Round Ireland in Low Gear - Softcover

Eric Newby

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0007367929 ISBN 13: 9780007367924

Publisher: Harpercollins Pb, 2011

Synopsis

Having decided to explore Ireland by bicycle, Eric and Wanda Newby set out one December - not the best time to ride a bike around the highways and by-ways of the Emerald Isle, even when protected by thermal underwear. From the Cliffs of Moher to St Brigid's Vat, Dublin, the Aran Islands, the Ring of Kerry and Croagh Patrick, their rainsoaked journey is beset by minor disaster ranging from ferocious storms to even more ferocious dogs. Along the way they come across a moving, miracle-working stature of the Virgin, spectacular ruins and the traces of twentieth-century violence, in between stops for Guinness, tea and soda bread. Woven into the narrative is a wealth of information about Irish history and custom - hermits, horse-fairs, peat-cutting and poetry are all touched on in this deft and dazzling blend of myth, fact and quirky details. And, as usual with eric Newby, this beguiling account is enlivened by a cast of eccentric and utterly engaging characters.

About this title

About the Author

Eric Newby was born in London in 1919. In 1938, he joined the four-masted Finnish barque Moshulu as an apprentice and sailed in the last Grain Race from Australia to Europe, by way of Cape Horn. During World War II, he served in the Black Watch and the Special Boat Section. In 1942, he was captured and remained a prisoner-of-war until 1945. He subsequently married the girl who helped him to escape, and for the next fifty years, his wife Wanda was at his side on many adventures. After the war, he worked in the fashion business and book publishing but always travelled on a grand scale, sometimes as the Travel Editor for the Observer. He was made CBE in 1994 and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award of the British Guild of Travel Writers in 2001. Eric Newby died in 2006.

From Publishers Weekly

Touring Ireland by bicycle in the winter is a daunting prospect even for the most seasoned backpackers, but Newby and his wife Wanda weathered it with good humor and resilience. The author of such classics of travel literature as A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush and Slowly Down the Ganges takes the armchair traveler with him as he and his companion contend with misleading signposts, lonely roads, torrential rain, gale-force winds and unhelpful natives who describe any destination as "up the road a bit" although it may be circular miles away. As a result, the Newbys fall upon many culturally significant points by absolute chance. Trips to remote castles, holy wells and splendid ruins in the west of Ireland are enlivened by lashings of Guinness and tea, and by the often antic behavior of the locals met in omnipresent pubs. The Newbys, who live in England, returned to Ireland in the summer, when travelers are more expansively welcomed and more places are open, but it is their winter tour that captures the essence of the country and its delightfully idiosyncratic populace. Illustrations.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harpercollins Pb
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0007367929
• ISBN 13: 9780007367924
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320