Ireland’s West Coast aboard Greg Mortimer

Description

Perched on the edge of the Atlantic, Ireland’s rugged west coast is a journey through hundreds of islands, enchanting peninsulas and fjords, soaring cliffs, crumbling castles and discover unique flora and fauna. Blessed with fine weather, we hope to land at UNESCO World Heritage Site, The Skelligs, which host a 6th century beehive hut monastery and an expansive colony of puffins and gannets. Hike through spectacular scenery and explore rarely-visited, forgotten islands and an ancient culture of storytelling, mythology and life intertwined with the Atlantic.

Trip Name

Ireland’s West Coast aboard Greg Mortimer

Days

Overview

Vessel Type: Expedition Length: 104 metres Passenger Capacity: 132 Built: 2019 Capable of negotiating the strongest winds and waves, the Greg Mortimer is built to world-class polar standards – designed in close consultation with our expedition specialists, taking advantage of our more than 25 years of experience. The Greg Mortimer redefines expedition cruising for the future, with just 132 passengers on board in the polar regions. Not only is the ship bigger to contend with adverse weather conditions, its added creature comforts make for a more enjoyable journey out on the open ocean. The Greg Mortimer remains true to our ethos and focus on multiple landings, flexible itineraries and family atmosphere – just with an improved home base! As a modern and custom-designed ship, the Greg Mortimer is at the cutting edge of nautical technology. Robust, powerful and built with our guests in mind, this ship marks a significant investment in our fleet's capabilities. From the European Arctic to the depths of Antarctica, and other far-flung destinations in-between, the Greg Mortimer will make your journey a breeze! Greg Mortimer ULSTEIN X-BOW™ Our expeditions face some of the worst Mother Nature can throw at us. However, this won't be problem on the Greg Mortimer with the introduction of the patented X-BOW™, created by Norwegian ship designer ULSTEIN. As one of the leaders in marine engineering, ULSTEIN's X-BOW™ is an inverted bow concept that's been built on over 100 vessels in the shipping industry. Excitingly, we are the first expedition cruise operator to utilise this technology for the challenging open ocean waves! Hydraulic viewing platforms Although there is no doubt that you'll love the aesthetics of the Greg Mortimer, we are all here to admire the spectacular landscape and spot the elusive wildlife in their natural habitat. To ensure you get the best views possible, the new ship features unique viewing platforms, custom-built for the Greg Mortimer. Accessed from Deck 5, the two platforms fold out hydraulically for unobstructed views of passing marine life and seabirds – make sure your camera is locked and loaded! Zodiac launching platform Zodiacs are a vital part of getting up close and personal on your adventure – sneaking into areas that the Greg Mortimer can't reach. On this new ship, there are specially designed launching platforms that enables us to load Zodiacs easily and quickly, allowing you to spend more time exploring on the two to three daily landings. There are 15 Zodiacs that are boarded from either side of Deck 3 (sea level), perfect for when there is a group of fluffy cute penguin chicks that we need a photo of! Activity Platform Regardless of your destination, we offer a number of additional activities to allow you to see more of the environment. From kayaking and diving to climbing and ski touring, it's these optional activities that often leave the biggest impression on your trip as a whole. Onboard the Greg Mortimer, there is a spacious prep and loading platform for these activities and more – designed in consultation with our expert activity guides. Environmentally friendly Climate change and carbon emissions continue to be major issues that everyone needs to be aware of and actively managing. This includes reduced emissions into the air and sea, lower energy consumption, high fuel efficiency, reduced light pollution for minimal wildlife disruption and lower on-board plastic use. It's vital to also mention the state-of-the-art virtual anchoring technology of the X-BOW™, which means the ship can float anchorless while launching Zodiacs, kayaks etc, without disturbing delicate sea floor areas. Safety features This starts with the return-to-port equipment – not compulsory on a ship of this size – which duplicates the propulsion system. This enables the ship to maintain operating systems and comfort in the event of engine failure. Furthermore, the Greg Mortimer is Polar Code 6 compliant, holds BV class and is fully compliant with the latest SOLAS requirements. It's also built with a Rolls Royce stabiliser system. If there's an incident or accident during your adventure, the ship has an on-board, fully-stocked medical centre – where our trained medical team can provide necessary treatment in a timely fashion. Safety continues to be an issue that our team takes very serious and the Greg Mortimer allows us to create an environment where you can concentrate on the brilliant landscape and wildlife, without worrying about your wellbeing. Ship Life Greg Mortimer is designed to serve your every need. It's your bedroom, bathroom, lounge, dining room and even your observatory. Make yourself at home, the Greg Mortimer is yours to enjoy! Observation Points Let's face it – you don't want windowless rooms when travelling around some of the most beautiful locations around the world. This is why the Greg Mortimer is designed with plenty of dedicated observation spaces – ideal for keen bird spotters, wildlife watchers and those wanting to watch the scenery go past. From the indoor 180-degree lounge and outdoor 360-degree open deck, both on deck 8, to the 270-degree open sundeck on level 7, there are plenty of observation points to share around the ship! If these are full, then you can take up a spot on one of the two hydraulic viewing platforms on deck 5. Aurora Expeditions also has an open bridge policy, which means at any point you can come up to the bridge and check out what the captain and officers are up to. From watching navigational practices to observing mapping techniques, you can get a firsthand look at the inner workings of the Greg Mortimer. Shore excursions Although the ship is fun, the real enjoyment comes from the many shore excursions that are available. Depending on the weather and itinerary, it's possible to take two to three landings daily, taking a look at everything from rock formations and ancient ruins to cute groups of penguins. We know time is of the essence in these wild locations, so the Greg Mortimer has been designed with 15 Zodiacs, which means you can maximise your time on shore. From four dedicated sea level launching platforms, transfers are quicker, safer and enable you to get closer to the action for a longer period of time. Just remember to charge your camera before you step onto the Zodiac! Activity options From kayaking and skiing to diving and climbing, these are one-in-a-lifetime opportunities that you need to take advantage of. Aboard the Greg Mortimer there is a specially designed launching platform for all activities, a concept overseen by our activity experts. This area also includes individual lockers in the expansive mudroom and rapid drying areas for wetsuits so you can quickly get warm after exploring in the elements! Dining From the moment you step onto the Greg Mortimer, we aim to give you the best hospitality service possible. Starting with the official Captain's welcome, as our guests, you're welcome to 24 hours complimentary coffee, tea and snack facilities in addition to the range of different menu options and courses for each meal. Meals are served in large dining room/restaurant with family style dining, perfect to swap stories with your new expedition family. Enjoy the range of house wine, beers and soft drinks included with dinner after a long day in the wild, preparing yourself for another exciting day to follow. On the last day of your trip, the team on the Greg Mortimer put on a special farewell four-course dinner and cocktails – a perfect way to reflect on your time on the ship and consolidate lifelong friendships with the people you've met on-board. On-board entertainment When you’re relaxing during a sea day or you have a little downtime on the ship between excursions, what is there to do onboard the Greg Mortimer? Plenty! On all our expeditions, there are experts who lead presentations in the spacious lecture room so you can understand the region a little better. These often include topics as broad as history and culture to biology and climate change, these presentations aim to educate and entertain. If you're keen to just watch the surroundings and keep your eyes peeled for wildlife, you have access to two bars/lounges where the stunning floor to ceiling windows offer a special perspective on the landscape. The Greg Mortimer is also decked out with other facilities for your enjoyment. There is a library on Deck 5 with books and maps and a Wellness Centre complete with gym equipment, sauna and spa. Feeling a little sore after walking around all day? Treat yourself to a massage at the Wellness Centre and feels the aches disappear! Keen photographers and artists will revel in the multimedia room on Deck 5.

