Our first hitchhiker, Ballykissangel, Glenmacnass Waterfall and Blessington Lakes

Having chatted about hitchhikers earlier in our trip, when we saw one yesterday looking for a lift in our direction, we decided to go for it and pick him up. He was a chef who had moved from the city for a quieter life, but his car had packed in. He gave us some tips on what we could cook on the two van hobs.

Shortly after dropping the hitchhiker off, we accidentally took a wrong turn into Avoca, which was the place that Ballykissangel was filmed! We had a drink at Fitzgerald's, Sam is too young to know the series but I loved it!

Later we headed to the stunning Glenmacnass Waterfall.

Initially we had planned to wild camp there, and there was a lovely spot to do so, but we got there so early that we decided to keep going, and we ended up finding nice place with views of Blessington Lakes. On the way we drove along Sally Gap, as suggested by the hitchhiker, which was beautiful.

Lough Derg and Kilkenny

After our scary night on Omey Island, we treated ourselves to a proper campsite by Lough Berg. We underestimated how choppy this 'lake' would be... paddle boarding was hard work, and we were definitely doing 'kneel up paddle boarding' rather than 'stand up paddle boarding'

The next day the weather was still bad, so rather than doing more outdoor activities we drove to Kilkenny. We had a bit of a worry on the way as the brakes seemed to suddenly disappear as I was driving, but it meant Sam got to use his new jack from Campervan Culture and they seem normal now.

Kilkenny was brilliant, we climbed the Round Tower at St. Canice's - an early Gothic cathedral with good views of the city, then went to the Smithwick's Experience. We learnt about the history of Smithwick's beer and the brewing process. We also learnt that if you order a 'glass' of beer in Ireland, it means a half pint.

We had dinner at a Chinese restaurant then headed to a pub that a man in a shop had recommended to us where a three piece band were playing traditional Irish music. The pub was called John Cleere, we thoroughly recommend it if you're ever in Kilkenny! The man in the shop also informed us that there were no parking restrictions at the Black Abbey car park over night, so we wild camped there. It never feels as wild when you're in a car park though! Still, we had a good sleep and have just enjoyed our third McDonald's (for the free WiFi, of course!)

Omey Island and the storm

We had been told about this island you could drive to at low tide at the very edge of Connemara National Park called Omey Island. After failing again to know about tide times we luckily arrived at the right time and edged across the sand. With not much on the island we found a fantastic spot to camp for the night overlooking a small beach and bay. Perfect.

 Amy went off to take some pictures and video of the bay whilst the sun was out and I was given the task of the nights dinner.
With the wind starting to pick up we got stuck into my wonderful creation of baked Camembert with chorizo and mushrooms all done on the braai.

Not a bad view for dinner. Little did we know this was the calm before the storm. At around 10pm, a storm started that lasted the entire night. The van was rocking in the wind and we ended up driving a little further inland for fear that the sand bank we were on might crumble. The lightening lit up the whole van, just through the windows in the high top. It was pretty scary! As soon as we were both up, we drove off of the island. Because of all the rain and the incoming tide, the drive across the sand was a little more damp under foot than we were hoping for, but Amelie made it! So Omey Island was both the most beautiful and most terrifying place we have camped yet!

Lessons learned in tumbledrying

Yesterday we learned a valuable lesson on campsite clothes dryers!

Next time maybe we will have it on a hotter setting.

Best wild camp yet...

We found this little gem in Castlegregory yesterday. Views of the Atlantic Ocean, sand dunes and mountains, this one will be hard to beat. After a brilliant time paddle boarding and trying (failing) to catch the waves, we had not-so-warm showers, complete with yelps of how cold it was. Surprisingly, the solar shower isn't so good when it's been cloudy all day! The sun came out in the evening though, and we enjoyed a barbecue followed by a walk as the sun set. We mis-judged the tide and nearly got stranded on a sand dune for the night, but we managed to get across even if we were a little soggier than planned.

Ireland day 4 - Mannix Point, Cahersiveen

Great start to day 4 on the Emerald Isle we woke to sunshine and a slight breeze, which meant we could venture out into Doulus Bay and take a trip around the small island.

The water was fairly cold but luckily for Amy she didn't fall in at all, even when we changed boards so she could film me on the GoPro.

Once everything is dry we are going to finish our loop of the Ring of Kerry and check out the Gap of Dunloe and hopefully get some fantastic pictures to share.

Wild camping in Toormore

There are a couple of wild camping spots in Toormore. We enjoyed another fantastic view. Getting our paddle boards on to the beach proved interesting as we couldn't find any access, but we managed and it was well worth it. Showering afterwards in our new tent at the side of the road was quite an experience!

Waterford

Waterford,Ireland

Toilet tent and shower!

Our 'bog in a bag' toilet and solar shower from Camping International have proven very useful, as has our new somewhat translucent tent...

Ireland - the first wild camp!

We spent our first night in Ireland wild camping. Having never wild camped in the van before, we were both quite apprehensive. But it was possibly the best place we have ever camped what a view! As you can see from the photos, we weren't the only ones making the most of this spot. There were about seven caravans there, everyone was really friendly. We managed to get out on our paddle boards in the morning too.

 St. Mullin's, the River Barrow.

Toilet tent!

Progress!

Sam and his dad did a LOT of work on the van today.  Here are a few photos of them putting the wardrobe together...

 Initially we were going to have cupboard doors, but having been on our Switzerland trip without doors, we realised that it would get quite annoying having to move the bedding out of the way every time we wanted to get something out.  We spoke to Sam's mum, Chris, to see if she could come up with a crafty way of using curtains rather than doors... so here is the inside of the wardrobe.  Curtain hooks from Sandy's Hardware.  

 And this is what it looks like in place!  We still need to paint the wood white, so it's a work in progress.

 The main units are coming along nicely.  Just have to do a few finishing touches and stain the worktop.

 The worktop on top of the hobs folds in two so it doesn't block out too much light when we're cooking.

 Haven't finished the sink yet and we're yet to have running water, but we're getting there!

 Photo of today's progress.  We haven't put the bed foams back in yet so it will look prettier soon!

 Chris made some amazing map/pen/bits and bobs holders to go on the back of our seats.  Chris even made us matching headrests!

 Woohoo, my Flower Fairy door knobs are in place!!