This is a transcript of a YouTube travel vlog (Kara and Nate Buchanan) documenting their second day in Ireland. They realize an Airbnb booking mistake and pack quickly, drive along the coast to Doolin, eat fish and chips at McGann's, and prepare to visit the Cliffs of Moher. They park in Doolin and take a shuttle toward the visitor center, planning a hike along the cliff path that they extend to the far end (map-estimated total ~4.5 hours; initial segment described as ~3 miles). They hike in sunny, windy weather, fly a drone (near-miss and minor fingernail injury), time the walk to catch sunset (sun dips around 9:15pm), navigate mostly empty trail away from tour buses, return to the main road around 10pm, and then drive ~2 hours to a new Airbnb arriving around midnight.
Questions this video answers
August 25, 2017
About 4.5 hours (map-estimated total when extended)
Approximately three miles
About 9:15 PM
About 2 hours (they expected to arrive by midnight)
Chapters
Sam.
It is our second day in Ireland, and it is a beautiful, warm and sunny day, so we are embracing this weather while it lasts. We've spent the last hour of our morning frantically throwing everything in our rental car and checking out of our Airbnb and checking into a new Airbnb tonight because we made a little bitty mistake.
We were supposed to be here for three nights. I only booked two. I meant to book another one, and then I meant to talk to her about it, and then I ended up talking to her about it. This morning, an hour before we were supposed to check out, Airbnb still said there was an available night. Apparently, that wasn't the case, so we learned that we weren't gonna be able to stay here an hour before we had to be out of the apartment.
But it's not it.
Everything's thrown in the car and we are heading to Doolin.
And we have a place to stay day.
Yes, kind of. We'll probably be there midnight tonight.
We're driving straight up the coast. The grass is so green. It's still sunny outside. I'm loving Ireland today, and those amazing.
Massive tour buses are absolutely terrifying. These roads are barely big enough for two cars, and then they come driving by and I just like, every time, I just think the mirror is going to be knocked off the car. Oh, two. We're all good.
That's a castle.
Well, that was one of the coolest drives of my life.
We just made it to Doolin. We talked to a local and got a recommendation on a fish chip shop. So we're stopping at McNan's. Is that right?
McGann's.
McGann's.
And it smells super good.
She said they were the best.
Thank you.
Oh, my gosh. Look at these fries. We are sitting outside an Irish pub in Ireland and its size. Sunny outside. Thank you very much. I am positive these outdoor seats do not get used very often. So I'm glad we're here on a day that we can sit outside and eat seafood. So we got another classic fish and chips. We also got something different. We're trying our first Irish seafood chowder, and they both look amazing. And I'm so happy. It's sunny. We are two for two on delicious fish and chips in Ireland. Now we're going to head into the city of Doolin. We realized that we never actually explained why we drove to Doolin today. So if you didn't know, Doolin is the closest town to the cliffs of Mohare, which are a really big deal. And We've been looking forward to going to them this whole trip.
So I think most people that come here just go to the visitor center, but we're actually doing the hikes that run along the cliff. So we've parked our car here in Dulin. We're leaving the car here and we're taking a shuttle bus up to the visitor center. And we have. I think it's like a three mile or like maybe like a three mile.
Hike back here to doin along the cliffs during sunset.
It's gonna be incredible. So the cliffs sit on the west side of Ireland. The bus leaves at 5. The sun doesn't set till like 9:30 or 10. I think we've timed this perfectly.
Thank you.
Things got crazy on the bus. We changed all of our plans.
So we were originally supposed to hike from the visitor center back to Doolin where we parked the car.
It's gonna be like two and a half hours. Ish.
But we learned that you can extend the trip by an additional two hours if you go like further, further down the coast that way, all the way to the end. We've got this great map for the hike and it's supposed to take like a total of four and a half hours. The problem is it is 5:30 right now. That puts us back at 10.
Yeah. 9:15, 9:30. And we usually take longer than people because we film. So it could have potentially made a terrible decision.
I think it's gonna be so worth it though. Everyone on the bus was like, oh, you have to go to the end. It's the first half is my favorite part. So then it just talked us right into it. So here we go.
We're doing it. We're stuck. We got off the bus. I think it's gonna be great. I think we may be miserable for the last hour, but like when we look back on this, I don't think we'll ever regret it. Hello. Also, it is incredibly windy. So there's a chance you won't be able to hear anything that we say for the entire trek.
Yeah, it's really still so sunny and warm. The wind just makes it a little chilly. But like it is a rain all day.
It is like the perfect day. And I surely if it starts to rain, we're really in trouble.
Just working off all that fish and chips.
Sacks of mohair.
I think that's where we're going.
I'm so in love with you.
You got me down.
This is nuts.
We're about two hours into the hike and we're almost to the visitor center, which means we're almost halfway through the hike. And there's so many more people around the visitor center, which makes me so happy that we started way back at the beginning where there were no people, and it's still sunny and it's not raining and it's not cold. I really can't believe it. I couldn't be any happier with the way this is going right now.
We are skipping the visitor center because it's definitely going to be dark by the time we get back. So we want to make sure we get to see it all in the light. And I probably shouldn't walk backwards on the cliff.
Sa.
Sam.
Well, we know the obstacle avoidance works.
That was so scary.
It was gonna make it over our head. The drone just didn't think it was going to.
I cannot believe how close it was to my face.
Also almost had my first drone injury. I was holding the drone when Nate was taking it off like this, and the blade started going, and then all of a sudden, it chopped my fingernail off.
She had her fingers too high up on the drone.
I could have lost my finger. It's, like, throbbing right now.
Very glad you didn't.
I'm glad I didn't too. Guess who's not holding the drone when it takes off anymore.
I knew that without you saying it.
Raised in the sun. Sun is winning.
This is so nuts. We are on this trail with no one either direction.
Like, as far as you look, you can't see anyone.
It is so quiet. You can only hear the waves and little trickles of water on the side of the cliff.
So incredible. The sun is setting right now. It's not cold at all.
This just could not be more perfect. I cannot recommend doing the hike highly enough and put it off till the end of the day to win all the tour buses. Go back to town. And maybe you can be the only one out here.
Just listen to how quiet it is.
There goes the sun.
It is 9:15. The sun has just dipped below the horizon, and now the real fun begins.
We're about to see if we're the only ones doing this because it's crazy to hike on the cliffs in the dark.
So I think we probably have about an hour of walking left. Kara's phone has about 20% of battery that we can use for a flashlight, so that should last us at least, like, part of the way. I think it's gonna be totally worth it.
Me too. Everything is such a pretty color right now. Like cotton candy.
I thought we would be freezing right now.
I know. This is so great. I'm just so happy. It's not raining and it's warm.
We went an entire day without seeing a. Can you see all these flies? Without seeing an entire drop of rain here in Ireland.
I didn't think that was possible here.
Maybe we're like over dramatizing the rain thing here, but I think it rains a lot and I think we're getting really lucky.
Right now it's dark.
I don't think you can see us at all. But it is a little after 10 o' clock and we have made it back to the main road. I think we are really close. Getting right over by car.
So there's just like a ton. Tiny bit of light left. Like we haven't even had to use the flashlight. It never got cold. Everything worked out so smoothly.
Now we just have to drive 2 hours.
2 ish hours to our Airbnb.
So we'll get there by midnight. Right on schedule.