Itinerary

Day 1 - Day 1 Dublin

Arrive in Dublin and transfer to your hotel. Upon check-in, please remind reception staff to provide you with Aurora Expedition cabin tags. Please fill out the luggage tags clearly, showing your name and cabin number so that we can deliver your luggage to your cabin ahead of your arrival.Overnight: Ashling Hotel (or similar)

Day 2 - Day 2 Dublin, embark Greg Mortimer

This morning, please take your luggage, clearly labelled with your name and cabin number, down to the hotel lobby by 9.00 am. Your luggage will be collected and transferred directly to the port for clearance, and delivered to your cabin. Please ensure you keep any valuable documents with you throughout the day. Once you have checked out of your hotel, you have free time before meeting back in the hotel lobby at 1.00 PM to commence tour of Dublin, UNESCO City of Literature, before embarking the Greg Mortimer in late afternoon. You’ll have time to settle into your cabin before our important briefings. Sail past Giant’s Causeway, an area of about 40,000 interlocking and stacked basalt columns that resulted from an ancient volcanic fissure eruption. The stunning geometric sculptural forms, a national nature reserve, and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986, resemble a man-made art installation. From the ship, we may also see the ruins of medieval Dunluce Castle, located on the edge of a basalt outcrop overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.(Breakfast and dinner included. Lunch is at own expense)

Day 3 - Day 3 Donegal: Inishowen Peninsula & Tory Island

Ireland is blessed with impressive natural scenery: vast valleys, glittering lakes, and cliffs hoisted up from the Atlantic. The jewel in the crown of Donegal is the Inishowen Peninsula. At the peninsula’s tip is Malin Head, Ireland’s most northerly point and a wonderful spot for bird watching as you meander along abandoned beaches along this deserted coastline.Continue to Tory Island located off the northwest coast of Donegal. Known simply as ‘Tory’, it’s a place that seems to have frozen in time, ruled by its own elected king, and where people still talk of 'travelling to Ireland'. Tory's spectacular cliff scenery is complemented by a rich and varied history which is related in the islanders distinctive Gaelic. Many of Tory’s ancient customs still survive, including the appointment of the island king or Rí Thoraí. Colm Cille figures prominently in the history of this sacred island which he chose as a place of retreat and meditation for his monks. Shipwrecks, poitín (a type of distilled whisky) smuggling and tales of violent storms have also been drawn into its folklore. Interesting historical sites include a round tower that once protected monks from Viking raids, the ruins of St Colmcille’s 6th century monastery and the intriguing Tau Cross that suggests early seafaring links to the Coptic Christians of Egypt. The island also boasts an abundance of rare bird life and wild flower species. However, it is neither the flora and fauna, myths, the monastic ruins nor even the majestic cliffs which make the greatest impression on visitors to Tory. It is the local islanders themselves, and typical of hardworking people who live in remote, the islanders know how to enjoy themselves and they always make visitors feel extremely welcome.

Day 4 - Day 4 Donegal, Slieve League Cliffs

Slieve League Cliffs, situated on the south west coast of County Donegal, are said to be the one of the highest and finest marine cliffs in Europe. Hike to the top of the cliffs to enjoy some of the highest and finest marine cliffs in Europe. There are terrific views of the Atlantic Ocean, the Sligo Mountains and Donegal Bay as you walk towards the terrifyingly high top of Slieve League, where the cliff face of Bunglas rises over 600 m / 1,968 ft above the raging ocean.Less experienced hikers can start from the Bunglas Viewpoint, that offer classic views of the cliffs. Most people only follow the first section of this cliff path, built out of stone steps, but within just 15-20 minutes of climbing, you’re in the wild. Follow the cliffs as long as you’d like, until you’re standing at the highest point of the Slieve League cliffs, watching diving sea birds.More experienced hikers can continue all the way to the Pilgrim’s Path – a 3 km / 1.9 mi hike taking approximately 2-3 hours roundtrip. The Pilgrim’s Path is narrow and steep. Parts of it can be rocky underfoot, and boggy in other places. The trail’s name comes from the time when Ireland’s Penal laws in the 18th and 19th centuries forced Irish Roman Catholic dissenters to convert to the English Anglican Church. This meant that official Catholic worship was outlawed. However, many Catholics refused to convert, and met secretly to say mass in remote, rural places, such as Slieve League.

