Ireland. How's the riding in late March and early April?

[kickapoojim]

I will be arriving in Shannon on the 25 of March and am committed to stay about a week. All of my time (a whole freakin' week in that small area) will be spent between Shannon and Dublin and points south and I expect to see all of the main tourist sites.   Then, in the month of April, I'm on my own.  

Is the weather decent? I mean above freezing?  

Thanks for any and all info on the weather and potential riding problems.   I'll hire a bike, thanks for that topic on another thread...

I am a fallen away STNer from a couple of years ago.  mea culpa .  I hoped to talk to our Ireland rider from that era but I didn't find him with my limited computer skills...  

[Orson]

plan on rain  

I've been eyeing a trip myself and looked at a travel books for the monthly rainfall averages.

basically, its an upsidedown bell curve. Biblical proportions at the beginning and end of the year, reducing to merely torrential proportions around June & July  

The travel book recommended planning "extra" days into your itinerary so that you can wait out the rain when you reach the scenic bits like the ring of Kerry.

Edited to add: looks like I was wrong.

click here for a temp/rainfall chart.

Looks like March & April have the lowest rainfall  

[throttlemeister]

Keep in mind that when an Irishman says "dry", normal people mean drizzle or light rain.

[Baz]

Beware of Road Bowling on Sundays.



http://www.irelandlogue.com/about-ireland/cultural-tips/irish-road-bowling.html

[kickapoojim]

Thanks guys.  

The temps look OK.  I'm gonna dress for rain anyway so...

Might as well creep around the Old Sod for a couple of extra days

Thanks for the heads up on road bowling on Sundays.  Sunday is for staying at home and drinking anyway  

[notarian]

Ireland is a wonderful ride. I did an 8 day tour in September last year beginning in Larne, N. Ireland across the North coast and into Donagal. Then south along the coast to Kerry. The whole of Ireland was brilliant, but definitely recommend Killarney and the whole of Kerry as a must see, as is Cong in County Mayo just north of Galway.

There must be some Euro Parliamentary funding for improving Ireland's roads as there are road works and constructions everywhere. Until they finish the improvements, the Irish give you just enough good tarmac to give you hope.

Be careful in the wet on back rural roads = they can be covered in cow shite and slippery - don't stay behind anyone or you will be covered in it.

Note

[RickC1957]

I was there last year just after St Paddy's day....it was cool/cold in the mornings, it did drop to freezing a couple of evenings. I had some light rain, nothing major....maybe I'll post some pictures later in the day. The Dingle Peninsula was awesome, so was the Ring of Kerry.

[Global Rider]

Is the weather decent? I mean above freezing?

Well I've been between Shannon and Dublin, having gone to school in Co. Tipperary a very long time ago.

We never got any real snow, and the very odd dusting we did get was gone by mid morning.

I can't remember wearing a winter jacket...just the school sweater and maybe a windbreaker.

Bring a rainsuit and an umbrella!  

[spinalator]

Rain, fog, coolish, but they occasionally will get some warm stuff coming through. If snow comes it is only on the high areas and is gone after a day. I would be more concerned with rain and slick surfaces, and the narrow narrow roads once you are off the "dual carriageways" which are the divided higheays. The toll highways are much cheaper than France, which makes you donate a kidney at each toll booth. Mon Dieu!

Getting back to weather, April was sunny and warmer and May June July sucked donkey balls last year. I am still cleaning moss out from between my toes.

[kickapoojim]

I just returned from Ireland yesterday

Temperatures were in the upper 30's at night, mid 40's during the day and it rained off and on every day.  The weather seemed pretty mellow to me especially considering the hard winter we've been having in Wisconsin.

But I didn't rent a motorcycle. That was partly because of the weather but mainly because of the left hand driving situation.  I hadn't ever experienced that before.  And everything is damned expensive in Ireland.  I expect I'll return to Ireland someday with a less extensive itinerary and rent a car to get a feel for the traffic.  Then maybe rent a motorcycle.  Maybe...

I did see a lot of motorcycles commuting to work in Dublin and at Glendalough in the Wicklow Mountains last Sunday.  

Riding in the countryside is very different in Ireland compared to the States.  Thick hedgerows and tall stone fences block your view on the many hairpin turns on narrow narrow roads  in the countryside.  You have to really be in control of the bike and ready to jump from the center of the road to the left side when a car suddenly appears.  My reaction of course would be to jump to the right side.  

