We had swapped our tee time at Mount Juliet Golf Course from the afternoon to early morning on Monday, May 18 as the weather forecast was due to get worse as the day progressed. The golf course was very grand, having been designed by Jack Nicholas. Half way round, we received an email to say that Stena Ferries had cancelled all ferries from Rosslare until May 23! Once we had finished our golf, we quickly booked ourselves on the Dublin to Holyhead route on the same day we had originally booked. Phew!

After we had showered and eaten in the clubhouse, we drove back the few miles (all 10 miles!) to Kilkenny and parked at a great motorhome aire close to the city centre (P4N#314157). Kilkenny was the de facto capital of Ireland during the 17th Century. Over the next 24 hours, we explored the city with its medieval houses, cathedral and Smithwick’s Brewery.

We left Kilkenny around lunchtime on Tuesday, May 19. We wanted to be close to Dublin Port for our 10.15 so our stopover was just 20 mins away at The Brock Inn outside of Dublin (P4N#678092). Before then, we popped into the Irish National Stud. It’s just outside Kildare and is an amazingly tranquil place where stallions are cared for after their racing careers are over. These winners can command up to £120,000 to “cover” mares. It was started in 1900 by Colonel Walker (of Johnnie Walker whisky fame). He used the stars to predict the fortunes of his horses. He also planted a lovely Japanese garden.

We got up early on Wednesday, May 20 to ensure we got to the port in plenty of time. The journey over to Holyhead was uneventful although the ship was packed. Having arrived in Anglesey around 14.00, we made our way home via Birmingham to check Liz’s parents’ place before arriving home at 20.20.

A lovely trip that went by so quickly. We couldn’t believe that we had been away four weeks.

Miles since last post: 385

Miles this trip: 1,814