Day 10: Dublin -> St. John's Newfoundland (nope) -> Deer Lake (sort of) -> Toronto (okay?) -> Halifax

The trip home was an interesting one, due to weather we were not able to land on the east coast and landed in Deer Lake to fuel up, there was an arrest there as a lady tried to get off the plane, and then we headed to Toronto. I had a middle seat, which I usually don't enjoy but I had two of the best seat mates I've flown with in Suzanne (an employee for WestJet, and Jodi (a girl from Ireland going to see her brother in Edmonton. All of us stuck together in Toronto until we all had our rerouted flights sorted out, it was a long haul back home but I am glad to have my own bed, and MAY have gotten in some poutine before getting home. A big thank you to Phillip for picking me up at the airport as well I'm sure my tired sporadic stories and poor smell made for a challenging drive.

Ireland is a wonderful country. I'll say it is easily the best place I have ever been. The sights initially get you, but its the people, the culture, the history that keep you there and make you realize what a special place it is. I will be coming back I thought this several times driving through how there was still so much to learn and experience, and that the landscape and the people of Ireland provide a sense of home when you're there. It has everything to offer, and will always be a special place to me. One thing that struck me was when I was back in Dublin. I was trying to find a pub. There was a gentleman running and I quickly just asked if he knew where it was. He stopped, got out his phone, looked it up, as he was unsure. He asked me about my trip, what I saw, about the fundraiser, about other places to see in Dublin. His name was Rob. But Rob's were everywhere. It is shocking how thoughtful and selfless people are here. The drivers are pleasant, they stop on yellow, they don't use their horn to be asses, they are courteous and always want the best for the other person, it is a wonderful country.

Day 9: Carlow-> Kildare -> Dublin


From Carlow I got up packed up for the last time going on the bike (a little sad about this) and headed towards Kill. I drove around the countryside some and took in the last of the sights before heading back to Celtic Rider to see Paul and Louise and drop off the bike. They warmly welcomed me back and I didn't have a lot of time before catching a bus back into Dublin, but enough to speak to them about the highlights and how much I really loved the trip and the sights and people of Ireland.

Paul then drove me to the Bus stop, he waited with me, he talked about the town and it's history, the trip had ended much as it had started he took time out of his busy day again to really make sure I had a good time and could appreciate the history of the area, quite remarkable. Once on the bus I headed back to downtown Dublin where I stupidly carried my bag for a few kilometers to the hotel. I changed and headed back down to the Jameson Distillery and had a tour before heading to The Brazen Head Pub (thank you Julia and Paul for the recommendation) it is the oldest pub in Ireland, founded in 1198. There I enjoyed a few pints of Guinness and had a meal, Guinness marinated beef stew, it was delicious. From there I went to the Temple Bar and enjoyed live Irish music while sitting at a table with two guys from Liverpool, two from Germany, a guy and girl from USA and one from Australia, it was pretty special to swap stories and talk about our experiences.

I then headed to one last pub, the name escapes me, before heading back finishing packing and gather a few hours sleep before heading to the airport for Canada.

Day 8: Cork -> Blarney -> Waterford -> Kilkenny -> Carlow

Cork had been an amazing time, but it was time to move along the south east to the south west. Just outside downtown Cork was the Blarney Castle, where the Blarney Stone was located. The grounds were awesome and the castle itself was well laid out with lots of historical references to read along the way. The wait to kiss the Blarney stone (which is thought to bring the gift of gab and flattery, both of which I found a lot of Irish to have!) Along the narrow steps and footpaths (as well as signs of enter at your own risk we take no responsibility type things) the lady behind me was from Quebec City. She had noticed the Canadian flags on my jacket and we struck up conversation. Sadly her husband had passed away before their aniversary and she had been to Belgium and other parts of Europe, as well as here, to take in the sights and was supposed to have done the trip with him. It was nice to spend the hour walking up with her, talking about life and her perspective on it, really made me happy I was doing my trip and trying to get the most out of everything and not to worry about the small things but also not to take anything for granted. We had taken each others photos with the stone and then headed our separate ways.

I drove to Waterford and had planned on seeing their famous crystal but forewent it due to being a little soggy (didn't get the rain gear on quick enough) and smelly (being in full gear climbing stairs for an hour doesn't help. I stopped into Kilkenny for a coffee before setting my sights outside Dublin to Carlow, I knew here I could relax for the night and drive around some of the backroads before heading back to Kildare to drop off the motorcycle the next day. 

Today I took a lot of the major motorways (even encountered my first toll) but was necessary to make up some time and complete the "around the country" feel. I kept thinking to myself how eager I am to come back and see the places, like Wexford and Bray, that I unfortunately missed on this tour. Carlow for the night and one last bit of Irish driving before heading back to Celtic Rider tomorrow!