Day 5 - Day 5 Sligo, Mullaghmore

Jutting out of Sligo’s northern edge, the small peninsula of Mullaghmore sits dramatically out into the North Atlantic. Land and sea meet in dramatic confluence along the coast of County Sligo, a dazzling landscape of jagged mountain peaks that inspired the work of Nobel-winning poet William Butler Yeats. Mullaghmore resides in the shadows of iconic Benbulben mountain, undoubtedly Ireland’s most distinctive mountain, sometimes referred to as Ireland’s own Table Mountain. The most distinctive peak among the Dartry range, it was formed during the ice age by massive glaciers segmenting the landscape.On the Benbulben Forest Walk (1.5 hours, suitable for all ages and abilities), the trail begins in a secluded forest area before opening out to stunning views of Benbulben head. Further along the walk offers superb panoramic views of Donegal Bay, Slieve League Cliffs, Mullaghmore and Classiebawn Castle. And, of course, Yeats himself is buried "Under bare Ben Bulben's head,", as he predicted in one of his poems – his grave can be found in Drumcliff cemetery, not far from the foot of the mountain. The mountain’s most noted reference in Yeats’s poetry is in the work Under Ben Bulben, in which he describes horsemen who “ride the wintry dawn/Where Ben Bulben sets the scene".Alternatively, embark on the Mullaghmore Head Walk (2.5 hours, suitable for all ages and abilities). This walk is an easy walk along the stunning coastline of Mullaghmore consisting of a mixture of footpaths, off-road walking trails and public roads, offering stunning panoramic views of Donegal Bay and Slieve League beyond as well as of Benbulben and the Dartry Mountains.Mullaghmore village, is largely the vision of Henry John Temple, better known as Lord Palmerston, who served two terms in office as British Prime Minister. He inherited a large estate of 10,000 acres in north Sligo, and not only instigated the building of Classiebawn Castle, the dominant landmark of the area, but also the magnificent stone harbour and the main buildings that characterise the village today.After your morning of hiking, return to the ship for lunch. In the afternoon, land on one of the offshore islands to see a protected wildlife sanctuary and a 6th century monastery, where the discovery of a cist burial and carved ‘cursing’ stones suggests prehistoric occupation.

Day 6 - Day 6 Céide Fields / Clare Island

Ireland’s Stone Age ancestors constructed houses, walls and fields that created an early farming community complete with megalithic tombs. One of these communities was Céide Fields, which contains the oldest known stone-walled fields in the world – dating back nearly 6,000 years. Céide Fields overlooks the mighty Atlantic Ocean pounding against the cliffs below. The landscape itself has been forged from the dramatic upheaval and movement of the earth’s crust over millions of years.Visit the remarkable Céide Fields Interpretative Centre. The centre has won several awards, including the Gold Medal for architecture. It is located beside some of the most spectacular cliffs and rock formations in Ireland and a viewing platform is positioned on the edge of the 110m high cliff. One of the exhibits that confronts visitors upon entering the centre is a 4,000-year-old pine tree that was unearthed from nearby bog land.Clare IslandClare Island is a mountainous island guarding the entrance to Clew Bay in County Mayo. It is famous as the home of the pirate queen Grace O'Malley (Granuaile), who was known as a tyrant of the ocean, clan chieftain, mother, wife, survivor and brilliant politician. Although her deeds relatively unknown outside of Ireland, the legacy of her mastery survives in the ruined monuments and the folk-consciousness on Clare Island and Ireland.Clare is the largest and highest of Clew Bay's many islands, with dramatic coastal cliffs and spectacular views of one of Ireland's best-known peaks, Croagh Patrick. Its spectacular cliffs are home to large numbers of nesting sea birds and its hills, bogs and woodlands make it ideal for hill walking, with a variety of walks and climbs to suit all fitness and interest levels including: Archaeological Trail, Fawnglass Loop and Knocknaveena Loop.

