Dublin to Kilmuckridge

Tuesday October 12, 2010
Had to get up early to check out of the hostel. Ate another big breakfast (this goes without saying, doesn't it?). After I handed my keys back, I lounged around in the hostel for a while.

The front room of the hostel (Avalon House), with the bike packed and about to head off.

I was ready to go by 10:15 am, but I was in no hurry because I knew I only needed to cover 160 odd kilometres in two days, piece of piss. So I surfed the internet, and tried to plan a route to Rosslare, where I would be catching the ferry from.
I headed off at about 1 o'clock, and cycling was good because conditions were ideal: the sun was out, and there wasn't too much traffic, and the traffic lessened as I got further out from Dublin. Except for through the little towns along the way, because the roads always narrow and the traffic always increases.
I had a slight tail wind, and the legs were feeling good, so I blew my previous highest average speed out of the water - again! 23.0 km/h today, my previous highest was a few days ago when I rode to Dublin, 21.5 km/h.
I stopped for lunch in a scenic location.

The spot I stopped for lunch, off Dunbur Rd in Dunbur Lower. You can see the Wicklow golf course on the right.

On the R750 between Ardanary and Sallymount. Note the unusual concrete surface of the road here.

On the N11 near Ballyellin Upper, Ireland. This straight section of road allowed me to really open up the engine with a tail-wind as well.

I'm pretty sure I was on a motorway for one section of about 10 km, which is illegal for cyclists to ride on, but there wasn't really a direct alternative, and the motorways have wide shoulders. I didn't get caught, not even beeped at by passing cars, so it was fine.

The sun setting as I was passing through Glenrichards on the R742.

I stopped in a little town called Kilmuckridge, and found a good camping site before it got dark. It wasn't really hidden from the houses though, and there was a dog that kept barking at me. None of the residents seemed to care that I was there though.
I ate the left-over pasta I cooked for tea the previous night, and got to sleep relatively early.

Ride stats
Distance: 122.18 km
Average: 23.0 km/h
Maximum: 56.9 km/h
Time: 5:18:16