Total km: 210km

Day 7: Ennis -> Killimer -> Tarbert -> Tralee -> Ring of Kerry -> Cork

Day 7 was by far the longest day I encountered. I started off from Ennis in the wetsuit and headed towards

the ferry to save some time, the wind had been quite aggressive driving on the Atlantic Way. Driving in rain, heat, rough roads all of which I can handle quite well, but wind is one thing I truly dislike encountering as it can throw you off quite quickly especially with a motorcycle you are unfamiliar with! I drove from Tralee (a wonderful little town) to the Ring of Kerry. If you ever visit Ireland this has to be a stop for you. I was so fortunate as well that the skies cleared while I was on the most Westernly point of the ride to have sun and beautiful scenery around me on the narrow windy roads.
 

 I decided to land into Cork for the night where I went to Reardens Bar and a few other establishments, I ended up meeting a lot of really great people to enjoy the evening with, I still am astonished by the level of genuine kindness here, especially thank you to Ian for driving and Jenny for helping me find accommodation! I have many offers out to those wanting to come over and see Nova Scotia that are standing. My Canada hat is now in the hands of a Cork resident, whoever you are, please enjoy it! Julie and Jessica it was wonderful to meet you as well and I wish your brothers all the best Julie, it was the first person I met who had personally had a connection to Cystic Fibrosis on the road and it was really nice to speak to you about them and I wish them all the best, I kept their stories as motivation while on the road.

Total kms: 325km

Day 6: Cong -> Doolin -> Cliffs of Moher -> Ennis

Waking up Sunday was a little rough, but Kayla and I went to the Falconry School on the Ashford Castle grounds to take out Harris Hawks for a walk through the woods, this was so much fun, Chico was my bird and he would come and go searching for food (and mushrooms) thank you again to Dana and Kayla for allowing me to do this it was a blast! We then took a tour of the castle and got to see some of the rooms and accommodations (some rooms are a few thousand euro a night!) there was a wall of fame where presidents and actors like Regan and Brad Pitt had visited, pretty cool.

It was a very very rainy day, but that couldn't be a deterent, with the Helly Hansen suit it was easy to gear up and stay dry, it was more so the wind that became the challenge in driving. I reached the Cliffs, and seemed to be the only one trying to take in the view, along with the O'Brien's Tower. There wasn't much to see due to the fog and rain (I was warned of this) and after grabbing a coffee and sandwich headed back out toward Ennis to break for the night, I was cold tired and wanted to get right to sleep.I will mention here, it is funny to walk into a hotel dressed as "an angry looking pylon" (someone said this during my travels) it turns a lot of heads and a lot of people stare when you lug in all your gear in a bright orange suit and a full beard, you get nods, stares, questioning looks but by now I was getting used to it. Being on the road you loose a sense of shame and get used to people looking at you funny when you have a gopro stuck to your helmet or are driving in a rainstorm. I stayed the night at a hotel and grabbed some Chinese food while I had a fan blow drying some of my gear. I knew I had a big day ahead of me in the Ring of Kerry and was hoping for better weather. 

Total kms: 175 (these don't seem like much but travelling at low speeds it's astonishing how little ground you cover in a day, and also the need to stop and take in the sights!)

Day 5: Sligo (sleigh-go) -> Galway -> Cong

For the first time I slept in until about 11am, I was tired from the day before and restfully drove towards Mayo (Galway and Cong) to see some friends. I decided since I was a bit early I would try and see Galway first, there was an art festival going on, as well as a fresh product market, it had a very old historic feel and was the only time the gps put me down a road that was actually a walkway, but seeing some of the roads I was on I didn't think twice driving down it, after some kind people informed me I got turned around and headed back to Cong to meet Rae.

I arrived late due to a huge car accident (the first I had seen and surprisingly so due to the closeness of the driving and the speeds you can get up to, it is MUCH easier to drive a motorcycle even with the luggage bags!) We met at Lydon's and had a coffee before she went off to work, I received a 65 red roses pin (sounds like cystic fibrosis) and wore it the duration of my trip. She had to run off to work but we later hung out that night back at Lydon's over some beers. I had some trouble finding Dana and Kayla's place but after speaking to random gentleman on the Ashford Castle grounds (yes they live on castle grounds!) and receiving a history on the movie The Quiet Man (which I will now watch) I cleaned up and met Dana at the Lodge on the Castle grounds. A big thank you goes out to Robert at the front desk and Jorg (spelling?) and most importantly Dana for one of the best experiences of my life, I ate like a king, I felt like a king, and I had the most incredible 5 item meal. I cannot say thank you enough for how awesome this was.

