Cycle touring routes in Ireland - Cycling in Ireland

• Location
• Description
• Contents
• Introduction
• Sample Route
• Maps
• Reviews
• Further Reading

Geology

Geology and Scenery in Ireland, JB Whittow, Pelican Books, Harmondsworth, 1974. Out of print and, in parts, out of date, but a comprehensive tour of Ireland’s geology and landscape for the layman.

Classic Geology in Europe 5: The North of Ireland, Paul Lyle, Terra Publishing, Harpenden, 2003. More technical than the above, and just covering Ulster, but still comprehensible to the average reader and well illustrated.

Wildlife and Flowers

Ireland: A Smithsonian Natural History, Michael Viney, Blackstaff Press, Belfast, 2003. A loving account of the Irish landscape that is not overly scientific.

History

Teach Yourself the History of Ireland, FJM Madden, Hodder Education, London. Get the latest edition – it is regularly updated; a comprehensive and easy-to-digest history that is kept bang up to date.

The Concise History of Ireland, Sean Duffy, Gill and Macmillan, Dublin, 2005. Well-illustrated history, particularly good on the 14th century onwards.

Culture

Irish Writing: An Anthology of Irish Literature in English 1789–1939, ed Stephen Regan, Oxford University Press, 2004. Bit heavy in places (like the Connor Pass), but includes some key political writings, travelogues and poetry (including WB Yeats) as well as fiction. Also includes JM Synge’s Riders to the Sea and an excerpt from The Aran Islands (1907) – which may leave you wanting more.

Opened Ground: Poems 1966–1996, Seamus Heaney, Faber and Faber, London, 2007. Bit big to carry, but peerless poetry, especially when reflecting on an Ulster childhood.
Creatures of the Earth, John McGahern, Faber and Faber, London, 2007. Short stories intimately engaged with the Irish landscape – particularly County Leitrim.

A Border Station, Shane Connaughton, Penguin, London, 1994. A dark yet affectionate look at a 1950s childhood in the border country of Cavan and Fermanagh (even includes some cycling!).

The Butcher Boy, Patrick McCabe, Picador, London, 1992. Disturbing account of descent into madness in 1960s Ireland – based on Clones, County Monaghan.

Miscellaneous

Round Ireland in Low Gear, Eric Newby, Picador, London, 1988. Required reading for anyone mad enough to think of touring Ireland in winter.

Towpath Tours: A Guide to Cycling Ireland’s Waterways, John Dunne, Collins, 2005. A valuable companion on Route 7.