|
| |
|
FALCARRAGH |
| |
|
|
| |
The first place you'll come across in the Cloghaneely area to the
east of the Bloody Foreland is GORTAHORK - both the village and
neighbouring area are good for Irish music. Teac Billie is an old men's
drinking place with Tuesday night sessions, while the Irish College - up
to the right after you pass Whorskey's on the left - has ceilidhs every
night throughout July and August. There are sessions too on Thursdays at
Teach Ruari , a mile away in BELTANY . The newly renovated Ostan Loch
Altan (tel 074/35267, ostanaltan@esatclear.ie ; £55-70/¬69.84-88.88) has
snack lunches and a reasonably priced Sunday carvery lunch and there's
B&B at Ard Aine (tel 074/35398; £26-33/¬33.01-41.90), a mile out of town
in CASHEL .
FALCARRAGH is more interesting and better supplied with pubs, shops and
other amenities. In the village, there's B&B at Ferndale (April-Sept;
tel 074/65506; £33-40/¬41.90-50.79), while hostel accommodation is
available at the Shamrock Lodge (closed mid-Dec to mid-Jan; tel
074/35859), over the Shamrock Pub . There are a few eating places in the
village: John's Café , at the Gortahork end of town or the upstairs
restaurant at the Gweedore are the best options and the latter has music
of varying kinds most nights in July and August. The Shamrock Pub and
The Loft also have live music and the Errigal runs Friday discos .
Falcarragh beach is reached by following the coast road for a few miles
- eventually the dunes will appear behind a car park. This is one of the
more beautiful strands on this northwest coast, but a strong
undercurrent makes it unsafe for swimming .
The road south from Falcarragh to Glenveagh passes through Muckish Gap .
The slate-grey mass of Muckish ("pig's back") Mountain dominates the
view all the way from Falcarragh; the hillsides are pitted with old
workings where quartzite sand was extracted for the manufacture of
optical glass. It's a relatively easy climb from the roadside shrine at
the Gap up a grassy ridge to the summit and, on a clear day from here,
the entire coastline from the Bloody Foreland, with distant Tory, to
Malin Head is splendidly visible.
Heading east out of Falcarragh, the road to Dunfanaghy opens up a
significantly milder landscape, with the green grass beginning to
outstrip the ruggedness, and the odd reed-fringed lake with swans
sitting prettily alongside the road
|
| |
|
