Beaches and Waterfront
Meelmane – Barry’s Cove – Butlerstown, Co. Cork
Well, last time I introduced you to the second part of the Seven Heads Walk. And because it was so relaxing and breathtaking, I thought we should do a few more sections, because the area is really something special. And it is summer time. Time to explore County Cork.
This time we start in Meelmane, not far from the place where we turned around last week. A good hint: It might be good to take your bathing clothes with you. And before I forget to mention, walking shoes are on this trail a huge advantage and highly recommended.
The total length of this walk is about 6 km one way and we had our second car parked in Butlerstown.
Courtmacsherry – Wood Point – Beamish Cove, Co. Cork
As the summer is still ongoing, let’s explore a few nice areas in the western part of County Cork. The distances to go are a bit longer, but be surprised how beautiful County Cork is.
The Seven Heads Walk is well known and the walk along the cliffs is breathtaking. Seven Heads Walk has a total length of 42.5 km and can be divided into several sections. This makes it easy for those who can’t or don’t want to walk long distances.
Basically Seven Heads Walk starts in Timoleague and from here you can walk to Courtmacsherry and its wonderful beaches. Everybody knows that I’m not a big friend of tarred surfaces and walking along the street.
That’s why we started with the 2nd section.
The Gearagh, Lee Valley, Co. Cork
Have you ever been to Macroom? A busy market town with the beautiful remainings of Macroom Castle. But the area around of Macroom is amazing. Today I want to show you something special. According to discoverycork.ie it is a place which remains of the only ancient post glacial alluvial forest in Western Europe: The Gearagh next to Macroom. The Gearagh is a haven of tranquillity and an area for everyone who loves birds, butterflies and flowers. The Irish Times calls it the Everglades without the crocodiles.
Garretstown Beach, Co.Cork
Finally we have a few nice days you can call “warm”. I deliberately set the word between quotation marks. I call days warm, from that moment on, where I’m able to walk with only one layer of dressing and not 3 or 4. To be honest, I’m not a benchmark for temperatures or feelings like cold or warm. Very rarely it’s too warm for me.
So let’s go out as long as the weather is so inviting.
Knockadoon, Barry-Coves-Way, Co.Cork
Well, we can’t complain about the last days, can we? It was during the days only partly cloudy or really sunny, not longer that cold and not to windy. And last Sunday was a highlight. I had to got for a walk though. On my list since March was Barry-Coves-Way in Knockadoon. Knockadoon? Never heard before? Never have been before? Time to change that!
James Fort and Castlepark Dock Beach in Kinsale, Co. Cork
Back to Kinsale and this time I want to introduce a short walk to James Fort and a wonderful beach in Castlepark. Beautiful area, historically interesting and a nice location for having a great time at the beach.
Youghal beach walk, Co. Cork
By calender it’s already spring and so let’s go today to the most south eastern part of County Cork. To Youghal. Youghal calls wonderful beaches its own, which can be divided into 2 sections or better in 3? And Youghal has its own website for more information about swimming at Youghal beaches.
Overall it is a bit more than 5 km long beach and excellently designed for walking. To and back is 10 km. Not the shortest walk and good to know, if you want to walk with children. As it isn’t a loop walk due to local circumstances, you have 2 points to start.
Before planing your walk keep the tide times and sun protection in mind. Both are necessary to have a good walking experience at this time of the year.
Ballycotton Bay, Co. Cork – on to the beaches!
Well, at the moment Ireland is hit by “The beast from the east”. Europe as a whole seems to be hit by that cold front, and almost everybody might have a good laugh about my headline.
Who wants to walk along the beach these days?
Nobody! (at least not voluntarily)
However, the days before this cold front were wonderful sunny and mild and they will be afterwards, too. It’s already the end of February and the first warmer days definitely will come. The weather forecast for the weekend looks already better and then you can enjoy a few hours at the beaches in Ballycotton Bay.
Ballycotton Cliff Walk
This February acts like April. Snow – frost – rain – sun. Every day a bit different but it tends to be a bit warmer some days. And once the sun comes out, you can feel the power. However, the piercing wind finally seems to turn north rather than south and now we have the opportunity to walk at the beaches and the cliffs. And County Cork has a few nice walks along the coasts.
Coachford Greenwalk and Farran Forest
On the way, but more or less by fortune, I found a few locations in Lee Valley. Amongst them is Farran Forest and Coachford Greenwalk.