Part II
Continuing on from the pulled muscles bit...
So by now it's Saturday morning.
I had planned but did not feel well enough to, go on a tour down to the Cliffs of Moher on Friday morning, so I made it my plan to do it on Saturday. I pulled myself out of bed and rushed down to the tourist office where the big ugly buses were parked and the crowds of obnoxious tourists which I was about to make myself one with, were gathering. €16 later we all piled on and off we went!...
The tour was to drive down into County Clare and showcase the unique landscape of limestone mountains known as "The Burren", before stopping off at the cliffs. This area is a well preserved natural history site and a goldmine, so to speak, for archaeologists and geologists.
The Bus! Tourists!
A typical Burren landscape.
Our first stop, the (not all that impressive) Dunguaire Castle in Kinvara.
Looking across the bay to Kinvara, in County Clare.
In Doolin.
The pub where ALL the tour buses stop for lunch, Doolin.
I thought this was particularly Irish looking.
After Doolin we were off to the Cliffs!
It took me 15 minutes of standing in one spot to get this photograph because every time I had it ready to go someone would walk around me and stand RIGHT BESIDE the sign.
This picture is more for me than anything else. I this was about my tenth straight minute of holding the camera up to my eye waiting for people to walk on, and I guess as she came up to the edge and got in my way I put my camera down by my side and let out a loud SIGH. I must have accidentally pushed the shutter. A reminder of my frustration with genuine tourists and my determination to never become one. Unfortunately being on my own in Ireland without an International driving permit and the budget to rent a car meant that in order to see things like the cliffs, I had to join a tour.
The Cliffs of Moher! They were impressive, towering 700 feet above the ocean! I'm definitely glad I went to see them. The weather was brilliant for us all day, my only complaint being that we arrived at the cliffs at about 1pm. and I was shooting directly into the sun most of the time.
This path led right off the edge, and was a favourite spot for people wanting that "death-defying" photo op. Our tour guide pointed out that "should you fall off the cliffs, take a look to your right, you'll get a great view of Galway Bay - mind you, it will be your last." About 2 people die on the cliffs every year. They seem to favour tasty German tourists.
Some friends enjoying the view on the slopes. There was a safety wall and path all around the tops of the cliffs but I didn't notice many people staying behind it.
After a few hours at the cliffs we all piled back on to the bus and were whisked off to the Aillwee Caves. Apparently in the 1940s a man was walking his dog on a mountain in the Burren when the dog chased after a rabbit and fell down a hole. (HA, for real.) The man, in an attempt to get his dog back out of the hole, climbed in after him and - WOW! found some caves! Deep in the middle of a big limestone mountain, the Aillwee cave (the only one in the area open to the public) stretches for a kilometre, about 112 metres underground. THIS is what we got to wander through...
Our guide was great and made geology sound really cool. Taking a cue from that, I'm going to do my best to re-tell what he told me, though I can't guarantee you're going to think geology is as cool as I did.
Bring on the nerd:
The basic principle behind the cave was that a very very long time ago some rain dripped onto the mountain and eventually these little raindrops seeped through the earth and deep into the limestone heart of said mountain. Rain, even in its most pure state still contains trace minerals, and these minerals are actually slightly acidic, so after a very many years of little tiny drops seeping down into the mountain, and trace amounts of minerals being left in their wake, this caused hairline cracks in the limestone. Of course after many many more years, hairline cracks become big cracks, and big cracks become erosion, and soon small tunnels develop and fill with water, and create - UNDERGROUND RIVERS!!!
As you can see in this picture some parts of the cave were quite narrow and low. The entire thing was naturally created - there was no carving out later on to make this a tourist attraction. The smooth, curved "ceiling" was created by the water that once flowed through here.
Now, don't ask me where this river eventually went, 'cus I don't know...
But there is still obviously rain and raindrops making their way down to the caves so occasionally we got dripped on (if it was a warm drip, it was bat shit, though I don't think anyone in our group was unfortunate enough to be subjected to that).
