The Great Western Greenway was recommended to me as a great way to explore the beauty of the area. It may be a 44km stretch of path, but there are many options available to you if you want to explore The Great Western Greenway, even if you aren’t an ambitious cyclist:
- Westport to Achill Island – 44km one way
- Westport to Newport – 12km one way
- Newport to Mulranny – 18km one way
- Mulranny to Achill Island – 14km one way
Though there are many bicycle rental shops along the route, I decided to go with Greenway Bicycle Hire in Newport. They have a wide range of bicycles in good condition available along with a helmet included in the rental. Included in the rental is support if you run into trouble with your bike along the route. If you’re looking for an electric bike, depending on how busy their shop is, you’ll need to book ahead of time. You can take advantage of their shuttle services if you’d like to be collected on the way back. If you go with the shuttle service option, do take note of their drop off/ pick up locations and times during the day this shuttle is available https://greenwaybicyclehire.com/book/.
During my trip along the Greenway I decided to rent one of their bicycles and “wing it”. Considering I’m not an avid cyclist and don’t have much cycling fitness, my goal was to enjoy the scenery and cycle about 20km there and back.
While I was cycling it was easy to enjoy the beauty of the area. There were a few stop-off points along the way for me to stretch out and sit on a bench and admire the view.
Towards the halfway point of about 10km, I started noticing signs along the way for Nevin’s Newfield Inn which was a very short distance away. By this stage of the trip, I was extremely tempted to sit down and rest, have something for lunch and something to drink. This became an excellent halfway point for me, and the restaurant is in the perfect location for hungry cyclists along the greenway.
During my trip to Mayo, the Great Western Greenway was definitely a highlight.
Along the greenway – newport to nevin’s newfield inn
nevin’s newfield inn, the best place to fuel up along the way
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