Day 7 - Days 7-10 Connemara

Dubbed a place of "savage beauty" by Oscar Wilde the Connemara lets you experience authentic Ireland. On coastal hills walks take in views of soaring mountains, clear turquoise waters and rare flora and fauna.Killary Harbour, carved by glaciers, it’s been described as Ireland´s only true fjord. It forms the border between Galway and Mayo counties and features some of the most spectacular scenery on the west coast. This deep-water inlet from the Atlantic was once a hiding place for U-boats in World War Two. The sheltered fjord is also a real treat for birdwatching, with nationally important populations of many species, including ringed plover, mute swan, whooper swan, mallard duck, tufted duck, and barnacle goose. Dolphins are often seen in the fjord, along with otters, a protected species that are known to breed at Killary Harbour.Breathtaking mountain vistas provide a dramatic backdrop for Leenane, a town nestled beside the water at the head of the fjord. In 1903, Leenane played host to King Edward VIII and Queen Alexandra when they made a tour of Connemara including a visit to nearby Kylemore. Visit the Sheep and Wool Centre in the town centre that includes an excellent museum featuring the history of sheep farming and the woollen industry in Connemara, along with a gift shop and café.Connemara is Irish landscape at its most dramatic. With soaring mountains, scattered loughs and an intricate coastline, this remote part of Galway offers superb hiking. Stretch out your legs on the Killary Harbour Coastal Walk, also known as the ‘Famine Trail’, where you’ll walk past little cottages that faced extremely gruelling times during the 1840s. In recent times, Killary Harbour has become a centre for aquaculture, with mussels being farmed in the deep, clear waters of the fjord. Fish cages belonging to a salmon farm and mussel rafts are a prominent feature. This spectacular walk offers views of dramatic Mweelrea Mountain towering at your side.Hiking Connemara National ParkDiamond Hill Loop Walk (7 km / 4.3 mi). Grading: DifficultYour starting point is the visitor centre at the Connemara National Park. There are gravel footpaths and wooden boardwalks on the approach to the mountains, with a steady climb up the western slopes to the summit ridge. The trail offers blanket bog ecology, extensive heather, stunning views of the mountains, Inishturk, Inishbofin and Inishshark islands and coastline and the possibility of wildlife.To the north and east, the Twelve Bens are nothing short of sensational. To the northeast, Kylemore Abbey’s gothic turrets stand out from neighbouring Kylemore Lough; and directly north, the summit of Mweelrea, Connaught’s highest mountain, can be seen peeping out. There are some steep sections that require the use of hands. Terrain includes stone steps, trail, and surfaced minor road. It can be quite windy on top so bring appropriate clothing.For those after an easier and shorter hike, the Lower Diamond Hill trail is an excellent option. It’s a 3 km / 1.9 mi, with a duration of 1.0 -1.5 hours. The walk offers some fantastic views of the surrounding Connemara countryside, coastline and islands. Two other shorter walks starting from the visitor centre are also available if you’re after easier options.Connemara Islands. Scattered out in the harsh Atlantic, these islands have been shaped by the sheer force of the ocean. Experience gaelic culture and remnants of life long lost in modern Ireland. Land and explore numerous abandoned or sparsely populated islands off the Connemara coast.Given the moniker “The Enchanted Island”, Inishboffin is set in the wild splendour of Connemara amid the magical beauty of sea, cliffs and mountains that make up the Galway-Mayo coastline. With its westerly position and its protected harbour, Inishbofin was one of the most important shipping havens on the West coast of Ireland. It was one of the last Royalist strongholds to fall to Cromwell’s army. The ruins of Cromwell’s impressive star-shaped fort from 1656 still overlook the harbour. Inishbofin is also home to “Dún Gráinne”, the remains of a fort used by the legendary Pirate Queen, Grace O’Malley from neighbouring County Mayo. It is also home to a second Celtic fort which dates all the way back to 1000 B.C.The island is a breeding area for many bird species, the rarest or