An example of where there was a slightly larger crack that allowed more water droplets to drip down. A few days after a really big rain this would become like an underground waterfall.
A close-up of some Stalactites. These are formed over hundreds of years, by the calcite left behind frm each water droplet that gathers in that spot. Stalagmites form on the ground of the cave, from excess water dripping off of the Stalactites, and the build up of calcite forms upward reaching spikes.
Given enough time these two formations can actually join and become a column, as seen in the background of this picture.
When first exploring the caves some scientists found these bones belonging to a European Brown Bear. They figure there haven't been any brown bears in Ireland for about 1,000 years. Next to them was a small crater-like bump where the bear would have been hibernating.
The scenery outside of the Ailwee Caves.
ME! A fairly decent photograph taken by a fairly competent third party. See following post for examples of the contrary.
Sheep! The little babies were out in full cuteness in this area and I was often tempted to scoop one up to bring home with me. After a quick mental calculation, however, I came up with a few reasons why this might not be such a good idea:
a) the nature of small cute things to grow up and become, well, less cute
b) the likelihood that it would be seized by customs and immigration at any one of the many airports I'm soon to enter
c) the likelihood that even if I was successful in smuggling said lamb into Africa, it might just get eaten anyway...
"Large stone tombs, known as megalithic tombs, were built throughout Western Europe during the Neolithic or New Stone Age, when the practice of farming was first becoming established. Over ninety megalithic tombs are known to survive in the Burren; the earliest of these are the court tombs and portal tombs built in the fourth millennium B.C. The portal tomb here at Poulsnabrone is one of two constructed in the Burren and is perhaps the best preserved example in the country."
Our last stop on the tour, the Poulnabrone Dolmen - an ancient burial site dating from about 3,000 B.C. I included that image of the info board in case anyone wanted to know a bit more about it. Big. Rock. Thing. I wasn't too impressed on the whole.
So by now it's Saturday morning.
I had planned but did not feel well enough to, go on a tour down to the Cliffs of Moher on Friday morning, so I made it my plan to do it on Saturday. I pulled myself out of bed and rushed down to the tourist office where the big ugly buses were parked and the crowds of obnoxious tourists which I was about to make myself one with, were gathering. €16 later we all piled on and off we went!...
The tour was to drive down into County Clare and showcase the unique landscape of limestone mountains known as "The Burren", before stopping off at the cliffs. This area is a well preserved natural history site and a goldmine, so to speak, for archaeologists and geologists.
The Bus! Tourists!
A typical Burren landscape.
Our first stop, the (not all that impressive) Dunguaire Castle in Kinvara.
Looking across the bay to Kinvara, in County Clare.
In Doolin.
The pub where ALL the tour buses stop for lunch, Doolin.
I thought this was particularly Irish looking.
After Doolin we were off to the Cliffs!
It took me 15 minutes of standing in one spot to get this photograph because every time I had it ready to go someone would walk around me and stand RIGHT BESIDE the sign.
This picture is more for me than anything else. I this was about my tenth straight minute of holding the camera up to my eye waiting for people to walk on, and I guess as she came up to the edge and got in my way I put my camera down by my side and let out a loud SIGH. I must have accidentally pushed the shutter. A reminder of my frustration with genuine tourists and my determination to never become one. Unfortunately being on my own in Ireland without an International driving permit and the budget to rent a car meant that in order to see things like the cliffs, I had to join a tour.
The Cliffs of Moher! They were impressive, towering 700 feet above the ocean! I'm definitely glad I went to see them. The weather was brilliant for us all day, my only complaint being that we arrived at the cliffs at about 1pm. and I was shooting directly into the sun most of the time.
