Afraid of Heights - What to Avoid in West Ireland?
 

DH and I will be visiting Ireland in a few weeks (yay!), first time visit, and I've gotten a lot of great info here on what to do and see. We plan to visit Moher Cliffs, Dingle Peninsula, Ring of Kerry, etc., and was wondering - since I am terrified of flying off the side of a mountain in my car - what drives should we avoid? For example, I've heard Connor Pass is beautiful, but that it's a white-knuckle ride. I like beautiful scenery as much as the next person, but there's nothing so beautiful as "to die for." I would prefer calm, relaxing drives in the countryside. Does anyone have advice on what we should avoid? THANKS!

There is an amazingly scenic 'sky road' close to Clifden in Connemara. You definetly need to have a lot of faith in the person behind the wheel. There are no guard rails and it is a long way down.

Actually - I walked the sky road by myself on a lightly rainy early June day in 1985. One of my best memories of Ireland (and I have a lot of them).

Parking area for the Cliffs of Moher is a good distance from the path along the Ciffs. You have to walk about 100m from the Gift shop, etc. I really can't remember anywhere in west Clare that might trigger an attack of Vertigo like, for example Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park.

I am not familiar with the Killarny area, but like you, I have heard that Conor Pass can be a white knuckler.

The views from the parking area at the top of Connor Pass are spectacular and well worth a look. Driving up there from Dingle Town, the passenger side IS next to the upslope.
If you turn around there and return to Dingle, could you manage the back seat, driver's side for twenty minutes or so, so as not to be tempted to see the drop off?

The jaunting car ride through the Gap of dunloe will be fine, but the drive through the Windy Gap (Killarney to Kenmare) CAN be a bit tense, in spots. Likewise, the Caha Pass, between Kenmare and Glengarriff, though VASTLY improved, still has a few spots ...

Bob

Thanks for the input so far. In addition to being nervous about the whole flying off the cliff thing, I'm thinking that the combination of my DH not being used to driving on the "wrong" side of the road and my screaming "look out! look out!" the whole time will be lethal - if not to our lives, then to our marriage! :-)

Also might want to skip Blarney Castle and kissing the stone.

Avoid all coastlines and just drive inland! Seriously, if you have the knowledge there are ways to take the scenic coastal routes with the car on the "inside" lane and the passenger comfortably away from the drop-off. Study your map, consider that you are driving on the left and map out a route. For instance, if you do Connor Pass traveling from Tralee toward Dingle town you are on the inside lane.

Maybe you should just wear a blindfold till your husband tells you to take it off.

Weird, I don't remember any steep drop offs along Connor Pass. Just a lot of narrow windy roads.....we were there in January. Am I crazy? We drove from the north side of the peninsula across and then down to Dingle town.

Since you are afraid of heights I assume you are traveling to Ireland by boat. No place you can go in Ireland is higher than the flight if the airplanes that land there.

I second the Blarney castle comment - I very nearly freaked out descending it - but many much older and less fit people seemed to have no bother. For me it was incredibly scary and challenging. The driving was not a problem.

We were drove Connor Pass in July 05 and thought it was fine. Our drive to Keem on Achill Island was a real nail biter.