most threatened of which is the corncrake. Other species include common tern, Arctic tern, fulmars, shags, guillemots, various gulls, Manx shearwaters, and choughs. Inishbofin offers three looped walks, all with stunning views of the Islands beautiful scenery and birdlife.Westquarter Loop (2hrs – 2.5 hours)The Westquarter loop takes in some of the most stunning Atlantic Coast scenery in Connemara offering views of the Island’s blow holes and sea arch, sea stags where the Island seal colony can be seen, the Dún More Cliffs and Iron Age promontory fort ruins. The walk also offers views of Inishark Island.Cloonamore Loop (2hrs – 2.5 hours)The Cloonamore Loop runs over green roads, bog roads and laneways along the beautiful East End Beach and St. Colman’s 14th Century Chapel and Church Lough. You can experience a fertile valley which supports reed beds that support a wide variety of birds.Inishbofin Middlequarter Loop (1.5 – 2 hours)This walk runs over Inishbofin’s second highest point, which on a clear day offers panoramic views of Achill Island’s mountains, Inishturk and Clare Island, the Twelve Bens, Maumturks and Croagh Patrick. The trail takes in Inishbofin’s historic and varied Iron and Bronze Age landscapes with mill stones, partitions and evidence of round stone houses.Perhaps the most famous of Ireland’s isles, Galway’s Aran Islands are synonymous with traditional Irish culture, language, music and tradition. Famed for their wild landscapes, distinctive knitted jumpers and pretty thatched cottages, the picturesque Aran Islands never fail to impress visitors. The islands form part of one of Ireland’s several protected Gaeltacht regions where Irish rather than English is the spoken language.Inishmore (Inis Mór) is the largest of the Aran Islands and has been attracting visitors to its rugged shores for generations. The island is home to over 50 different monuments of Christian, pre-Christian and Celtic mythological heritage. The geology is an extension of the famous limestone rocks of The Burren, where limestone pavements crisscrossed with grikes, host a plethora of, often extremely rare, wild flowers such as gentian violets and orchids. The landscape of Inishmore is a patchwork of fields hemmed in by precariously balanced drystone walls.Explore Inishmore, including a visit to the island's most celebrated monument, Dún Aonghusa, considered to be one of the best examples of its kind in Europe. Occupying a site of 14 acres, Dún Aonghusa is a fort that consists of three terraced walls surrounding an inner enclosure containing a platform on the edge of a 100-m / 300-ft high cliff. The views from it are breathtakingly spectacular. Excavations carried out in the 1990s indicated that people had been living at the hill top from c.1500 BC with the first walls and dwelling houses being erected c. 1100 BC. A remarkable network of defensive stones known as a Chevaux de Frise surrounds the whole structure.Late Bronze Age objects such as rings, tools, beads and foodstuffs found on site are now in Dublin’s National Museum. Archaeologists and scholars from all over the world visit the site annually, and some scholars suggest that the platform overlooking the Atlantic Ocean may have had ritual significance. The Dun Aonghasa Visitor Centre is located on the edge of Kilmurvey Craft Village and provides a wealth of information about Dun Aonghasa, the cliffs, and the Aran Islands in general. It has a number of exhibits and educational materials which are set out in a simple way as so most people can get a good understanding of Dun Aonghasa prior to entering the site itself.You have the option of reaching Dún Aonghasa from the pier at Kilronen village by bicycle (6 km / 3.7 mi) or by coach.From Dún Aonghasa, you can walk to the Worm Hole, a natural rectangular shaped pool into which the ocean ebbs and flow at the bottom of the cliffs south of Dún Aonghasa. The Worm Hole has recently become more popular since it has become a venue for the Red Bull Cliff diving competition. From Dún Aonghasa the walk to the Worm Hole follows the cliff-edge and offers dazzling ocean views. Back at Kilronan village, where the ship awaits, you can brave a chilly swim in the turquoise water, people watch, or you relax and enjoy a coffee or a pint of Guinness.As we continue our journey south, sail below the towering Cliffs of Moher.

