While it’s nice to give a day by day, blow by blow account of all that happened to me on my kayaking trip I feel that I can often get repetitive and I might also miss out on some of the contrasting and highlighting events that transpired so I thought that the format of posing myself a few questions which I will then answer will hopefully get more of my experiences out of my brain and into words on this blog! (I’m completing this blog post 5 years after the trip so I may have forgotten a few details.) This trip was such a great adventure that the most memorable bits still stand out vividly in my mind.

What motivated you to do this trip?

I had been an avid kayaker in my teenage years and enjoyed long multi-day adventures having done things like walking on the Camino for several weeks and going from Turkey to Ireland by land & sea.  I decided that it would make for a great trip as well as getting to explore the central parts of Ireland which I had never spent much time in.

How did you find the route across Ireland and how did you plan it?

I’d seen that circumnavigating the country had been done plenty of times before by kayak but wanted to do something new. I couldn’t find any accounts of people kayaking across the country so I thought that would be an interesting route to take!

How much was the total cost of the trip?

Equipment:

• Kayak, paddle, spraydeck & helmet – approx. 800 euro new (Sold after for €450)
• Wetsuit, dry bags, booties – approx. 100 euros
• Food & water for the trip – approx. 100 euros
• Drink & meals out along the way – approx. 100 euros
• Tent & GoPro – approx. 400 euros (Kept those after)
• Roof rack rental for the trip to Dublin and Limerick – approx. 100 euros

Insurance: €45  (Needed for the Grand Canal Visitor Permit)

Total after selling off the kayak approx: €1145 for the trip of a lifetime 

What were the highlights of the trip?

Some of the main highlights were:

1. Sleeping in a tent for 8 nights in a row. It really made me appreciate the comforts of home.
2. Having a shower after 8 days of no showers (apart from being rained on if you can count that!)
3. Spending a great night in a pub in a great pub in the town of Banagher where after a very cold and tiring day I made some great friends, sang loads of songs, had many pints and enjoyed one of the best nights in a pub I’ve ever had.
4. Crossing Lough Derg – this lake took me two days to cross as I was against strong winds for the majority of this section. For several hours I was stuck battling against the elements with nowhere to land and terrible wind, rain, waves, and even hail hitting me for hours. At one stage I really was really getting worried if I flipped that I wouldn’t be getting out of the situation alive as I was miles from shore and even with a wet suit could easily succumb to hypothermia.
5. Going down the rapids on my last day heading into Limerick.
6. The amazing sunsets that I saw along the way.

What were the worst moments on the trip?

• Getting woken up in the middle of the night by a storm, my tent filling with rain that I had to slowly sponge out.
• Having hailstones and rain pour down on you for hours and all you can do is paddle on to your next camping spot.
• Having to get out of my cold wetsuit under a bridge, with wind and rain all around me just so I can pee and shivering with the cold, questioning why I ever thought this was a good idea!

What would you do differently if you had to do it again?

Maybe plan the stops a bit better and examine a map a bit more, I think I ended up doing a good job but at one stage I had to paddle down a salmon river next to Parteen Weir which I had to figure out there and then. Thanks to the many warning/danger signs I didn’t end up going down the river to the hydroelectric dam or straight over the weirs 50-foot drop…

I would bring a better solar charger for my phone or some large battery packs. For the last 24 hours I had run out of battery and I didn’t know how far I had left to get to my pickup point. Luckily I had my friend pick me up at an agreed-upon time and location which we had arranged 2 days in advance!

What did you learn from the journey?

I learned that I could do a solo large scale adventure by my self. I learned that people across the country are welcoming, friendly and always willing to help out. It gave me a confidence boost to know that when the chips are down I can rely on myself and others. I learned that adventures like this don’t have to be expensive and that I should do something like this more often as I learn a lot about myself and grew as a person.

What route did you end up taking?

I entered at Adamstown, just after the 12th lock on the Grand Canal.

Stops on the way:

1. Sallins (17.5k from Adamstown) Day 1 – passing 3 locks
2. Edenderry (30km from Allenwood) Day 2 – passing 1 lock
3. Tullamore (31.5k from Edenderry)  Day 3 – passing 6 locks
4. Pollagh (17.5km from Tullamore)  Day 4 – passing 7 locks
5. Banagher (On Shannon) (23.5km from Pollagh) Day 5 – passing 3 locks
6. Portumna (On Shannon) (20km from Banagher) Day 6
7. Dromineer (22.5km from Portumna) Day 7
8. Killaloe (On Shannon) (20km from Dromineer) Day 8
9. The University of Limerick Rowing Club (On Shannon) (21km from Killaloe) Day 9