It was a good trip.  First night at a house in the countryside a few miles from Shannon (The Burren and Moher).  Second and third night in Killarney  (Ring of Kerry/Muckross).  Fourth night in Inchigeelah.  Fifth and sixth night in Dublin.  

[Orson]

I just returned from Ireland yesterday

 

I've been eyeing an Irish trip someday.

Please post some pictures  

[kickapoojim]

I do indeed have pictures but I'll need some help from my dear friend Denise to get them on here.  I'm not so computer savvy.  
Stay tuned...

 

[spinalator]

Only half of these were on two wheels, some were pedestrian, and some were cage. Sorry I have been too lazy to post anything of interest from my 7 months on the emerald isle.





















etc.

There are 1500 photos on smugmug if you are truly bored and want to see how I spent last summer...

[Kev]

Hey All
Am only new here but if your looking for good rideouts checkout some of the local rider forums, won't post any links untill I'm given permission to.
as for the comment about not getting use to the left hand roads, I travel on main land Europe regularly and only got it wrong in spain as I went to the shops one morning and drove the cage down the wrong side of the road in a residential estate and quickly relised my mistake and didn't do it again...

If your watching what your doing, you will learn to take the bend wide enough to see the danger coming and counter steer somemore to pull in tighter avoiding the oncoming cage or tractor or truck, main issues would be as follows, Splash&dash (Tar&gravel road maintenance), mud (from tractors exiting fields), diesel/oil, manure/and sheep or cattle (Animal moved from field to field by road) on roads and bends

but all this is part of what I have to say is the country of my origin and the country I love too.
Pics from Photorally 2007 & 2008
Near Birr, County Offaly

Near Dublin (North)

Trim, County Meath for Breakfast (I live beside Newgrange / south of the river Boyne)

Snow in Newgrange in February 2008 was gone by next day.

One of the tour we do here...

PS we not looking for anyone to go on this trip with us as we have 10 bikes going already and it has already raised over €2000 for the charity concerned, it's just to give you an idea what sort of runs we tend to do here...
Have a load of pics of training run etc here:_
www.frenchconnectiontour.com

It's not all wind, rain, cold and snow here, we have good rideout days too.

and there are bike rental companies here too who will show you the ropes, I am not affiliated to any of them though.

[kickapoojim]

Thanks so much for the photos Spinalator and Kev.

I didn't mention it earlier but our esteemed driver didn't think it was possible to rent a bike in Ireland.   He had lots of experience with rental vehicles, he could spot them a half mile away and avoid them but he refused to believe that anyone could just rent a bike.  Well, with the condition of the dollar he wasn't far wrong for Americans.

[kickapoojim]

Hey All
Am only new here

Thanks for the reply and I hope you stick around and enjoy the forum as I have...

[Kev]

[Kev]

http://s251.photobucket.com/albums/gg301/kev-fc07/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rev-up4dsi_aidan/sets/72157605337112991/

[Kev]

2 years ago in NI :P

Freezing fog Feb06

[kickapoojim]

Hey All
Am only new here but if your looking for good rideouts checkout some of the local rider forums, won't post any links untill I'm given permission to.
as for the comment about not getting use to the left hand roads, I travel on main land Europe regularly and only got it wrong in spain as I went to the shops one morning and drove the cage down the wrong side of the road in a residential estate and quickly relised my mistake and didn't do it again...

If your watching what your doing, you will learn to take the bend wide enough to see the danger coming and counter steer somemore to pull in tighter avoiding the oncoming cage or tractor or truck, main issues would be as follows, Splash&dash (Tar&gravel road maintenance), mud (from tractors exiting fields), diesel/oil, manure/and sheep or cattle (Animal moved from field to field by road) on roads and bends

but all this is part of what I have to say is the country of my origin and the country I love too.

Thanks for your post.  All of the circumstances that you note are also issues within ten miles of my home in the USA except for the left hand driving situation.  One major difference is the visibility around corners.  In Ireland you frequently have about zero visibility around corners.  Maybe twenty feet.  That's especially scary if your natural impulse is to pull to the right when an approaching vehicle suddenly appears.

It's just something that I have to get used to.  It isn't wrong or dirty  

I love my memories of Ireland. I'll be back...