Cong, which is in south Mayo, was firmly placed on the tourist map thanks to John Ford's 1952 movie "The Quite Man". Starring John Wayne and Marureen O'Hara, much of the filming took place in and around Cong including on the grounds of Ashford Castle. There is of course the landmark feature of the movie Pat Cohan's pub in the village and the bridge where Bishop and Rev. Playfair view the fight is on the grounds of the Castle.
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| John and Maureen |
Cong itself is quaint riverside village. Pat Cohan's pub is still there right in the centre with frontage largely as its was for the movie. There is also a small museum in the Quiet Man Cottage but it is not the cottage in film. That lies in ruins just off the R336 between Maam Cross and Maam. Aside from its connections to the Quiet Man, Cong has much to offer. Ashford Castle is located just outside the village and the village itself has the magnificent ruins of Cong Abbey.
Cong Woods
But the real magic of Cong, which most tourist miss, are the trails through the woods. From a Monk's fishing house to the Guinness tower to the Pigeon Hole and various caves and tombs there is so much to discover in Cong Woods. There are a number of tails (walking and cycling) throughout the Cong/Ashford/Clonbur woods. It is possible to walk or cycle from Cong to Clonbur entirely on forest roads. On your way back loop down through Ard na Gaoithe and the grounds of Ashford. It doesn't get the attention of the Great Western Greenway but in our opinion it easily rivals it for a day out.
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| Trail Map |
There is also a good MTB trail marked out in the woods that criss-crosses the main fire roads. It doesn't offer much by way of assent/descent but it is still well worth doing. If you have kids, it's a very good trail for introducing them to MTB. Cross the footbridge by the monks fishing house and the trail begins directly in front of you. Just watch out for walker and horses and give way.
There is also an interesting walk along the would be but failed Mask to Corrib canal. The canal was built to link the large lakes of Mask and Cong. However, on completion the water all leaked away do to the limestone base thus dooming the canal. The entrance to the canal walk, pictured below, is beside the large car park. Just follow the grass path. Just ahead you will see the remaining structure for one of the canal locks. A little further out the road you will see an entrance to the walk for Kelly's cave.
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| Cong Canal |
Lough Corrib
Another gem of Cong is the access to Lough Corrib and Inchagoill Island. Corrib Cruises, which is owned and operated by the Luskin brothers, run a very good cruise to and tour of Inchagoill Island. Inchagoill has the remains of an early Christian settlement and one of the Luskin brothers usually leads a short tour providing a history of the ruins. On some of their schedules, it's also possible to continue on to continue across the lake to Oughterard.
Lough Corrib is also renowned for fishing and boats and gullies are available to hire locally. Enquire in the tourist office. You should also check out the photos of the record trout caught on Lough Corrib by Ceri Jones in 2012 in the window of Burke's pub in Clonbur. The fish itself is on display inside.
Parking and Campsite
There is a large car park as you approach the village from the east. But, it does have a hight barrier. However, it is possible to get tokens to raise the barrier at the local filling station and Ryans Hotel. Note you will need two tokens. One to get in and one to get out. But be warned the barrier can be a bit temperamental and it has been known not to open! Overnight parking is not permitted here. There is a campsite a little further outside the town. If you don't want this hassle then you will need to find someplace else to park. There is little parking available in the village itself but if your van is small and you are very lucky then you might get a spot. You will find other spots near the village but I don't want to recommend a particular one.
Work-in-progress