Later Dana and I walked down after his shift and he told me about the history of the grounds before landing into the bar for a few drinks, it was lovely to met Rachel, Jack, Selena? I couldn't gather your name quite right with the accent haha and all the people of Cong who were so welcoming and warm to showing up, I want to return I promise and I will try and bring a Canadian gift basket for new friends to enjoy and old to have a taste of home.

Total kms: 375

Day 4: Warrenpoint -> Belfast -> Bushmills -> Londonderry -> Donegal -> Sligo

Day 4 was definitely the longest and hardest, yet visually the best day I had. I quietly left early in the morning from Warrenpoint to Belfast, there, I stopped from a bit of rain to have breakfast, it was McDonalds, don't judge me, they have free WiFi, but I quickly drove through knowing I had to get to the northern point to see Giants Causeway.

When I arrived at Bushmills it had a very strong United Kingdom presence with flags hung everywhere. I drove through the beautiful town and down into the Giants Causeway centre. From there I spoke to a few of the workers and they advised of the best route to walk up and down. The sights were AMAZING. The weather was fantastic, it was tough walking up all the hills and stairs but well worth it, I spent nearly 3 hours here in awe of the beauty. 

I then proceeded to the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, that was suspended between two rocks, this was also about a half hour hike down (and very tough to get back up) but again, well worth it. I spoke to a family from Boston while waiting in line they were intrigued by the gopro gear and asked about the fundraiser. 

When my hiking appetite was full I jumped back onto the bike and went down the CAUSEWAY COSTAL ROUTE, this was a wonderful route of coastline and castles, it was really amazing all the views, with the compressed roads it was difficult to pull over and take shots, but if you are ever there take this route, you won't be dissapointed. 

From Londonderry I went to Donegal, looked at some of their wool products and tried to find accomodation, Bundoran: no, Mullaghmore: no, Cliffony: no, Grange and Drumcliff: no and no, finally finding accomodation at an old converted hospital into hotel in Sligo. It was a very fun night as there were lots of bachelor and bachelorette parties going on, I quietly sat in the lobby eating domino's and worked on my photos and my routes while people would come up and ask for my pizza or ask if I was the one from "Canadia" (This happened a lot, or for me to say 'out and about'). It was a really fun night and causally met a lot of local people who all were very pleasant. 

I called it a night, after all the hiking and biking I wanted to be fresh to head to Cong/Galway the next day to see Dana Rae and friends!

Km: 430

Day 3: Newgrange -> Trim -> Adree -> Warrenpoint

I had a really great night at a Hostel in Newgrange, the Newgrange Lodge, there, the lady working the front and I had about a half hour conversation on the Boyne Valley area, what to see and about the history on the land. I can't stress enough how polite and accommodating people are here, they are proud of their history and they love to share their stories, which is great when you're touring and trying to get a feel for the country.
I started off towards Hill of Tara, a very spiritual and historic place (visually maybe not as stunning) but the history of the Kings that were there and the feel there definitely was worth stopping. I also viewed but didn't go into Trim Castle, headed towards Navan for lunch. There a gentleman saw me parking, warned me they ticket and offered to watch my bike while I walked around and would let me know if anyone came by, random kindness for no reason, he even recommended a restaurant to eat at close by.From there I attempted to see Monasterboice but got side tracked on another windy small road. I decided from there I was going to head further north, as I had spoken to Caroline and Megan about meeting up again in Caroline's home town (which at the time I was not sure of where it was) After some spotty Wifi and around 6pm I fortunately crossed into Northern Ireland (unknowingly) there was no border check I crossed.
Coming into Warrenpoint was beautiful and met up with the girls at a burger shop before walking around the town and the shore, it was really nice to be with people I knew after a long day on the motorcycle, we went for ice cream and had a treat that Caroline had as a kid (her treat, again the unbelievable kindness). It was getting dark so we drove outside of town to her grandmothers house where I was greeted with a warm welcome and offered tea, although her accent was thick and I had to ask what was said a few times, I had a very nice conversation about Ireland, television programs and other small tidbits with her, it was great. We all had a glass of wine and I was forutnate enough to stay in a spare bedroom at their house for the night, way way more than I expected and Caroline, I have said it before but thank you so so very much for your hospitality. 
I plan to head to Bushmills and Giants Causeway in the morning!

Total km: 200km

Day 2: Dublin -> Kildare -> Newgrange (Meath)

Today I get the motorcycle! After some technical and self imposed difficulties I was able to make my way via bus about 40 minutes outside of Dublin to Kildare, Kill co. There, I met up with Paul at Celtic Rider. I had had trouble with my phone and decided to walk down to his place, but was a bit turned around. When I did get reception, I contacted him and said I was standing in front of some free range chickens, he told me to sit tight and immediately found me, quite quaint when you can use fowl as a reference point.

