Day 137: Wonderful walk

Day 137 - Wednesday, August 22nd 2018: Glanlough to Sheep's Head Lighthouse 27 km / Total 2818 km, 16°C, sunny

Ticks, midges and rain when I packed the tent. My favourite things obviously! But now I'm so used to it, I don't really care anymore. Ok ticks: I'll check my skin to be sure I didn't catch one. Ok midges: I'll wear my head net. Ok rain and wet tent: it'll dry sooner or later. 

The walk was pretty cool on that day, despite there was absolutely no food point (no pub, no restaurant, no grocery, nowhere to eat) on the Northside of Sheep's Head peninsula. Anyway, I was expecting it and knew I would probably find food only at a café close to the lighthouse, which means twenty-four kilometres until eating a meal. And I even wasn't sure it would be open when I'd reach it, because I had no information about its opening hours. So as I had six hours of walk before reaching it, I decided to start early (9:30 am) and made a stop every hour and a half to eat some biscuits, and get there before 5 pm (hoping it wouldn't close at 4 pm).

If the weather was quite misty and cloudy in the early morning, it gradually got better, and I could enjoy a clear view above Bantry' Bay and Beara Peninsula. All along the road, there were some waterfalls. I really liked their sound, and it allowed me to wash my face a little bit (the next shower expected before the next Saturday). But I couldn't stand close to the water for long, because midges were coming (imagine, when I needed to pee, how quickly I have to be before they tried to bite my ***). Even when I wanted to stop and sit on my bag, they were annoying me, and I had to wear my head net. 

I walked a part of the Goat's path (yes, it's a very zoological peninsula: Sheep's Head, Goat's path ...) then ended up in a very little farmer road, actually crossing an old farm with a dog sleeping in the front, absolutely not disturbed by me (not a guard dog I guess!). The road climbed a little bit, to the top of the peninsula range, and there, I could see Dunmanus Bay, and the next peninsula (Mizen Head). In fact, that road got down a little bit on that side of the peninsula, and then got back to the other side, until it reached Sheep's Head where I could see both bays and both peninsulas around, with sunny and very clear weather.

And at least I could eat something as the café was still open. It was just a sandwich and a scone, but it was already so much more than biscuits. As I explained my trip to the owner and her staff, they gave me another scone for free.

After resting a little bit, I walked the last two kilometres to reach the little lighthouse, very well hidden. I went back for a kilometre, and found a flat place for my tent, pretty well sheltered from the wind, just above Lough Akeen. Some people saw me building my tent, but they didn't say anything. It was quite windy and my tent, wet from the morning, quickly got dry. 

I had a great setting view and could see the sunset from there. I really enjoyed it. And I slept like a baby, very deeply!