This path led right off the edge, and was a favourite spot for people wanting that "death-defying" photo op. Our tour guide pointed out that "should you fall off the cliffs, take a look to your right, you'll get a great view of Galway Bay - mind you, it will be your last." About 2 people die on the cliffs every year. They seem to favour tasty German tourists.
Some friends enjoying the view on the slopes. There was a safety wall and path all around the tops of the cliffs but I didn't notice many people staying behind it.
After a few hours at the cliffs we all piled back on to the bus and were whisked off to the Aillwee Caves. Apparently in the 1940s a man was walking his dog on a mountain in the Burren when the dog chased after a rabbit and fell down a hole. (HA, for real.) The man, in an attempt to get his dog back out of the hole, climbed in after him and - WOW! found some caves! Deep in the middle of a big limestone mountain, the Aillwee cave (the only one in the area open to the public) stretches for a kilometre, about 112 metres underground. THIS is what we got to wander through...
Our guide was great and made geology sound really cool. Taking a cue from that, I'm going to do my best to re-tell what he told me, though I can't guarantee you're going to think geology is as cool as I did.
Bring on the nerd:
The basic principle behind the cave was that a very very long time ago some rain dripped onto the mountain and eventually these little raindrops seeped through the earth and deep into the limestone heart of said mountain. Rain, even in its most pure state still contains trace minerals, and these minerals are actually slightly acidic, so after a very many years of little tiny drops seeping down into the mountain, and trace amounts of minerals being left in their wake, this caused hairline cracks in the limestone. Of course after many many more years, hairline cracks become big cracks, and big cracks become erosion, and soon small tunnels develop and fill with water, and create - UNDERGROUND RIVERS!!!
As you can see in this picture some parts of the cave were quite narrow and low. The entire thing was naturally created - there was no carving out later on to make this a tourist attraction. The smooth, curved "ceiling" was created by the water that once flowed through here.
Now, don't ask me where this river eventually went, 'cus I don't know...
But there is still obviously rain and raindrops making their way down to the caves so occasionally we got dripped on (if it was a warm drip, it was bat shit, though I don't think anyone in our group was unfortunate enough to be subjected to that).
An example of where there was a slightly larger crack that allowed more water droplets to drip down. A few days after a really big rain this would become like an underground waterfall.
A close-up of some Stalactites. These are formed over hundreds of years, by the calcite left behind frm each water droplet that gathers in that spot. Stalagmites form on the ground of the cave, from excess water dripping off of the Stalactites, and the build up of calcite forms upward reaching spikes.
Given enough time these two formations can actually join and become a column, as seen in the background of this picture.
When first exploring the caves some scientists found these bones belonging to a European Brown Bear. They figure there haven't been any brown bears in Ireland for about 1,000 years. Next to them was a small crater-like bump where the bear would have been hibernating.
The scenery outside of the Ailwee Caves.
ME! A fairly decent photograph taken by a fairly competent third party. See following post for examples of the contrary.
Sheep! The little babies were out in full cuteness in this area and I was often tempted to scoop one up to bring home with me. After a quick mental calculation, however, I came up with a few reasons why this might not be such a good idea:
a) the nature of small cute things to grow up and become, well, less cute
b) the likelihood that it would be seized by customs and immigration at any one of the many airports I'm soon to enter
c) the likelihood that even if I was successful in smuggling said lamb into Africa, it might just get eaten anyway...
"Large stone tombs, known as megalithic tombs, were built throughout Western Europe during the Neolithic or New Stone Age, when the practice of farming was first becoming established. Over ninety megalithic tombs are known to survive in the Burren; the earliest of these are the court tombs and portal tombs built in the fourth millennium B.C. The portal tomb here at Poulsnabrone is one of two constructed in the Burren and is perhaps the best preserved example in the country."
Our last stop on the tour, the Poulnabrone Dolmen - an ancient burial site dating from about 3,000 B.C. I included that image of the info board in case anyone wanted to know a bit more about it. Big. Rock. Thing. I wasn't too impressed on the whole.