Day 17: Lettermacaward to Ardara (7.8 miles)

I slept like a baby (the type that sleeps) last night. There is something comforting about the sound of the rain falling on a skylight. This morning when I woke up it was still raining but it was the gentle rain of an Irish soft day. My hosts, Anne and Rainer, were the loveliest and friendliest of couples and breakfast was smoked salmon, a range of continental meats and cheeses and whatever you'd like from the full Irish cooked breakfast. I had some eggs and toast with a little brie and smoked salmon. It was delicious. I talked with Rainer (I hope that's how you spell it) about his koi carp and pond which was very impressive. It made me think that I should do something about how over-grown ours has become. I had a lot of fun talking with Anne. She had some great stories about the area which she clearly loves with all its eccentricities.

One of the lovely thing about staying in B&Bs is that you get to meet other travelers. The other guests, aside from being friendly and interesting were also incredibly kind, offering to take the big backpack on to today's hotel. Anne and Rainer were very concerned about me walking through the roadworks over the bridge. It took very little to convince me to take a lift to the point where my alternative route left the main drag so I didn't get caught up in them. As my fellow guests were going that way anyway I went with them. The road was full of blind turns with no space to step out of the road away from oncoming traffic. I feel a little like I cheated today because this knocked a little over 2 miles off my walk. However I do think that that section of the road was too dangerous to walk (the reason for the major road works is to straighten the road because these bends are also quite dangerous to drivers.) So a very big thank you to Keith and Catherine for all your kindness to me. It is very much appreciated.

The route I took to Ardara (pronounced Ar-drah) was perfect - a narrow winding boreen with spectacular views and practically no traffic. At Maas I had to cross the road I'd avoided to take more winding roads. Although not as narrow as the first road, it had a better surface and again, very little traffic. This section of the walk was back into the boggy, barren landscape I've become so accustomed to. The distant hills were shrouded in rain-clouds. These are the very hills I will be negotiating tomorrow. Having driven the route with Tim the day before yesterday I can promise that it's fairly spectacular.

As I strolled along, lost in my own head, I started to notice that there was a rumble in the distance that was getting louder. Then over the horizon a large convoy of maybe 20 tractors of various ages came roaring into view. The drivers were clearly having a blast as they hooted their horns and yahooed loudly as they passed me. What else you you do on a Sunday morning in Donegal?

After the tractor rally had left and the quiet returned I found myself on the outskirts of Ardara. It had only taken three hours to get here. I didn't even have a back ache yet! Never mind, I thought, I could just mooch around town for a couple of hours after all the sign at the edge of town and another on the bridge seemed so promising. The only thing was as it's Sunday all the interesting little shops were closed. It was totally deserted. It was 2pm - a little early for a check in - but I had nowhere else to go, so I went to my hotel and asked if it was OK to check in a bit early. The lady at reception was very obliging and told me that my room was just ready and she'd already taken my backpack up. So I've spent the afternoon resting up, having a bath and planning the rest of my week. It's been very relaxing indeed.

Tomorrow will be a lot more challenging.




Total Mileage: 226.2 miles