pass, the fog and cloud was so dense, Couldn’t see anything, road included.
- The “Sheep Dog Farmer” was probably the highlight of the day. Feeding the sheep, goats, donkeys and horses was a lot of fun. The two dogs, Captain and Rose, were friendly, enthusiastic and clever. The farmer was awesome, fun to listen to and full of information.
- Cashel Murphy, a tightly knit group of beehive dwellings about 5000 years old was really cool. Even had a small basement cave to store food in. And we were allowed to climb down into it.
- Teac Couminole Café, Coumeenoole Beach, Dunquin Pier, Connor Pass (fail again)
- The Dingle Marina Lodge turned out to be perfect, and we even had a parking spot across the street. And it included breakfast!
- Walked around town, and then visited the Dingle Pub for pub grub and live music.
- Monday, September 23 – Drive the Kerry Ring (Photos)
- Wonderful breakfast at the lodge. We had a choice of salmon, potato and bacon pancakes, or waffles, all with some very healthy options. Excellent.
- Stopped at Rossbeigh. Tide was high so rock collecting was delayed. Warren hiked into the dunes.
- Leaving Rossbeigh the road was closed, so we had to turn back and take a bigger road. The new road wasn’t much bigger.
- The Glenbeigh bridge was historic
- Coffee stop of Goldens of Kells included a vintage Vietnam Huey helicopter on display
- Portmagee and step onto Valentia Island, Cliffs of Kerry, Sneem bridge over rocky waterfall, Killarney National Park, Torc Waterfall
- Found Park Place Apts in Killarney, and a parking spot in an inside garage was included. Luxury. Apartment was huge and nice.
- Dinner was home cooked Polish food, which was found in a Polish-only grocery store next door. Perogies and sausages, cooked with onions. And sour cream.
- Tuesday, September 24 – Drive to Dublin through Cork (Photos)
- Toast and instant coffee for breakfast.
- Drove back in Killarney NP to visit Muckross House and Muckross Abbey. The friary was the best yet. And the “Jaunty Cars” were fun to have around.
- Visit Cork and the Cork City Gaol
- Long drive to Dublin, traffic jams made it even longer
- Blundered our way into our new home, the Parnell Apts. Pretty close to the downtown, also right in the center of a massive city bus and tram interchange
- Sandy made awesome tacos. Warren drank Irn Bru
- Wednesday, September 25 – Explore Dublin (Photos)
- We walked to our walking tour. Ciarán was excellent and provided a great summary of Irish and Dublin history. We wandered around town in the drizzle, which turned to rain about halfway through the walk. Great tour.
- What was meant to be a quick bite at the Copper Alley Bistro turned into a big meal.
- The Guiness tour was okay… Too much multi-media and too little actual brewing for my taste, but glad to have done it once. The sky view pub on the 7th floor with a pint of Guiness was memorable, even for the Pepsi drinkers.
- The rain got harder and we got soaked walking back home. Warren snuck out to KFC (nothing else open) for a quick bite, because he hadn’t eaten vast quantities of mussels at lunch.
- Packed up and got ready to leave the next morning.
- Thursday, September 26 – Fly to Edinborough, bus and train to Falkirk (Photos)
- Left at 8:15 and immediately got stuck in multiple traffic jams. Dropped off rental car close to expected time, hung around airport, and flew with Aer Lingus to Edinburgh.
- Got a bus towards Edinburgh, then switched to a train going to Falkirk. A pleasant experiance all round, and we got to our hotel after a 20 minute walk. The Park Hotel was very nice, and we relaxed for a bit.
- A hour long walk down to the Kelpies, which were very impressive. Waited to see them in the dark as well, then got a taxi back to our hotel for an excellent dinner.
- Friday, September 27 – Board canal boat at 13:30-ish
- Breakfast at the hotel was included so we did that first. Then Sandy and Karin went grocery shopping, while Kim and Warren walked along the canal to the Falkirk wheel. Again, very impressive.
- Warren and Kim started on the forms for our canal boat trip, and the rest of the gang arrived soon after: Bill & Joan, Craig & Barry, then Sandy and Karin pulled up in a taxi loaded with our baggage and groceries. Our boat was ready early, so we met up with Alan, who did our boat handover speech and walked us through the boats features and we were off. The canal boat trip is summarized HERE.
- September 27 to October 4 – A week of canal boating Falkirk to Edinburgh and back
- Our canal boat summary page can be found HERE.
- Friday, October 4 – Drive to the Isle of Skye (Photos)
- Bill and Warren picked up the rental cars and returned to the wheel to pick everyone up. We then went our separate ways.
- Our rental car died after an hour on the road. Luckily, Perth was only 15 minutes away, even in limp-mode. Unluckily, they didn’t have an equivalent vehicle, But after an hour, they found us a slightly smaller Vauxhall Corsa. The bright orange colour was a plus. We managed to jam our luggage into it, and proceeded on our way, only losing an hour or so.
- Rain and fog continued for most of the drive. We grabbed a rather poor bite to eat in Kyle of Lockalsh.
- The drive across the Isle of Skye and was slow and gloomy in the darkness and rain and fog. We pulled into Loch Eyre Oasis. Turned out to be a marvelous place.
- Saturday, October 5 – Explore the Skye East loop (Photos)
- Mostly driving along small, single lane roads, stopping every few minutes.
- Fairy Glen, Coffee in Portree at Relish, hillside waterfall, Old Man of Storr hike, Lealt Falls, Kilt Rock Waterfall, An Corran Dinosaur Footprints, Quiraing Overlook
- Dinner at the Tongadale Hotel in Portree
- Sunday, October 6 – Explore the Skye West loop, drive to Taigh Sealladh Fèidh (Photos)
- Dunvegan Castle, Coral Beach, Talisker Distillery (no tour), Café Cùil, Fairy Pools
- Drove hard to get to Taigh Sealladh Fèidh B&B in time for our evening meal. Awesome roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, and apple strudel with custard. Enjoyed our hosts, Dan and Lucy. And their dogs, Skye and Talisker.
- Monday, October 7 – Drive to Nottingham (Photos)
- Another great meal by Dan and Lucy. Highlight was the Scottish Cranachan
- Lots of construction along our route
- Glencoe, Doune, Highland Coo, Falkirk Kelpies, Seaham Hall Beach, York Shambles
- Drive hard to get to Tudor Lodge Hotel. Closed freeway on-ramps delayed us even more, but we still made it by 10 pm. 13 hours of road travel.
- Tuesday, October 8 – Drive to Heathrow, fly to Saskatoon (Photos)
- Included English Breakfast was nice, and we were on the road by 9
- Much highway construction
- Rain during most of the drive, some of it quite heavy
- Dropped car off, Jack of Enterprise was very helpful, shuttle was quick
- Flights to Toronto and Saskatoon were mostly on time. And we changed our seats for free.
- Ran into Jackie in Toronto Airport. And also ran into Tim Trishchuk in the airport. It has been 30 years since we worked together at SED.
- Arrive Saskatoon at 22:50 – ish, and Keiran picked us up.