Horseback Riding in Ireland
CONNEMARA TRAIL |
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| Itinerary |
| Day 1: | Meet at 10AM in Galway at the Meyrick Hotel. Here you are introduced to your guide and the back up team who are on hand to move luggage, bring the picnic and help with the horses. There is a short 30 minute drive to the starting point of the ride at Oughterard, where you will meet the horses. After tacking up head straight into the mountains for a long ride that will finish at Maam Cross, the site of the famous October horse fair.
The trail takes you past the ruins of cottages abandoned since the famine, in the 1840's, which decimated the Irish population. As it winds its way through the spectacular scenery the view is magnificent, spanning the horizon is the vast expanse of Lough Corrib, the largest lake in southern Ireland.
After lunch continue on through mountains, traversing bogs and rocks and wading through streams. Way below the trail is the 'Quiet Man Bridge', made famous by the John Wayne movie. The day ends with the first of many canters along the abandoned Galway to Clifden railway line. Afterwards the horses are turned out into a lakeside pasture while you travel to your accommodations.
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| Day 2: | Having spent the night in the field at Maam Cross the horses are refreshed and ready to begin the ride from Maam Cross to Ballinafad. The first stage of the ride goes through Willie's land at Maam Cross, where a path takes you alongside the beautiful Lough Sindle and past the remains of a long forgotten lime kiln, hidden in a grove of hazel trees.
Some of the trees in the area are ancient, yet they remain tiny, bent by the harsh Atlantic winds that batter this area during the winter. Lunch is taken on a small village green, while the horses graze.
After lunch it is back into the saddle for the final stage of the days ride, through silent woodlands and through the beautiful Inagh Valley. On a clear day you can see over the spectacular Connemara landscape to the coast at Rosmuc. The day ends with another canter along the old Galway to Clifden railway line. The horses are turned out in a pasture at Ballinafad, before you return to your accommodations.
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| Day 3: | The horses are rounded up and saddled before the ride leaves Ballinafad.
This morning the horses wade through a wide mountain stream before heading up into a short stretch of mountain above the ancient Ballinafad cemetery. You then go through the grounds of Ballinahinch Castle, enjoying a long canter through the woodland beforehand. The castle was once the home of an Indian Prince, and also Richard Martin, who founded the humane society for the protection of animals.
Enjoy a long canter along the grassy track of the old railway line. The horses are released to graze on the edge of bogland close to Clifden while you have lunch.
Then it is back into the saddle for the afternoon ride along a grassy track close to Clifden, then inland over the Roundstone Bog, site of the landing of the historic flight of Alcock and Brown, who piloted the first transatlantic biplane and the site of the Marconi wireless station. Follow the coast to the seaside pasture where the horses will spend the next few nights. Transfer to your accommodations in Clifden where you will spend the next few nights.
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| Day 4: | Today is a full day on the fantastic Mannin Beach. The day is free to canter along the wide white sand beaches and swim with the horses if the conditions are right. Keep an eye out for the seals that are usually found in these sheltered waters. Mannin Bay is a regular hauling out and breeding site for common seals which can be seen, with some difficulty, lying almost motionless as they wait for the tide to lift them away. The horses dry off and rest in a beach side pasture while you have a picnic lunch on the beach overlooking the ocean. Then it is back into the saddle for another ride along the beach to discover more of the wonders of this coastline. |
| Day 5: | Today’s route begins at the sea and ends at Toombeola, inland over the mountains. The coastline is beautiful; the water often the color of a tropical sea. Enjoy lunch at the foot of Errisbeg, the mountain you will cross in the afternoon. The horses graze loosely close by. After lunch climb over the mountains above the village of Roundstone. The views are spectacular overlooking the sea and the Connemara mountains. The horses spend the night in a pasture at Toombeola while you travel back to Clifden for the night. |
| Day 6: | You are collected from Clifden for this, the final day of the trail.
After the horses have been saddled the ride heads straight up into the mountains overlooking Cashel Bay. The trail today goes through the mountains right around the beautiful bay, past long abandoned villages, where the potato ridges still remain, a memory of a long forgotten way of life. Lunch is taken close to the small village of Cashel while the horses graze.
Then the horses are resaddled for the final leg of the trail which takes you through Cashel and then along the coastline around Cashel Bay to Willie's Mountain, Shanndonnell, where the ride ends. The horses are unsaddled and set free into the mountain pasture while you travel back to Galway for a welcome drink and final night.
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| Day 7: | Depart after breakfast. |
| THIS ITINERARY IS FLEXIBLE. CHANGES MAY OCCUR DUE TO WEATHER OR OTHER UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES. |
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| Pricing and Dates |
| Meeting Point | Galway |
| Length of Ride | 7 days, 6 nights and 6 days riding. |
| Riding Ability | Intermediate |
| Group Size | Minimum-2 Maximum-20 |
| Riding Per Day | 4-6 hours |
| Pace | moderate |
| Tack | English |
| Horses | Irish Hunters, Connemara |
| Weight Limit | 250 lbs |
| 2010 Dates | April 26-May 2, May 10-16, May 24-30, June 7-13, June 21-27, July 5-11, July 19-25, Aug 2-8, Aug 16-22, Aug 30-Sept 5, Sept 13-19, Sept 27-Oct 3 |
| 2010 Price | Hotel price: $2,365 (April, May, June, September); $2,445 (July, August)
B&B price: $2,155 (April, May, June, September); $2,235 (July, August)
NEW DISCOUNTED PRICE
Hotel price: $2,090 (April, May, June, September); $2,160 (July, August)
B&B price: $1,905 (April, May, June, September); $1,975 (July, August) |
| Single Supplement | Hotel: $390, B&B: $295 NEW PRICE Hotel: $345, B&B: $260 |
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