I'm going to Clare in early April. Right now I have a pair of ankle waterproof Keen Hiking boots I'll be bringing. Should I bring any other shoes or boots? I'll be in Kinvara, and then Fanore. Spending the last night closer to Dublin.
For jackets - will an LLBean fleece and a thin waterproof shell be enough? Of course I'll have sweaters and t-shirts for under. Debating if I need a down sweater jacket or something heavier than the fleece. Should I bring a winter hat?
What do your plans entail? Are you going to be doing some hiking?
If so, then bring the winter hat for sure. It can be very windy at times. As for the other gear, I don’t think you would need a heavy coat, it most likely will rain, but not be freezing.
I'll be out and about in Kinvara, checking out Gort, going to Mayo to see where my great grandmother grew up. then heading to Fanore for 4 nights, probable driving the Loop Head Peninsula, seeing Cliffs of Moher, maybe doing a Dolphin Watch boat trip. I could do some hiking I suppose - maybe the Caher Valley Loop which is in Fanore. I am just kind of a wuss about being cold, even though I live someplace very cold. So it sounds like Fleece + Raincoat will be good enough.
Do I need a 2nd pair of shoes though? I dont plan on going anywhere fancy. My regular daily shoes are usually a pair of Dansko Clogs unless its snowing alot.
Let me first just say that I haven't been to Ireland, but I have been to Europe in all kinds of weather. It's all about layers, and I'm a fan of LLBean as well. I went to Europe for a month in January and did not bring a winter coat. Our weather ranged from warmish, sunny days in Barcelona to snow and chilly weather in Austria and Switzerland and somewhat chilly weather with a small dose of rain in Paris. I brought a very light weight and warm long underwear (top looks like any other LS top), a lightweight wool sweater, a LLBean pullover fleece, a very packable LLBean lightweight puffy jacket meant for about 30-40 degrees, and a rain coat. I usually just wore a few of the options, in Switzerland, I wore them all. A raincoat on top of anything stops the wind and adds a lot of warmth. If you are not sure about a hat, why not try one of the thinner, smaller hats that won't take up much room or just make sure you have a hood. I have a cozy infinity scarf that I pull up over as a hood on occasion, and then my husband laughs at me. ;) I always bring the cheap, thin lightweight gloves because even if its 40s/50s, when its damp or dark it feels good to have some gloves.
