I Went Walking - Hill of Tara

My sister-in-law, Suzanne, had been talking of treating her mom to a day out with chocolate cake at the tea shop at the Hill of Tara. John suggested that he could ride his bike there and meet the three of us for lunch. So a plan was hatched.

Note the helicopter in the background, getting the nice aerial view!

When Suzanne first told me about the Hill of Tara, I was so focused on walking that I thought she said it was the center of hiking in Ireland! I expected to find a shop selling maps and boots! Actually, what she said, is that the Hill of Tara was the seat of the High Kings of Ireland. So while I didn't find new walking shoes, I did get some great photos.

John headed out early to meet up with friends, Colm and Declan, for a fun social spin with one hill. Suzanne, Muriel and I left a couple of hours later to drive up. Just like when we met up on Mt Leinster, we timed it perfectly, arriving just as the lads were parking their bikes.

We all had a lovely lunch and dessert, while I got the chance to catch up with Colm and Declan off the bike.

Colm, Declan and John

After lunch I managed to catch some of that brilliant light and those lovely long shadows so common at this time of year in Ireland. According to Colm, there are even better views from the air, but I will have to wait for a future trip for the chance to take in those views.
 
 

I didn't notice my loooong shadow on the church until I looked at the photo later. Cool, eh?

 

 
After a quick walk around the grounds, Suzanne drove us to Trim Castle, where we got out for another short walk, as the sun was starting to set.

One could spend a few weeks just exploring the area around Trim Castle and the Hill of Tara. Having a brief taste of it that afternoon whetted my appetite for a return visit on our next trip - hopefully on my bicycle.

John is still working on his posts covering his rides... Soon...