Monthly Archives: April 2026

Cobh and Kinsale

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Tuesday, April 28, was another lovely day so we were up at the crack of to get to Cobh (pronounced Cove) as we had tickets for the Titanic Experience at 09.00. We found a great park up next to the waterfront (P4N#13454) and a 15 min walk along the front to the old White Star Line Ticket Office – the last port of call of the Titanic before that fateful night of April 14/15 1912. Cobh used to be called Queenstown, renamed in honour of Queen Victoria’s visit there but was changed to Cobh after independence. Whilst small, it was a well guided tour with lots of artefacts and videos. Good value for money.

The original ticket office
Replica of First Class cabin
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Waterford to Ardmore

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Whilst we had a peaceful night’s sleep in the golf club car park, the greenkeepers appear to start work before 06.00 on a Monday morning! However, they did try to keep the noise down as much as possible. We left there around 09.45 to drive to Dungarvan via The Magic Road. It’s a road in the hills where you, apparently, go uphill when stationary. Clearly an optical allusion but we couldn’t find the spot to confirm it! We then diverted back to the viaduct at Kilmacthomas that was part of the Waterford to Dungarvan Greenway before going onto Dungarvan, a harbour town with a fort and, more importantly, a good supermarket. What was even better was that the supermarket (SuperValu) gave us several hours free parking so we could do the shop and then explore the town.

Kilmacthomas Viaduct
Dungarvan Harbour
Dungarvan Fort
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Waterford

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Saturday, April 25 was a beautiful day and perfect to explore Waterford city and surrounds. We were perfectly placed on the greenway to visit both Mount Congreve gardens and the city itself. The gardens were magnificent and literally next door to our park up. They also had loos which is always a bonus!

After a lovely couple of hours walking around the gardens, we then cycled into town along the Waterford Greenway. It obviously well used and well cared for. It stretches for over 45km from Waterford to Dungarvan. A joy to cycle into a city safely and away from cars. It even had a tourist train for part of the way with various art installations.

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Kilmore to Waterford

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We had a really peaceful night’s sleep in the restaurant car park in Kilmore but we were up fairly promptly (but not that early as we are on holiday) as had lots to see and do. First stop was Tintern Abbey near New Ross, County Wexford. The abbey was built in the 12th Century by William Marshall, a Norman Knight and Earl of Pembroke, who made his money jousting and through a very lucrative marriage to Eleanor de Clare. It was a daughter house to the one in Wales and was inhabited by Cistercian monks until the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII in the 16th Century. Then it was taken over by the Coclough family who lived in it until the 1960s! Next to the abbey was the family’s beautiful garden (now all bequeathed to the Irish State). Amazingly tranquil.

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And we are off!

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Our Irish adventure has begun! We left home on Wednesday, April 22 at 13.30 hours, slightly later than planned, and drove to Fishguard via Birmingham to check on Liz’s parents’ flat. This all took a bit longer than expected so we didn’t get to our overnight stop until 20.30 hours. The stop was The Harp Inn at Letterstone, about 15 minutes from the ferry port. We were meeting up with Maria and Jane, who also have an Adria Twin called Arty, as travel companions. The inn was a great stopover with 5 designated places for mohos with water and electricity if required (SfS:S38630S). Sadly, the food was mediocre at best and even the Abbots ale was off!

At least they had chickens and doves!
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South Wales Tour Part Two

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We left Freshwater East Caravan Club site on Thursday morning, April 2, to start exploring the next part of the Welsh coastline. It was a bright but blowy morning as we drove across the Castlemartin Firing Range into the National Park. The Pembrokeshire National Park was gorgeous in the sunshine and amazingly not very crowded. First stop was St Govan’s Chapel, which was built sometime between 8 and 14 centuries ago, and is hewn from the rock. Steep steps down to it as it’s almost at sea level but well worth it. We were able to park easily at all the sights despite being so close to Easter. Then onto Huntsman’s Leap where we found two climbers who were getting ready to abseil down! The gap is not as small as it looks. After that, it was Stack Rocks and then The Green Bridge of Wales. The Bridge is really an arch over the sea but still very dramatic.

St Govan’s Chapel
Huntsman’s Leap
Green Bridge of Wales
Stack Rocks

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South Wales Tour Part One

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We had decided to make the most of meeting up with friends to see the premiere of Pride The Musical in Cardiff by extending our trip to take in more of the South Wales coastline. It was also a chance to try out the newly fitted tow-ball and bike rack (courtesy of Wendy and Stuart) before a longer trip in a few weeks time.

We left home later than planned on Monday March 30 to meet up with our friend, Denise, in Weston-Super-Mare for the evening. Why does it always take longer than expected to get everything ready? We arrived around 19.00 to find the local council had been digging up the road we normally park in. Luckily, there was still a spot where we could park and spend the night (P4N#634085). A lovely evening was had with far too much wine drunk!

Burbeck Pier in Weston finally being renovated.
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