The Cliffs of Moher

If you’ve ever seen travel and tourism advertisements for Ireland, you’ve most likely seen the iconic photos of the Cliffs of Moher. With approximately a million and a half visitors per year, the Cliffs are among Ireland’s most visited sites, second only to the Guinness Brewery in Dublin.

The Cliffs of Moher are located in the Burren region on the southwestern edge of County Clare. Part of the Wild Atlantic Way, they are eight miles long and rise to 702 feet at their midpoint just north of O’Brien’s Tower. The tops of the cliffs are covered in emerald green grass, the edges are undulating strata of shale and sandstone pounded into shape for centuries by the deep blue Atlantic. On a clear day you can see the Aran Islands in Galway Bay, two mountain ranges to the north, the Loop Head Island Lighthouse and the Dingle Peninsula to the south.

Our return trip on the ferry from the Aran Islands included a sea level view of the Cliffs of Moher that began at the Doolin pier and took us below O’Brien’s Tower, a tower built in 1835 by Cornelius O’Brien supposedly to enjoy the fantastic view. Over millions of years, the weather and the rough waters of the Atlantic have carved the Cliffs into their distinctive undulating shape, and from sea level, we viewed caves, sea arches, and sea stacks. Our ferry ride took us to the southern point as far as Hag’s Head, an enormous rock named, some say, because of its resemblance to a hag.

Irish legend records another story of how Hag’s Head got its name. It’s said that a hag named Mal falls madly in love with the Irish superhero, Cu Chulainn, and chases him down. Cu Chulainn is repelled by Mal and runs all over Ireland trying to avoid her. Eventually Mal corners him at Loop Head, but invoking his superpowers, Cu Chulainn escapes to the Cliffs of Moher using the sea stacks as stepping stones. Mal tries to follow him, but looses her footing at Hag’s Head and falls to her death, where her blood is said to have stained the sea red.

We took a walking tour the morning after our ferry ride, parking near the visitor center and heading south along the clifftop path. The path is a narrow curving dirt trail that gets precariously close to the cliff edge in places. With eight sheer headlands, the length of the walk was deceiving and several times we talked about turning back, but the day was gorgeous and we didn’t know when we would get the chance again, so we went as far as Moher Tower at Hag’s Head, about three miles from where we started. With endless views of green farmland on one side and the rugged cliffs overlooking the Atlantic on the other, we were once again surrounded by Ireland’s natural grandeur.

Looking north to O’Brien’s Tower and the sheer rockface

The Cliffs of Moher have provided fantastic backdrops in many movies, including The Princess Bride scene of the Man in Black climbing up ‘The Cliffs of Insanity’ to rescue Buttercup, as well as scenes from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Many years ago, on another trip with three of my sisters, I almost saw the Cliffs, but because we had just gotten off an all-night flight, and the need for sleep was more important to me, I stayed in the car and napped while my sisters took in the sight. Sometimes in life we get second chances, and on days five and six of our journey, I finally got to see the Cliffs of Moher and check off a thirty-eight year bucket-list item.

Slea Head

The Aran Islands

Elizabeth Hatley