After leaving Malahide Castle we hurried to catch the next train to the seaside town of Howth. We were very hungry from touring Malahide and it's gardens all morning and we were determined to find a good seafood restaurant to fuel our continued adventure. The train ride from Malahide was a little over an hour in total and we did have to switch trains traveling south from Malahide to go east to Howth. We arrived in the early afternoon in Howth and soaked in the sights of the town and harbor area. We headed towards the piers and let our noses guide us to our lunch destination. From the couple of reviews I had time to read on the train ride, we decided on a small restaurant called Octopussy's.
We opened the front door and from the delicious smells wafting out from the restaurant, I knew we had picked the right place. The place wasn’t very big, I’d call it cozy but we were able to grab two seats by the window looking out towards the docks and ocean.
Because adventuring is hard work we each ordered a glass of white wine for starters! My girlfriend ordered the deluxe seafood chowder with pancetta, squid, mussels, smoked coley, crab and prawns with homemade brown bread. I had the mixed shellfish platter with gambas, crab claws, and whole Dublin bay prawns with a bowl of mussels in creamy white wine sauce. Oh man it was so good!
We rolled ourselves out of Octopussy’s and checked out the rest of the dock, the pier and breakers. Next, we headed over to see the Irish sailors Celtic Cross monument at Howth harbor, then started up the road to get to the cliff walk.
On the trek up the road to the cliffs we saw the ruins of St. Mary’s Abbey that was a shell of its former glory. On the walk up the road to get to the cliff walk we saw some amazing views overlooking the ocean.
My girlfriend made me pose for a picture in front of a small blue door. Only later did I read the plaque on the door and realized Yeats had lived there. Hey I’m not really that oblivious there was just so much to see and do that I had sensory overload at the time.
After the uphill walk, we arrived at the start of the cliff walk. It was then we noticed some people were being dropped off and some people parked around there instead of walking. But they missed all the sights and fun we had. While we caught our breath we let our eyes soak in the view looking out at the ocean and it was breathtaking.
We hiked up along the cliff walk for almost 30 minutes more and took a few great pictures and I saw some drawing carved into a rock. I didn’t know if it was old or new but thought it was cool nonetheless.
Sadly we didn’t have time to do the whole cliff walk. It was getting late so we decided to turn back, hustle down the cliffs, down the road into town and see if we could catch the train back to Dublin. Plus I didn’t think it was a smart idea to hike the cliffs in the dark. After an exhausting day of adventure we managed to catch the train just in time. I only wished we had more time there.
If you missed part one this series, you can read it here Ireland Part 1: Arriving in Dublin and a Day Trip to Malahide
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