Ireland Day 6 Glengariff to Tralee

The morning started with porridge and fruit for breakfast. It was alright considering that I'm not a fan of porridge or fruit - mmm makes my teeth itch.

As seemingly always, we were last to leave the accommodation - too much faffing. The first part of the route involved a 5 mile long climb, a bit of a rude awakening. Tracy completed this climb in record time according to Strava - she was scared of being judged with Wendy just behind her!

We were however rewarded with beautiful views at the top.

Joe and I were discussing the benefits of riding in a group - the idea of mutual suffering. I suggested that it is much better if the person that you're riding with is suffering just a bit more than you.

Tracy "Hang on a minute..."

 

Taken by one of the Wimbledon 7 - not a terrorist cell as it turns out.

A great descent brought us past someone videoing the climb from a car. I guess in Ireland, if you don't have a go pro, sticking your girlfriend on the bonnet with a mobile phone is a suitable alternative. We continued onto our first brew stop before our climb up to the Gap of Dunloe. 

Cake (and knee) of the day

First brew stop 

The climb up was tough, the combination of the steepness, heat and basic lack of fitness. The numerous pony and traps gave some excuse to not go any faster.

The gap of Dunloe

A sweaty mess after the climb.
I was alright though 

The gap of Dunloe is an absolute honeypot site. Full of walkers, cyclists and general tourists, interspersed with the pony carts. It is strange that it is so busy. Why would you hike up there? To see the gap. A gap is a space between things, so by definition you are walking several miles to see nothing and the bragging rights of having seen nothing. It is of course a nice gap. One of the best gaps. Probably better than all the other gaps. Maybe the gappiest gap I have ever seen. If you know of a nicer gap, please let us know.

Probably the best gap in the world 

Having been fully gapped out, we started the descent to Kate Kearney's Cottage - our lunch stop. I managed to overshoot the restaurant in my eagerness to make progress. I blasted straight past, the bright red Peak Tours van, it being cunningly camouflaged by being in plain sight at the front of the venue. I continued on for a couple of miles before being picked up by the headteacher in the minibus. I arrived to Tracy shaking her head in disappointment and for the second day in a row, most of the other riders getting ready to go. I popped to the loo and Tracy informed me that she had sent my lunch back. Harsh punishment I thought for my mistake. Turns out she meant that it wasn't vegetarian. Took 20 minutes for a new one to be brought out. Reckon that it took a while to pick out all the ham pieces.

The afternoon was generally less challenging with less climbing and more flats. It got hotter and by late afternoon it was a bit uncomfortable unless you were moving at speed. Which brings us to the last bastard of a hill - the one that they glossed over in the briefing this morning. The one without any good views at the top . It was straight up, but still managed to tease us with many false summits. It seemed to go on forever. That hill needs to go and have a word with itself. It doesn't need to be there, nobody likes it and frankly it can bugger off!

We finally arrived at the Grand hotel in Tralee, although I took an unsuccessful detour to Halfords in the quest for a new tyre. 

Tracy had her GDPR /child protection head on yesterday and was concerned about using names or photos other group members in the blog. I finally remembered to ask on the group chat if any one had a problem with it, perhaps being in witness protection or a member of MI5. The only response was from Kev, who has decided that henceforth he wants to be known as Tony McNulty PI.

There was a general buzz about meetup for a beer and live music in the evening. Getting ready to go out by taking a shower and using the complimentary shower gel,  it occured to me that everyone else was probably doing the same. It meant that just as teenage boys all smell of Lynx Africa, team Peak Tours will all have the scent of Aloe leaf. We e should be able to find each other by smell alone.

Many of us congregated in the hotel bar and had a great evening of chat and laughter. When the time came for us to head to the pub for live music, tiredness had claimed most of the party. Only 4 of us remained, managing one beer before slinking back to our rooms for a well earned sleep. A tough but rewarding day with over 4500ft of climbing.

Distance covered 60 miles

Total distance 314 miles

Cake of the day: Raspberry sponge 

Tracy whinge factor: 1/10 mostly as a result of locking herself out of the hotel room much to the amusement of the receptionist.