Irish Farmers Market and Wildflower Tour

Not something you could find
in a Kansas farmers market

A local farmer with his veggies

On the third day of our biking tour we were scheduled a day of rest in the small fishing village of Ballyvaughan. After allowing ourselves a few extra hours of sleep and eating a typical Irish breakfast of sausage and ham, eggs, tomato, potato pancakes, toast and coffee we walked the few short blocks into town for the farmers market. It felt good to stretch our legs and give our biking muscles a break. Ballyvaughan is a small village and this was reflected in the size of its farmers market which consisted of one berry stall, two vegetable stalls with mainly root veggies, a fisherman, two bakers, a woman with jams and jellies and a lotion and soap stand where the main ingredient in every product was the local seaweed. I walked away with fresh strawberries and two cinnamon bagels from a women who simply wouldn't  give up until I bought something.

a 10,000 year old
stalagmite

After the farmers market we biked to Ailwee Cave for an underground tour. The cave was discovered less than a hundred years ago by a man whose dog chased a rabbit into a small cavern. There are remains of a bear in the cave, an animal that has not existed in Ireland for thousands of years and died during hibernation when the island's temperature suddenly and drastically dropped. At one point, Ireland was at the bottom of the ocean, so all of the island's rock, including that which is found in the cave is soft limestone. The cave included multiple stalactites and stalagmites, however, we were a little disappointed in their size with the largest stalagmite (pictured to the left) being about the size of my forearm. The cave also included a small waterfall and many dripping springs. The best part of the tour was when the guide turned off every light, including cell phones and cameras, in order for us to experience utter darkness... a pitch black so deep that the human eye can never adjust.

Ancient castle turned
modern dark room

After leaving the cliffs we rode our bikes to Burren College of the Arts which is located on a hilltop directly next to an old castle. The school's dark room is actually down inside the castle itself. The exhibits are closed on the weekend so we weren't able to go inside but the school itself is beautiful and those who attend it seem to have the right idea when it comes to picking a school in a beautiful location.

Shane pointing out
wildflowers

After lunch we met a group of about 15 people at the local church to be led on a guided tour of the burren by a man named Shane O'Connor. Shane drove us up into the Burren mountainside for a 4 and a half hour guided tour which included everything from wildflower names and purposes, geological formations, history and folklore. He was extremely knowledgeable and charismatic, pointing fun of all us tourists, especially the Americans, while simultaneously exposing his love for the Irish countryside. The never-ending fields of yellow and purple flowers transformed from a blanket of color to a detailed portrait, with each flower having a distinct name, purpose and look. I was surprised to see that many of the medicinal plants we cherish in the United States are also found in Ireland, including yellow Saint John's Wart, white yarrow, purple thyme and the always refreshing mint. Hazelnut is also common on the Burren and we saw the small bushy trees everywhere.

creeping, purple thyme

The Irish countryside complete with
stone fence and wildflowers

After hiking up the mountainside for nearly two hours, Shane swung his heavy backpack off his shoulders and pulled out small plastic cups. Expecting water or juice you can imagine my surprise when the Irishman pulled out a liter of Jameson and began to pass it around. "You'll need the extra push for this final stretch." he merrily explained. Swigging Jameson and looking at the Atlantic ocean through fields of yellow and purple wildflowers I couldn't help but wonder why my ancestors ever left this beautiful land.

Monks on the pier

Yarrow

When we finally made it back down to town we were starved. We jumped back on our bikes and peddled down to Monks seafood restaurant on the pier. I had seafood linguine with white wine while dad enjoyed the oldie but goodie fish and chips. Back at the hotel I finished reading Game of Thrones and and called it a night. The next morning we would wrap up the last leg of our biking tour by peddling 28 miles back to the town of Ennis.