When I got to Celtic Rider Paul showed me some of the horses on his property, the land and the history of his location. We proceeded to talk about the history, tourism and values of the Country. As excited as I was to have the motorcycle, I was more grateful to have Paul (and his wife and daughter) make me feel at home, offering me delicious home-made stew and bread. Paul is a small business owner, and he took the time, despite my late arrival, to tell me a bit about himself and his country, I felt very fortunate. He was kind enough to provide me with a GPS that had favourites of places he visited to help me get the most out of my trip. We went over the bike and Paul went out with me for about half hour, stopping at the castle where he was married, and onto a historic university. With a handshake and the advice of keeping the left shoulder to the ditch (this was very helpful) I parted ways with Paul and headed towards Newgrange.

I am currently sitting in the Newgrange Lodge, it is almost 4am locally, but my head still feels like it's in Nova Scotia (close to midnight there) I was set up in a beautiful room and had a very nice conversation with the lady at the front counter. I told her of my trip and could tell she genuinely enjoyed listening, it's a rare thing to have so many kind people, Canada is known for this, but I ink the Irish have us beat in the gift of gab and authenticity of character. I hope to see part of the Boyne Valley tomorrow, a very historic area of Ireland!

Total Km: 150km

Day 1 Complete!

Sorry for the delay in posting this, running around for buses and getting the rental limited my time for posting this.

Day 1: 0km

I flew into Dublin from St. John's Newfounland overnight. We arrived in around 6am so there wasn't much to do, but the city was very quiet and I couldn't check in to Phoenix Park until 2-3pm so I wandered the city. Stopped into the Dublin Castle and waiting for restaurants to open and started the day with a traditional Irish breakfast (unknowingly had an American flag draped behind me).

Once things opened I went to the Guinness Storehouse and went on a brewery tour, finishing off the experience with an Original at the gravity bar atop the brewery, pretty amazing views there.

When I was able to check in, I took a few hours to rest and then headed out with some new friends. Caroline and Megan, as well as their friend Ashley were kind enough to let me join them for dinner and drinks for the evening, it was great meeting them (they had been on my flight and I had run into them at Guinness as well) and as much as I don't mind travelling alone, it was nice to eat and enjoy the city with such great people.

A great day all things said and done, Dublin is a wonderful place, the people are friendly and the city is really easy to navigate I used public transport a map and asking around and it was quite easy to get to where you wanted to go. No Km's on the bike today, tomorrow I will be picking up the motorcycle!

 Day 1 Underway!

Boarded a flight to St. John's (where I am currently) and am waiting for an overnight flight to land in Dublin early tomorrow morning. I am going to try and make sure I have the correct converters and data before posting too much so I thought I'd take time to post while I was still on Canadian soil.

A big thank you goes out to Cystic Fibrosis Canada, in particular Lisa and Matthew for helping secure some sponsorship and sharing my posts to get the word out about the fundraiser. Helly Hansan has provided me with a rain suit for the inevitable rain I'll be encountering along the coast of Ireland.

Highlight of the trip was coming back in through security and standing between an Irish and St. John's group slowly looking back and forth at each of the parties realizing I am no longer in the valley. My hearing isn't great as it is, this will be a challenge moving forward to comprehend what is being said to me.

Thank you to for the outflow of support and encouragement so far on this trip, it really is the well wishes and support that fuels the determination for me.
Just to throw it out again be sure to follow through other outlets at the following links:

Donate @: http://my.e2rm.com/PersonalPage.aspx?registrationID=2830614&langPref=en-CA

https://www.facebook.com/events/832949026755090/

https://twitter.com/cfmotorcycle (@cfmotorcycle)

Instagram: @jhbest

With just under 5 days to go to Ireland I am finishing the last minute preparations before heading to Dublin!

Thanks goes out to New Scotland Clothing Company for helping on the fundraiser! check them out at http://newscotlandclothing.ca/

Be sure to follow along and donate on the Cystic Fibrosis Canada website.

Ireland here I come!!

The time is almost here! On Monday I will be heading to Dublin, Ireland to start off on the fundraising efforts for Cystic Fibrosis Canada!

I have run a bit behind in planning and coordinating some of the trip due to a chest infection last month and after healing up from a few injuries have recovered just in time to embark out on the journey.

Please take a minute and join one or all of the social media outlets to follow the trip and make a donation if you can to help reach the goal! I appreciate all the kind words and support so far and look forward to sharing the adventure with you!


Twitter: @cfmotorcycle
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/832949026755090/

Fundraising page: http://my.e2rm.com/PersonalPage.aspx?registrationID=2830614&langPref=en-CA