A bit of a ride.

We shared Lillie's disappointment when this morning's weather required the cancellation of the planned trip to climb Croagh Patrick - intermittent rain, mist and fog, and windy conditions made a journey to the summit a fairly perilous endeavor. We also shared her sense of unfair fate when the day just got steadily nicer and nicer and, well, ... nicer.  We didn't waste the day however and took an ambitious drive around Co Maigh Eo, visiting the Museum of Country Life, a division of the National Museum of Ireland, Cong Abbey, Ashford Castle, and took the jaw-dropping drive from Tourmakeady to Westport over Lally's Hill.

The museum is a comprehensive and evocative exposition of Irish life from the period of The Great Hunger (the potato famine) in the 1840's until the 1950's.  It explores all aspects life - domestic, agricultural, cultural, religious, political - without romance or nostalgia.  Times were tough and life was hard.  It's the reason that Ireland's population was halved during this period through starvation and emigration.  And there are still fewer people in Ireland today than there were prior to the famine.  Lillie is always curious and was quite affected by the museum.

Then off from Turlough through Ballinrobe to the town of Cong - site of much of the filming of The Quiet Man.  Of course the little town has a Danagher's Pub and a Quiet Man pub, and one can still see the home used in the film as Squire Danagher's house.  And there's a life size statue of John Wayne sweeping Maureen O'Hara off her feet.  But the town also has the ancient Cong Abbey and the magnificent Ashford Castle.  We toured both.  Again, Lillie has a mature appreciation of the significance of these historic settings.  Especially when we pointed out the stone of the Duffy family, containing relatives of Padraic's dating back 200 years.

Our ride back was magnificent, with the vistas both backward toward Lough Mask and forward toward Westport and Croagh Patrick awe-inspiring.

Niamh and Maria have called.  It appears the Croagh Patrick quest is on again - an attempt tomorrow morning.  Here's hoping for an early bedtime and a beautiful morning.

In front of Ashford Castle

In back of Ashford Castle

The Monk's Fishhouse at Cong Abbey