Dublin to Larne via Balbriggan

Dublin to Larne via Balbriggan

Dublin to Larne

I started my drive on the Wild Atlantic Way today. Officially it doesn't start until north of Belfast, and I'm just a little bit North of Belfast at Larne. In fact its 46 miles... I'm back in the UK! Different currency again too... I've had a few changes in the last few days... I'm back to GBP  whilst I'm in "the North" then as soon as I hit the Republic, I'm back to Euros. I'm just keeping 2 purses going at the moment.

After I left  the comfort of Mary's house,  I told Gaby Garmin to take me to Balbriggan which is about 40 mins north of Dublin. It's back into the family history time, because my Grandfather came from Balbriggan. This is William Andrew Nolan who was married to Florence Georgina, my Nana whose ancestors I was tracing last week in Leicester and surrounds. Apparently Grandpa migrated to England because there was no work at the time in Ireland and he met and married my Grandmother in Leicester, then migrated to Australia where my Mum was born.

I don't have a lot of details on his side of the family and there was no-one I knew of in Balbriggan who is still related, so it was just a "have a look" visit. I have been there a few times before, but seeing I was on the family history trail it made sense to go  again this time, especially as it was literally on the way.


My impression of the town was one of neglect. It looked poor and run down and there were heaps of "To Let" signs and "For Sale" signs and it just looked unloved to me.

Balbriggan Station

Balbriggan Station

Balbriggan Station - see how close the sea is

Then I went up to the Church, and there's something about the Churches of our ancestors, and once again that feeling of nostalgia, or a strange sense of presence was there. I lit a candle for all our family, especially those with Nolan connections..

Balbriggan Church

Balbriggan Church - inside

Thats my candle.. bottom right!

Bell outside Balbriggan Church

I parked opposite the Church and walked down into the town - about 10 mins walk and had a cup of coffee in the pub.

Balbriggan Town Park

Balbriggan Main Street

Balbriggan centre of town. That's the pub I had coffee in

Balbriggan Library

Balbriggan - another view of main street.

So, after Balbriggan, I set Gaby Garmin for Larne. I had a look online last night for hotels in this part of the world, and was thinking of Carrick Fergus, but because its Saturday night there were many that were booked out, and I found this one in Larne called Curran Court Hotel  (Peter Curran played for the Hawks in the 80s... it was a sign!)

And it's lovely... just had dinner downstairs and when I looked at the menu my eyes lit up... there were so many choices that I could actually eat! Eventually I chose the Roast Turkey and Ham option - the small version - and it was enough for 3 people!I had forgotten how much my stomach loves Ireland! And then my waitress asked what would I like with it... there were cream potatoes, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes or chips....!!! I was really in Ireland!


Then to celebrate Mum, I had an Irish Coffee. Whenever Mum came over to Perth, we always had an Irish coffee to finish up - in the days before the  breathalyzer!

My room is lovely and big too. It looks out over the harbour. I think Larne is the ferry port from Scotland. If you look at the map at the top of this post you can see how close Scotland is to Northern Ireland at this point.

View from my room

After I had checked in - the man at reception was a good Aussie boy whose parents lived in Mt Martha (Vic) - I took a quick tour of the town, but it was getting dark, so it was short and sweet.

Main St Larne

So, starting tomorrow, I hug the coastline of Ireland to complete this  Wild Atlantic Way

Wild Atlantic Way

 I have to be back in Dublin with the car on Nov 29, to fly out on Nov 30, so I have exactly 2 weeks. It will be a challenge, but hey, I've done the odd challenge in these past 6 weeks...

Wild Atlantic Way - here I come....  !!!

PS I just have to add one thing.... there was a toll on the M1 between Balbriggan and Belfast....
I have to admit I was a little anxious given my history with tolls in continental Europe, but I have learned my lessons well.

As I approached the toll I read the signs carefully (helps that they're in English - and Irish!) and I found the one that accepted cash first up!!! Yee haa!!!

I felt very smug as I passed through successfully!

I hope my pride will not lead to a downfall in the future...!!!