Fishguard ferry port at 2am is like a scene from Night of the Living Dead. Half-human figures stagger around in a state of near-consciousness while cars tickover as their occupants attempt to stave off the boredom with late night radio. It's bleak, cold and mind-numbingly tedious. But not without its curious charms.
"What you boys doing then?" a thickly Irish accented voice squeaks in our direction from an open car window. Despite the hour the occupant seems full of the joys of life, ready to launch into conversation. Damn her. I mumble we're heading over the water for a day's riding.
"Oohh, you want to go to Courtown Beach, thats where. Courtown Beach, it's lovely. Courtown." Obviously overjoyed to find someone to talk to, our new friend is on a roll. She prods the sleeping figure in the passenger seat next to her, "they should go to Courtown, shouldn't they? Courtown beach."
"Courtown. Courtown!" the figure enthusiastically squawks, without opening an eye.
By now I'm convinced of several things. Not only is this Courtown place one of the wonders of the world, but the Irish can hold a conversation in their sleep and their friendliness is bordering on the obsessive. We utter some thanks, which isn't quite enough as it still takes a good five minutes to get out of a conversation. Courtown is mentioned 50 more times and just in case there's any doubt we're even shown it on a map.
After this bombardment of one-way conversation I'm left feeling mentally drained, but also boosted. If the Irish can be this happy at 3am, what will they be like during opening hours?
Exploring the Emerald Isle has always been a target of mine, but short of a few boozy nights in Dublin I've never really had the chance. Having been cooped up in London for the last few months I was starting to go a bit stir-crazy and an escape was needed, a few hours away from it all. But like most of us, time off was an issue so a proper holiday was out of the question. But a ferry leaves Fishguard heading to Rosslare at 2:15am and returns at 9:15pm, a whole day in Ireland for only £82 return and the slight discomfort of spending two nights kipping on a ferry floor. Leave work at 5:30, ride the 280 miles from the office to Fishguard at a gentle pace, catch the ferry and be in Ireland for breakfast. The plan was made.
A quick shout around the office and Barry, the only member of staff who doesn't have children or a wife was onboard, along with the photographer. Lots of miles, mainly motorway, and tired bodies riding them limited the choice of bikes. The choice fell to big tourers, Kawasaki's all-singing GTR1400, Yamaha's old favourite FJR1300 and Honda's tried and tested Pan European. So, as everyone else in the office filtered home to screaming family bliss, we left on the route to peace and tranquillity.
Continue the Eire Tours Road Test - 2/2
