The Cliffs of Moher are billed as the #1 most-visited tourist attraction of Ireland. Now you could either expect that to result in a huge letdown of expectations set too high or that the place would be overrun with people with cameras (like us). But the sheer expanse and majesty of the place offset both of these. Granted, you can skip the museum and the “virtual cliff experience” (which, by the way, are where you find the congestion of tourists) in favor of actually experiencing the cliffs.
Okay, let’s get all the cliches out of the way. The Cliffs of Moher are: spectacular, majestic, awe-inspiring, stunning, amazing, beautiful, jaw-dropping, breath-taking, and even mystical. The funny thing is, none of this helps you envision the Cliffs of Moher…I could just as easily be talking about the Grand Canyon, Mount Rainier, or the Swiss Alps.
Some things simply defy description. The Cliffs of Moher are, indeed, cliffs. To be precise, they are sheer rock cliffs, a couple of hundred feet high in places. That they rise up from sea level just a few miles to the south, and recede just a few miles to the north, like a giant turtle surfacing on the edge of the Atlantic for a quick million-year peek, is what I found most amazing.
But the best way to appreciate this place is to put the camera away for a few minutes and just look, listen, and smell. For that my blog and pictures won’t help you: you’ll just have to go there.
