Five of the best scenic drives in Mayo

A report last week ranked the best places to take a scenic drive in Ireland. The top five places – in order – were the Ring of Kerry, the Dingle Peninsula, the Ring of Beara, the Comeragh Drive in Waterford and the Military Road in the Wicklow Mountains.

The study was a very clever bit of marketing by 123.ie Insurance. In it, these drives were ranked in a scoring system which had a maximum of 600 points. As you can see, Munster took the first four places, while the Military Road is within easy reach of Dublin. They are all fine places I’m sure, and very popular too. A report like this of course deepens that popularity.

You can see why the study was good marketing, because it makes everyone want to start talking about and arguing for their own favourite, and looking up their ranking. Mayo ranked 21st overall, with Mayo's Atlantic Drive scoring 211.5 points out of 600. Now I am suppose I am partisan, but I think the 20 places above us would want to be pretty good, for our county is full of scenic drives.

Which drives make my own top five? Let me start with a disclosure: I will not rely on points or scoring methods and instead be simply completely biased in my promotion of them. These – to save trouble – are not ranked in order. They are just my top five.

First, the road from Louisburgh to Leenane and around. On that journey, you travel through the valley of Doolough: the most spectacular spot in our county. Words won’t do it justice, you just have to see it. Make sure you come from the Louisburgh side. Onwards, you drive through Doolough down as far as Aasleagh Falls but then make sure to double back to return via the Sheeffry Pass and the village of Drummin. You will come out on the N59 near Westport when you are done. It is a spectacular, magical journey.

Second, explore the back of the Reek. The image of Croagh Patrick we all have in our mind is the north facing one, with the scar cut into the peak the defining image. But there is a magnificent drive that changes that perception. You pass the Reek coming from Westport, pass Lecanvey and turn left at Kilsallagh. The road will lead you to the back of the Reek – the route the donkeys used – before veering left through a valley in the mountains with the Reek on your left and the mountains of south west Mayo and north Galway to your right. There are some spectacular viewing spots as you ascend on the road before you descend, again into Drummin. On that road, you can appreciate the life of a sheep farmer – the upsides and the challenges. One of those challenges is careless sightseeing drivers, so be respectful of the life of those who live there all the time.

Third, starting from Cong, drive into Finny, crossing briefly into Galway as you do before slipping back into Mayo at the lovely Ferry Point bridge at the bottom of Lough Mask. On your way from there to Tourmakeady you will pass a lovely road with the mysterious and beautiful Lough Nafooey below you and the mountains – including the Devilsmother – above you. From Tourmakeady, take the mountain road into Westport. The barrenness of it makes you feel you are on a road that could be in the Scottish Highlands, where at any moment a troop of redcoats might appear to enforce the King’s ‘peace’. On that route, Lough Mask will be behind you, the flat and fertile lands of Ballintubber to the north, the Partry Mountains to the south and the Sheeffrys and the Reek will be – broadly – in front of you. You’ll pass the charming Glenmask Grotto – stopping to remember someone – and travel over the Aille river before heading towards Westport. Before you get there, make sure you go through and stop at Aughagower, both to see the Round Tower but also to marvel about how you make a little village so lovely.

Fourth, go and get lost on Achill. When travelling there, make sure you have plenty of time and a good day. When you have both, go around the long way around the Corraun peninsula - turning left for it as you leave Mulranny and follow that loop into Achill Sound. If you have never been at the Spanish Armada viewing point before, you will be so stunned by its beauty you will have to pause for breath as well as for a view. Looking across from there to the north side of Clare Island, the aspect of the island that is so little appreciated, is truly magnificent. On you go to Achill Sound and then enjoy the island – noting that there is no rule book for how to do so. You can take in the cliffs along the Atlantic Drive, you can go straight through and into Keel and onto Keem, or you can swing right into Dugort and admire all that those beautiful beaches and Slievemore has to offer.

Finally on my list is a lesser known route, and one I only enjoyed for the first time recently. Annagh Head in Erris is one of the most spectacular places you will find anywhere. Located broadly speaking in the north west of the peninsula, at the back of the Carne Golf Links, the road from Annagh Head up to the viewing point for Eagle Island could compete with anything on anyone’s list. Bring binoculars for Eagle Island and be very careful along the coastline.

There are so many other places that could be on my list that I would need a whole series to complete them – and most of them have got praise at some point in this column. But, for better or worse, these are my top five today. I highly recommend them all to you, with one caveat: some of those roads are narrow and climb quite a bit, so be sure to go on good days and be able for them. Google maps allows you now to see them before you drive them, and that is a good preparation if you don’t know them. If the diesel stays expensive, make a connection with friends and go together – the cost will be split and the company, like the view, will be grand.

I have of course now done what the study has done. Anyone reading this will have an opinion on the ones I left out, or on how many are in West and South Mayo. And so the intention of the report and of this article will have achieved the same objective: to get people talking and thinking about where they will go on the fine days that, like the road, lie ahead.