TUESDAY: DAY 4
Distance Options: A 12 Miles B 20 Miles C 34 Miles D 45 Miles
Accommodation: Royal Spa Hotel, Lisdoonvarna
We have some spectacular scenery for you today. The Atlantic coast will be your constant companion for the 18 miles of the route. As if that wasn’t enough this section is largely downhill finishing in the harbor village of Ballyvaughen. If you were only going to cycle 18 miles today then this last section is the what I would advise you to ride. The views and vistas along this section are unmatched. This section of coastal road takes you into Ballyvaughen. I would then suggest taking a 6 mile transfer that will take you up a substantial elevation to the location of one of the several megalithic tombs in the region. From this location you recommence cycling trough the heart of the Burren.
Following a series of tiny roads you navigate your way back to the village of Lisdoonvarna, home to the largest matchmaking festival in Europe.
The skeletal remains show evidence of arthritis. The tip of a flint or chert projectile point was found embedded in the hip of one individual. Two other healed fractures, one skull and one rib, were also found. Dental wear analysis shows evidence for the consumption of stone-grounded cereals. Also found in the burial chamber was a polished stone axe, 2 stone beads, a decorated bone pendant, a fragment of a mushroom-headed bone pin, 2 quartz crystals, several shards of coarse pottery, and a number of arrowheads and scrapers. Grykes are crevices in the limestone that were then filled with remains. Chamber and grykes also were filled with the bones of various large and small animals.
