On the morning of our trip to the Aran Isles we woke up to very gray weather. Unfortunately for us, it turned into rain as soon as we headed out to the ferry terminal so we got pretty soggy on the one mile walk over.

We boarded a little before 9am and we were on our way. I guess they have two boats as our departure time was supposed to be 9:30! Got to the island at 10:30 and headed straight to Aran Bike Rentals to pick up the ebikes I had reserved online the day before. We were given tokens after they scanned our QR code, then we picked out a helmet and were assigned our bikes. Got a basic overview and we were on our way. The lowest bike seat setting allowed me to JUST touch my toes on the ground. Overall, we loved the e-bikes!  You still have to pedal (and navigate / balance) but the power boost was a huge bonus, it basically made all the hills a non-issue.

After a quick stop at Frenchman’s beach to get the hang of the bikes, we started cycling the green route, stopping at the Seal Colony (not many) and Kilmurvey Beach, before making a quick detour north to Na Seacht dTeampaill – The Seven Churches.

From the church ruins, we cycled back to the cliffs at Dún Aonghasa. I had somehow missed that it cost 5€ per person for the hike – no thanks. Instead we rode a little further and hiked over slate rocks to the Worm Hole, so we still got to see some cliffs and it was free! Several people were jumping from the cliffs as there is a stone staircase to climb out of the water.

We retraced our route back into town where we dropped off our bikes and quickly boarded the ferry back to the Galway Docks. This ship also left 30 minutes early. On the way back the boat took us close to the famous Cliffs of Moher – I believe this was the first time I have seen them from the water. Very dramatic.

I was pretty pleased that I did well with the ferry rides in both directions – several people got sick on the morning journey to the islands and I felt okay. Whew.