Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own

Posted bynickletjogPosted inDiary

LETJOG E2W – Day 27: Friday 10 May – WELLINGTONBRIDGE to NEW ROSS (14.1 miles)

The reason that I am in New Ross is that it is the lowest bridging point on the Barrow River, hence requiring my northward trek today

This is a day of thanks, and I will begin with Ellen at The Haven Lodge near Clongeen, just north of Wellingtonbridge, where I stayed last night – thank you for an especially fine breakfast this morning, that set me up for the day! My next thanks must go to the people of this part of Ireland for giving me something to reflect on that I had not experienced elsewhere. Walking the lanes this morning, in fine weather, three times a vehicle stopped to offer me a lift, and three times I had to explain that I am undertaking a charity walk across Ireland and that to accept a lift would amount to cheating! On hearing this, one driver even insisted that I take some fruit with me for my journey!! Which I did, with due thanks. I can only think that it would be quite straightforward to hitch-hike around this country – even with a fridge in tow.*

Milton Keynes may have its concrete cows, but The Haven Lodge has its pig!

But my biggest thanks today though must be to Cian and Nicola. Stranded last night, with seemingly no hope of finding a place to sleep at my scheduled destination tonight, New Ross, I sent out an SOS. And so here I am, resting tonight just outside of Waterford, in the comfort of their home. We had not actually met until this evening – introduced, remotely, by Cerys, my elder son’s partner, we were due to get together at the end of my walk tomorrow, in Waterford. But here we are, a day early, and a few pints of Guinness to the good, thick as thieves. Thank you both, and to Dave ‘Burkey’ too, for the wonderful company, and to an evening of good humour and camaraderie.

My improvised route plan now shows my route in blue highlight with asterisks depicting my daily destinations: today I took the quiet lanes north from Wellingtonbridge as far as Ballynabola – I was then persuaded by locals to walk the busy N25, where the full-width cycle lanes anticipate, thankfully, the safe passage of pedestrians
In yesterday’s flower pictures I missed the bluebells that proliferate along the waysides
Lush pastures in amongst arable fields as I left Clogheen
I don’t think that this overnight refuge would have gone down well at home!
Approaching the hills now . . .
. . . to the north . . .
. . . whilst my research is pending on the subject of this monument
With less pressure on land than in many parts of the UK, this house is typical of many fine residencies in the area, with sweeping walled entrances and huge plots
Easter decorations still up, celebrating the eventual arrival of the spring weather perhaps
Arriving in New Ross . . .
. . . the local funeral director and florist . . .
. . . and St Mary’s Church
This memorial is to local 18th Century MP and national hero Charles ‘Tottenham in his Boots’ who, according to legend, rode from these parts overnight to Dublin, to make a point of principle in parliament, despite being restrained from entry due to his ‘inappropriate attire, and mud on his boots’

John F Kennedy’s forebears came from these parts . . .
. . . and there is a sculpture of the lectern that he used to address the folk of New Ross on 27 June 1963
During the potato famine of 1845-49 a million Irish are estimated to have perished, and a further million emigrated, many from New Ross, on ships such as this one, the Dunbrody
This beacon was lit from the eternal flame at John F Kennedy’s resting place in the US, on the 50th anniversary of his assassination

Unusually on this venture, the conclusion of my walk saw me take a bus, from New Ross to Waterford. Early for my rendezvous with Cian, I had the opportunity to sample my first pint of ‘the black stuff’ on this trip. Excellent.

LETJOG meets Guinness!

And so tonight, fed, watered and befriended, I enjoyed an outdoor evening with new friends Cian and Nicola, and their friend Dave – before tonight unknown to me, but a mere three degrees of separation remote from each other! The sun sets on a remarkable day.

Sundowners . . .
. . . with Guinness in hand, alongside Dave, Cian and Nicola

‘Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own’ is a song by Irish rock band U2 – a title that makes a rather appropriate Blog heading for me today! The song was a single from the group’s eleventh studio album ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’, from 2004, and was written by Bono, the band’s lead singer and lyricist, as tribute to his recently-deceased father.

And to top it all, we had a midnight aurora (photo by Dave, as my iPhone was off-duty by then, recharging) – a quite extraordinary day!

* I am guessing that some reading this will not have understood my reference here to a fridge, and I cannot blame you for that. There is a book by comedian and author Tony Hawks called ‘Round Ireland With A Fridge’ that details a light-hearted adventure by the author, hitch-hiking around Ireland, with said fridge. It is well worth a read if you would like to learn a little more about the country, and in particular about the people he meets.

3 thoughts on “Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own”

  1. More terrific photos capturing memorable features on your journey. I’ve not come across it before now, but the undertaker & florist business is a logical combination. Irish presidents love re-tracing their Irish roots. I can trace my family history back to the Irish potato famine, but no further.

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