GPX - Off the beaten track NW Ireland website - Leitrim, Fermanagh, Sligo and Cavan

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This site might be useful to people looking for smaller lanes and roads. It has downloadable gps tracks, which will probably upset some but hey, that’s life. For them, the site has road books, which they can load into their scrolling road book carrier and pretend they are on the Dakar Rally.

From the site’s blurb, from which I have learned that what I thought were counties are it seems, countries. That explains a lot.

Off the Beaten Track - North West is a car and motorcycle route that takes you along vastly diverse and scenic roads in countries Leitrim, Fermanagh, Sligo and Cavan. This route challenges you to take on primary roads, local roads and narrow single track rural roads, some with grass up the middle. Off the Beaten Track - North West allows you to experience the open road and find yourself in the "Real Ireland", which includes some out of the way places.

They seem keen to emphasise several key points:

485abe80342c43c5b91f5a22925a7969.plist


Here are screen shots of the website’s two suggested routes:

6187f5b9b05aa3bbb6ce0048ac91fce8.plist


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http://offthebeatentracknw.com/
 
I guess you could base yourself in Glenfarne, Belcoo or Blacklion and do both routes?

Google turns up some places to maybe stay in. The locals on UKGSer might well have some other useful suggestions, too.
 
Off the beaten track NW Ireland website - Leitrim, Fermanagh, Sligo and Cavan

I have downloaded the first gpx file. The track doesn't convert perfectly into a route. I had to change my BaseCamp preference setting to allow unpaved roads, which helped to pull the route close to the track.


I guess that sometimes the route's creator's gps signal went a bit haywire (I definitely found one of those) and missed a turning, I found one of those, too. He certainly sometimes used some small road or track that is not shown on the Garmin detailed map but downloading and installing the routable Open Street Map of Ireland onto my BaseCamp on my Mac sorted that out.

Here's the first route completed.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1oji5hdqmqgy3pg/ng-trail-gpx.gpx?dl=0

f64defef7974a23dd9e831ba613a8d37.jpg


In case anyone favours using tracks over routes, I have left the original track in as well, coloured red. I have also deleted some waypoints that didn't seem to do much and added in a castle waypoint he missed. I only found that because I saw that the track deviated off for some very unclear reason. It tuned out to be to go to the castle. In a prefect world I would join the various waypoints into the route physically but it's OK as it is.
 
Off the beaten track NW Ireland website - Leitrim, Fermanagh, Sligo and Cavan

Here's the second route completed in much quicker time.

This time I downloaded the gpx file straight into BaseCamp but opened straight away in routable Open Street Maps. I then converted the track (red) into the magenta route, which it did perfectly. I then edited out a load of waypoints that came down with the gpx transfer, which didn't seem to add anything.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/4x5weh8voxs36vi/SW-Trail-GPX.GPX?dl=0



Again, it looks OK

9a8124e9401b7f5ab7b765d1a34683f0.jpg
 
I rode many of those roads last September as I had done the NW part of the WAW, finishing in Sligo. I have relatives in Fermanagh so had a day riding around the Sligo area before heading up to Enniskillen via many of the roads shown here & they are stunning.

I would also highly recommend a visit to this gentleman
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@54.2...qQYY677O4W_pw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192!9m2!1b1!2i38

It might not look much but he's a terrific old bloke who fixes BMW bikes of all ages & has 2 wonderful dogs.
He sorted out my RT when it went 'pop' a few years ago & I stumbled across him, his house & his dogs again quite by chance last year. He was quite happy for me to stop for a quick natter with him & his dogs.

His house is on the R288 which runs alongside Loch Gill & if nothing else it's a nice little road with some lovely views.

I also liked Sligo town which had some nice hotels & some great restaurants.
 
I guess you could base yourself in Glenfarne, Belcoo or Blacklion and do both routes?

Google turns up some places to maybe stay in. The locals on UKGSer might well have some other useful suggestions, too.

Clancys of Glenfarne springs to mind. I haven’t stayed there myself but have breakfasted many times down through the years whilst out on the bike or passing in the truck.
 
That R288 looks like a good road :thumb2

The R roads of Cavan and Leitrim are great for biking Richard and are often overlooked in favour of the more touristy places such as the WAW, which kind of suits those of us who know about them.
 
The R roads of Cavan and Leitrim are great for biking Richard and are often overlooked in favour of the more touristy places such as the WAW, which kind of suits those of us who know about them.


....and now I've gone and spoilt it :D :beerjug: :beer: I am kicking myself that I have never been.

I have learnt a bit looking at the maps and creating the routes, often getting sidetracked into something on Google. Not least I am slowly learning where places are. The pronunciation can wait for another day.

I now need to find a decent guide book. The Michelin site is quite good, so I might just get the theirs.

https://travelguide.michelin.com/europe/ireland

Then a couple of R F Foster's books to try to work out what the whole shebang is about. I have found the BBC's Fergal Keane's History of Ireland on DVD. As he's a journalist I quite like, I have ordered it from the Amazon.
 
Clancys of Glenfarne springs to mind. I haven’t stayed there myself but have breakfasted many times down through the years whilst out on the bike or passing in the truck.

Aha, thank you. I saw exactly that place when I went and had a look, taking a note of it this morning. It certainly looked OK, so it has advanced up the list.
 
Clancys of Glenfarne springs to mind. I haven’t stayed there myself but have breakfasted many times down through the years whilst out on the bike or passing in the truck.

+1 for Clancy's. I stayed there a couple of years ago with a few other bikers. Jim, the owner is a biker himself and he'll happily let you park up in his adjoining barn/sheds. He's also very good with tips about routes, etc. Also, there's a very convivial pub across the road. Must plan a return :beer:
 
Agree completely with you Aidan about the roads in Cavan and Leitrim - great place for biking.

All along the border counties from Sligo heading east - on both sides of the border are very enjoyable
 
avoid the N4 N5 and N55 and youll have a nice ride whatever direction you go in
 
we like to venture into armagh cavan monaghan Leitrim and fermanagh.

the roads are fantastic

easiest way to plan a route is to use google maps initially and use street view to check out the roads. In southern ireland dont assume all roads of the same category will be the same, you will end up on roads with grass up the middle very fast.

Rxxx roads are generally a main road that in England would be a B road,
Lxxx roads can be great but check street view for a line or grass

our general rule is that it must have a white line in the middle of some form

Border county roads are well surfaced and very twisty, how twisty is obvious from the map, you could spend days there from east to west coast.

avoid Nxx roads, they are for people in cars trying to get somewhere fast.



in general no one will spoil your fun unless you are seriously daft.

if looking inspiration, make sure you try the r200
 
Thanks for the data, defitinely giving it a go when restrictions ease. By the way the site offthebetentracknw.com seems to be down
 
It’s often the problem with small websites, which aren’t maintained. Though of course, they might be closed to make something bigger and better. I always try to copy the stuff before it goes.
 


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