12th - 13th June. A visit to Kilkenny. Scenic drive around Mount Leinster.

Tuesday brought better weather as we head off to Kilkenny. Collectively, Kilkenny people are known as The Cats, most specifically in the game of Hurling, and also celebrated in this limerick:-



There once were two cats of Kilkenny,
 Each thought there was one cat too many,
So they fought and they fit,
And they scratched and they bit,
Till, excepting their tails
And the tips of their nails,
Instead of two cats, there weren't any.

We enjoyed visiting the gardens of this secluded house, which is used as a conference centre in Kilkenny.

Sally relaxed in this unusual seat.

The Black Abbey was home to a group of Dominican friars when it was founded in the 1220s, so has been here for a very long time.

Inside the Black Abbey this wonderful stained glass window can be found.

St. Canice's Cathedral, with a round tower beside it, is another impressive building.

Having collected Shannon from the car, we returned to Kilkenny Castle. There is plenty of grass for dog walking behind the castle, which was surprisingly quiet.

Time for a scenic drive on Wednesday, going northeast from Graignamanagh. We will be sorry to lose "our" car!

Looking down on the fields below, it is interesting to see how the gorse has been used to form hedges between the fields.

Further on, the top of Mount Leinster was just hidden in the clouds. There is a road right to the top, but it was closed to traffic today.This mountain is 793 metres high.

We parked at the Nine Stones, below Mount Leinster. The nine stones, by the car park, represent nine shepherds who were lost in a storm in this area. On a good day it is possible to see eight different counties from here. These are Carlow, Laois, Kildare, Wicklow, Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny and Tipperary.
We climbed from the car park to the top of Slievebawn,  which is 528 metres high. You can see for miles from here.