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2001-06-09: Mizen Head Peninsula

For our first day in the south-west, our goal was to cover the Mizen Head Peninsula and possibly also the Sheep’s Head Peninsula. After some grocery shopping in the morning, we left Skibbereen heading for Ballydehob where we turned onto the R592, the road that follows the coastline all the way around the peninsula.

Shortly before Schull, we took a diversion and drove up the pass across Mount Gabriel. A few hundred meters before the summit, we parked the car and walked the rest of the way. The following is the view from the road to the south-east.

Click on the picture for the complete panorama (2400*400. 220kB). Note: For some reason, MSIE5 for Mac OS refuses to display the whole picture.

These flowers grew right beside the road:

We stayed on the coastal road and stopped at Tormoore Bay, Crookhaven, and Barley Cove Bay.

The small rocky island visible in the distance on the following picture is Fastnet Rock. One of the two major lighthouses covering the Irish south-western coast is located on that island. It is also the turning point in the famous Fastnet Race from Cowes on the Isles of Wight to Plymouth, Devon.

Eventually, we reached Mizen Head itself, the south-western-most tip of the peninsula. This is the location of the other major lighthouse covering the south-western coast. It is fully automated nowadays but there is a little exhibition documenting the life of the lighthouse staff.

# Tuesday June 3, 2003 · AndrĂ© Radke