Day 8 - Day 11 Dingle Peninsula

There are over 2,500 archaeological sites on the Dingle Peninsula, spanning a period from 6,000 BC through to 1700 AD. The area is regarded as having one of the richest concentrations of archaeological monuments in Western Europe. National Geographic once described it as “the most beautiful place on earth”, and more recently, one of the locations where Star Wars was filmed, at Sybil Head.We enjoy a ship cruise at Great Blasket Island, and perhaps launch our Zodiacs allowing us to get closer to the cliffs to perhaps get a glimpse of the huge number of breeding seabirds such as puffins, fulmars, guillemots, storm petrels and shearwaters. In the water, you may be lucky and encounter dolphins, whales, orcas and porpoise.After lunch, we anchor at Dingle and embark on a guided tour of some of Dingle Peninsula’s ancient sites. The tour travels west of Dingle Town on the Slea Head route, considered one of the most scenic landscapes in Europe. Among the sites visited are Ogham stones, monastic sites, beehive huts, ringforts, medieval churches, holy wells, Gallarus oratory.Afterwards, visit the renowned Dingle Distillery for a tour of their facility where you can learn about the production process of their gin and vodka as well as enjoy a tasting. The distillery is not in the business of creating megabrands, nor do they distil for anyone else. Their scale is modest, their approach to what they make is essentially artisan and they have rekindled the tradition of independent distilling in Ireland. Two hundred years ago, this small island had over a hundred officially recognised distilleries; by the turn of this century there were two. Their unique Dingle Whiskey continually matures in the mild, moist climate of Ireland’s south-west coast while those first spirits are bottled into a magnificent single malt whiskey. You can also enjoy the fruits of their labours in the form of Dingle Original Gin and Dingle Distillery Vodka.

