I left Doolin and the Burren for Connemara and Mayo counties today. I also experienced my longest day of rain to date.

Most of the day was spent driving north to get to my new lodgings in the town of Newport, nothing like Newport Rhode Island, but I did stop at a couple of locations along the way.

The first stop was a defunct lead mine. The mine was only in use for fifteen years and was only profitable during that time because wars at the time had created a high demand for lead. After the wars ended the demand went away and so did the viability of the mine.

The mine was surprisingly roomy inside, which was great for me as I hate closed in spaces. The walls were mostly marble and this made digging the mine that much more difficult. It was cool and wet outside and cool and wet inside. The guide even had us go down an unlit tunnel to get the experience, I did not like. Thank goodness we had the obligatory helmets on as I probably would have knocked myself out.

After a relaxing lunch I headed further west to the abbey of Kylemore. The Abbey started its life as a castle in the 1800s, went through several families until it was purchased by Benedictine nuns in the 1920s. By the time I got to Kylemore the rain was moving horizontally propelled by very strong winds. What fun! Unfortunately, this meant I could not take as many photographs as I would have liked. This was particularly disappointing in the walled garden but I did not want to permanently damage my camera.

If you have ever looked at traveling to Ireland the abbey may look familiar. It seems to appear on almost every selection of places to see in Ireland. I think the castle/abbey itself could just be done as a quick photo op and then heading off. The garden is really impressive and I wish I had seen it in better weather.

My new lodging in Newport is the largest room I have had on this trip! Down side is that the room is two levels up from the ground floor with no elevator to get up to the room. Still, can’t beat the price!