When I say we’ve had a lot of rain, I’m not kidding. Overnight, it continues to pour and by morning the sheep pastures outside Newport are saturated.

But our final day of riding, an easy roll into Westport, is unexpectedly gorgeous. After a leisurely breakfast, the skies clear in what feels like a gesture of reconciliation by the weather and we ride into Westport with the sun on our faces.

This has been a great trip. We’ve cycled just shy of 1,000 km along a winding and circuitous route from the Beara Peninsula in County Cork north to Downpatrick Head in County Mayo. Yes, the weather has been a challenge, but it’s to be expected in this part of the world, and it’s a fair trade for the natural beauty that results from the rain and wind: Green pastures glistening in sun breaks, the wild North Atlantic coastline with jagged cliffs and crashing waves, beautiful bogs carpeted with delicate heather, moss and purple-moor grass, rocky hills with lively streams and pretty lakes, and the clean, crisp air with its smell of ocean and field.

To say nothing of the sheep, hot soup with fresh soda bread and Irish butter, friendly people and charming towns.