The summer in Connemara is the busiest time of year for visitors and locals alike. Those locals that are not working in hospitality are quite often fishing and farming (or fish farming) These trades are at their most demanding during the summer. So when the children go back to school and the evenings get a bit longer a calm descends on Connemara and peace and quiet becomes the norm as people slowly switch in to Autumn mode and relax after having worked hard for the summer months.
For the well informed this is often the best time to visit and enjoy everything that Connemara has to offer in the Autumn. People have more time for a chat, and a table in a restaurant or a seat in a pub is guaranteed.
If you like walking a new facet of the Connemara landscape opens up to you in the Autumn as foraging for a meal comes in to its own at this time of year. Field mushrooms and chanterelles can be found if you have the patience and know how to find them. (And do please use a book to identify any fungi before you eat them!)
In the right conditions delicious blackberries are to found in many of the hedgerows and the first of the sloes are ready to pick to make a winters supply of sloe gin. If you like finding your own food the the Connemara Green Festival (Letterfrack 11-13th October) is well worth a look as it features workshops on foraging along with other features of the Connemara ecology. Walkers will find the peace and quiet of the area has been 
enhanced by the lack of traffic and once more you can have a whole beach to yourself.
It is this time of year too that the shellfish are at their best, for local crab and lobster are at their best, and oysters and mussels are fat after the warm summer water has brought them rich plankton to feed on. There are many pubs and restaurants serving great meals involving some or even all of these! It is also possible to buy crab, lobster and other shellfish locally if you like to prepare it yourself. If you prefer to let someone else do the work then Olivers Bar in Cleggan have a legendary crab salad and a hot buttered lobster too.
If you like to cast a fly then the last few weeks of the salmon season can be very interesting, and experience has shown that nowadays there is a very good possibility of a fresh run fish at the end of the season. Seatrout too are around at this time of year, and an afternoon on one of the Kylemore or Culfin lakes can be very entertaining. Kylemore Abbey itself and its gardens are still open until seven at this time of year and are much quieter, allowing the visitor to appreciate the timeless tranquility of the Abbey and its grounds. 
The best part of the autumn in Connemara has to be the Clifden Arts Festival, ten days of music, exhibits, events, theatre and craic at the end of September (18th-29th for 2019) there are always new artists exhibiting or performing for the first time and well known faces to be seen in action. This festival culminates in a parade around Clifden town that rivals any parade in Ireland, followed by a proper display of fireworks that are not to be missed, so why not take a look at our website and find a property for your Autumn break in Connemara,you will be impressed at the great prices that are available
Useful Links:
Connemara Wild Food and Foraging
Kings of Connemara, suppliers of shellfish.
Johnny Kings Fish Shop Enquire in Olivers Bar
Olivers Bar Cleggan
Veldons Seafarer Bar Letterfrack
Paddy Coynes Bar Tullycross
Kylemore Abbey Fishery manager Mobile: +353 87 9580702
Culfin Fishery
Clifden Arts Week
Check some dates for a break:
