Day 30: Rathlee Loop: (6.3 miles) and Enniscrone Beach Loop: (4.9 miles)

The next section of my walk is going to be bitty because of the way the roads are set out so instead of walking on boring straight roads between big towns, I have elected to find more interesting circular walks (loops) that will allow me to experience at least some of the coast.

My first walk today was near the village of Rathlee which has at its centre, a large church, a school opposite which is a shrine to Mary and a few miles away an old ruin of a castle belonging to the O'Dowd family which had subsequently been used as a signal tower.

I parked Minty down a dead end road that had a little hard standing near a beach. The tide was fully out and the smell of the seaweed was overwhelming. I made my way across a pebble causeway to find a grassy path that would take me to the next road along and started my walk from there. The locals were friendly ...

The roads were deserted and the only noise was the busy chorus of birds and insects which has been my soundtrack this summer. Some might find this lonely or even bleak but there is a calm in this kind of solitude that I find soothing.

The fishing boats, barely still afloat, were miles away across an uneven landscape of slippy seaweed and rock-pools.

And still, as always the verges of the roads were vibrant with colour. Wild flowers and carefully planted blooms mixing together in rich yellows and hot pinks.

Before I reached the main road from Easky to Enniscrone I found a ruined old castle which had a bench in front of it and which had two plaques telling of its history. The first was barely legible but told of castles and kings ...

 "A ruin of O'Dowd's Castle Iochtar Rath seat of Kings of Tireragh."

And a second one telling of its more recent history, as a signal tower. This plaque another reminder of the pain of local communities who make their living from the sea and who mourn the loved-ones it has taken from them. Again this reminds me of the huge value of the RNLI and its importance to communities who live along the coasts of Ireland and Great Britain.

 I looped around and finally after 6 miles or so I saw Minty appear again in the distance. As I walked towards him I heard the ubiquitous barking of dogs. Every road has a dog in the garden ready to defend its territory from alien invaders such as myself. Rarely to they leave their gardens but some like to follow me and bark until I've walked a safe distance past their kingdoms.  Today I heard the familiar barking of a terrier but the dog on the road was a big, black labrador. He wasn't barking but was eyeing me up. I noticed that his tail was wagging and I decided that he was probably OK. He approached me without shyness and I stopped and held out my hand for him to sniff and make an assessment of me. I'm sure that the fact that I've been staying with two gorgeous female dogs and a cat this week made me quite appealing. The wagging continued and he allowed me to pet him. I'd made a friend. At this moment the source of all the noise came running out onto the road, still barking but clearly with friendly intent as I had been screened by his mate and deemed to be OK. This little guy was all bluster and was very happily managing on three legs. He wanted some of the tickles and patting that Black Dog was getting too. Then we all three walked together down to the end of the road to Minty. Black Dog left and returned home but Three-legged Terrier stayed with me until I pulled off. If he could he'd probably have waved me off.

My next stop was Enniscrone, a small seaside town with a large beach. I parked by the pier where the Wild Atlantic Way post was placed in the most unusual place - right in front of the public toilets (the Gents to be exact!). Bizarre!

I headed down the slipway onto the beach and clambered over the seaweed-clad rockpools towards the sand. There were a few people gathering periwinkles and seaweed in buckets. Local industries in places like this make use of the bounties of the shallows and seaweed is used for cooking, as a fertilizer and for remedies.

The sun was hiding behind a cloudy veil and although it was quite warm the sea breeze was refreshing. I have to say it was a perfect day for walking.

I walked 2.5 miles down the beach to the tip where the dunes on my left were cut off by a little river that separated a little island from the beach. I tried to walk over the dunes to the other side but the terrain was too difficult so I walked back along the beach to the town instead.

One of the main attractions in Enniscrone is McMullen's Bath House. In a purpose-built Edwardian building the Bath House first opened for business in 1912 but the McMullen family had been in the seaweed bath business since the middle of the 19th Century.  You do not need an appointment. You just show up and enjoy the experience. First you have a steam sitting in a little wooden cupboard with your head poking out the top. This is to open your pores and then you have your bath. The bath is full of hot sea water and seaweed. You can add hot or cold water as you please and you just relax and allow the oils and minerals to sooth your muscles and joints.  It was actually glorious! When you finish you have a quick blast of freezing cold seawater from a shower overhead to close your pores again. That woke me right up! After walking 11 miles it was just what the doctor ordered.

When I finally dragged myself out my skin was positively glowing!  The dull day had been replaced by sunshine and the tide was starting to cover the rocks.

I had a lovely day today. It was the kind of day I'd imagined when I set out on this adventure. I hope that I can experience some more days just like this one.

Total mileage: 408 miles

Raising money for the RNLI on www.justgiving.com/Jane-Volker