Day 9 - Day 12 The Skelligs

Off the coast of County Kerry, two rocky pinnacles rise from the Atlantic Ocean. These spectacularly Skellig Islands are world-renowned for their ornithological and archaeological significance. Skellig Michael is known throughout the world of archaeology as the site of a well-preserved monastic outpost of the Early Christian period – now designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site; Little Skellig (Irish: Sceilg Mhichil) is equally renowned in matters of ornithology as the home of roughly 27,000 pairs of gannets – the second largest colony of such seabirds in the world. Enjoy a ship cruise around Little Skellig (Irish: Sceilg Mhichil) to get a glimpse of the incredible gannet colony on the island. Afterwards, we dock at Portmagee, and with the blessing of fine weather, we plan to visit and land on Skellig Michael.Approximately 1,400 years ago a small group of men were searching for a place to practice their religion in complete solitude and isolation. These remarkable men ventured into the open ocean off southwest Ireland determined to build a monastery on one of the most extraordinarily remote locations on earth. Generation after generation of monks helped to hand-carve the 600 stone step with the simplest tools, to build a hilltop monastery 200 m / 656 ft above the pounding waves. The monastery has six corbel stone beehive huts and two boat-shaped oratories. The survival of the terraces and drystone walls to this day are testament to the skill and dedication of the monks. The monastery is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a striking example of Early Christian architecture. The archaeological remains show the dramatically spartan conditions in which the monks lived, and after enduring several Viking raids, the monks eventually left the island in the 13th century. The site has subsequently become a place of Christian pilgrimage.After lunch and a rest, disembark at Castletown-Bearhaven for late-afternoon hikes at Beara Peninsula. On the Bullig Bay Loop Walk (4 km / 2.5 mi - one hour), starting near the ruin of Dunboy castle - seat of the O’Sullivan Bear clan who ruled the Beara Peninsula for 600 years, the walk offers a pleasant mix of farmland, quiet country road & forest tracks, and wonderful views of Bullig bay and Bear Island. If you’re after a shorter walk, nearby Dinish Island, offers a 15-minute walk around the Island.

Day 10 - Day 13 At Sea

As we come to the end of the voyage, you may choose to enjoy final talks and presentations from our team of experts, edit and organise your photographs or reminisce over a few drinks with fellow travellers and expedition team on a remarkable voyage.

Day 11 - Day 14 Disembark

During the early morning, we cruise into Dublin port, where you disembark at approximately 8.00 am. Farewell your expedition team and fellow passengers as we all continue our onward journeys. A transfer to your hotel or Dublin airport is included in the fare of the voyage. NOTE: At the conclusion of the voyage, we do not recommend booking flights departing Dublin prior to 12.00 pm on the day of disembarkation in case there are delays.

Day 12 - Please Note:

In true expedition style we encourage exploration and adventure, offering flexibility in challenging environments in a way that puts you among the action to see and do as much as possible. This itinerary is only a guide and subject to change due to weather conditions.

Trip Dates

Start	End	Price From	Room Type

Inclusions

Hike some of the world’s most breathtaking coastal cliff landscapes, home to huge colonies of nesting seabirds such as gannets, puffins and guillemots
Discover remarkable archaeological ruins dating back 6,000 years
Tuck into a unique west coast meal cooked from freshly caught fish and locally-grown-and-foraged produce
Enjoy an authentic “trad session” of traditional music played by local musicians