Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [152]
Heading back up the road takes you past Lady’s Island Lake containing Our Lady’s Island, site of an early Augustinian priory and still a centre of devotion. Fervent pilgrims used to crawl round the island; people still walk it barefoot. Look out for the stump of the Norman tower, which tilts more than the Leaning Tower of Pisa. When it’s not waterlogged, you can drive out to the castle on the island and walk a 2km circuit taking in the shrine.
On the lake’s eastern shore, the catch-all Castle View Heights ( 053-913 1140; www.castleviewheights.com) complex has a restaurant, craft shop and minigolf, as well as self-catering cottages (€200 to €600 per week).
St Margaret’s Beach Caravan & Camping Park ( 053-913 1169; stmarg@eircom.net; St Margaret’s Beach; campsites €18-20; mid-Mar–Sep), is a well-equipped campsite 500m from the beach.
There’s no public transport to this area.
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KILMORE QUAY
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Dotted with thatched cottages, Kilmore Quay is a small, working fishing village whose harbour is the jumping-off point for Ireland’s largest bird sanctuary, the Saltee Islands (see opposite), which are clearly visible out to sea.
Mussel in on the four-day Seafood Festival ( 053-912 9918) in mid-July for music, dancing and, of course, tastings.
Sights & Activities
To charter a boat for sea angling, contact Kilmore Quay Boat Charters ( 053-912 9704).
Sailing Ireland ( 053-913 9163; www.sailingireland.ie) offers five-day live-aboard courses (from €750 per person) and skippered boat charters (per boat €300/550 per half-day/day).
Sandy beaches stretch northwest and northeast from Forlorn Point (Crossfarnoge). There are some signposted walking trails behind the peaceful dunes, circled by serenading skylarks. Look out for St Patrick’s Bridge causeway, which stretches towards Little Saltee. A Dutch trawler ran aground there in 2006.
Wrecks like SS Isolde and SS Ardmore, both dating back to the 1940s, and extraordinary marine life keep divers occupied. Contact Wexford Sub Aqua Club (www.divewexford.org) for advice.
About 9km north of Kilmore Quay, Ballycross Apple Farm ( 053-913 5160; www.ballycross.com; Bridgetown) sells its apples, apple juices, chutneys and jams direct to the public and also bakes yummy waffles. It’s open from 2pm to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday during apple season (variously mid-August to March).
Sleeping & Eating
Mill Road Farm ( 053-912 9633; www.millroadfarm.com; R739; s/d €45/70; closed late Dec; ) About 2km northeast of Kilmore Quay on the R739, this working dairy farm offers simple rooms and breakfasts featuring homemade bread and free-range eggs.
Hotel Saltees ( 053-912 9601; www.hotelsaltees.ie; Kilmore Quay; s/d €80/140; ) Although rooms here are typical motel-style, they’re generously sized and enlivened by painterly canvases and fresh colours. Its restaurant, Le Saffron, is open for dinner from Friday to Sunday and for Sunday lunch, and sticks to well-cooked surf and turf classics, with a handful of vegetarian options (mains €17 to €28).
Silver Fox Seafood Restaurant ( 053-912 9888; Kilmore Quay; mains €18-32; noon-9.30pm Jun-Aug, 5-9.30pm Mon-Sat, 12.30-2.30pm & 5-9.30pm Sun Sep-May) Inside a brown-painted building just back from the quay, the Silver Fox’s fresh-from-the-ocean offerings include a potato-crusted fisherman’s pie filled with prawns, monkfish, salmon and cod in Pernod cream sauce, while land-based options include guinea fowl and wok-fried egg noodles.
Kehoe’s ( 053-912 9830; Kilmore Quay) Decorated with nautical equipment, right down to the beer garden built from a trawler mast and boom, this inviting pub has regular live music at weekends.
Getting There & Away
The Viking Shuttle Bus, operated by Wexford Bus ( 053-914 2742; www.wexfordbus.com), runs to/from Wexford up to four times daily (€5.50, 45 minutes). Bus Éireann ( 053-912 2522) service 383 covers the same route on Wednesday