Lots of people pass through west Waterford without stopping. They're missing some treats, including the county's new food festival, writes Catherine Foley
WEST WATERFORD is sometimes overlooked by passing travellers, even though it is a part of the county that is full of beautiful, unspoilt places. Take the wild Mahon Falls, in the Comeragh Mountains, or the romantic and delicately wrought Hindu- Gothic gateway on Dromana Bridge, near Villierstown.
Waterford is known locally as the Déise and was once dubbed the gentle county, possibly because natives are soft-spoken individuals who tend to keep quiet about their county's attractions. After many sleepless nights, great soul searching and some editorial armtwisting, this writer, who was born and bred in the Déise, has decided to boast about some of west Waterford's best-kept secrets.
A good entry point in the northwest of the county is the Vee, a vantage point at a hairpin bend in the mountains where travellers have always stopped to ponder the beauty of the surrounding countryside. Here you'll enter a land of green riverbanks and stark mountains. It's easy to understand why John Grubb, a Quaker who lived in the area in the 19th century, asked on his deathbed to be buried upright, so he could always survey his beloved mountains and valley.
Farther south there's the delicate and little-known gate on the bridge across the Finisk River, a few kilometres north of Villierstown, which was built in wood and papier mache in 1826 to welcome home from their honeymoon the owner of Dromana estate, Henry Villiers- Stuart, and his wife, Theresia Pauline Ott. They were so delighted that they had it built permanently in stronger materials.
The small inland towns of Cappoquin and Lismore dot a line that follows the Blackwater Valley south of the Knockmealdown Mountains. The gardens of Lismore Castle, under the great stone walls of the fortress, are also open to the public. And, if you want a moment of calm, the town's ancient St Carthage's Cathedral, on a site that dates back to 635, is a perfect oasis of peace. Walking through the graveyard, with its ivy-covered headstones, is like stepping back in time.
Monks still live in the Cistercian monastery of Mount Mellary, just outside Cappoquin. They welcome visitors to their chapel and grounds.
Crisscrossing the county are the windswept heights and dips of the Nire Valley, in the Comeragh Mountains. Walks and rides radiate out from the village of Ballymacarberry.
This is the area where the highwayman William Crotty hid from the British army when he was on the run. Hanged and decapitated in 1742, his name, and his Robin Hood-like deeds, live on. Today there are walks throughout the mountains, some passing Crotty's Lake and Crotty's Rock. Even when the mist rolls over, and the sky clouds in, the mountains are always worth a visit. And Mahon Falls gushes majestically at this time of the year from glacially shaped cliffs.
The county's Irish-speaking area on the coast, Gaeltacht na Rinne, which has Helvick Head and Coláiste na Rinne as high points, gives travellers a chance to reconnect with our disappearing heritage. Visitors love to walk along the pier in Helvick, drop into Joan Clancy's gallery or call into one of the pubs, such as Tigh an Cheoil, in Baile na nGall, for some spiritual or thirst-slaking restoration.
Farther west along the coast is the horseshoe bay of Ardmore and its round tower. Here the cliff walk is a well-kept secret. Following the path from St Declan's Oratory, near the newly restored Cliff House Hotel, the trail follows the breath-taking coastline for a kilometre or more.
To the east of Dungarvan is the Copper Coast, where a strong mining tradition has left its mark. This 20km stretch from Tramore to Clonea is linked by the villages of Fenor, Dunhill, Annestown, Boatstrand, Bonmahon and Stradbally. There are signposted paths and plenty of stop-off points, as well as information leaflets and maps along the route.
It's all there. Lush, overgrown hedgerows, winding roads twisting between the sloping fields, and Dungarvan, a harbour town nestling in the centre of all this unspoilt countryside. It's here that the inaugural Waterford Food Festival will be held, later this month, and over the May bank holiday the town will host Féile na nDéise, an annual festival of traditional Irish music and dance.
Dungarvan is already firmly on the culinary map thanks to Paul Flynn, chef-patron of the award-winning Tannery Restaurant & Townhouse. It should be worth visiting the town's three-day celebration of food, particularly of local produce and talent. Food trails will take people to some of the town's most popular spots, such as Quealy's, Crew's and the Ormond. There will be festival menus and cookery demonstrations, as well as talks by Richard Corrigan and Darina Allen.
Grattan Square will be closed to traffic for a huge farmers' market on Sunday, April 13th, so visitors can walk among the stalls, tasting dishes and enjoying great music. And then, fully sated, they will leave on a high note.
West Waterford essentials
Where to stay
Gertie and Pat Ormond's Kilcannon House bed and breakfast. Cappagh, Dungarvan, 058-68418, www.kilcannonhouse.ie.
Margaret Flanagan's self-catering thatched cottages. Coole Country Cottages, Dungarvan, 058-41321, www.waterford cottages.com.
The Park Hotel, Dungarvan, 058-42899, www.parkhoteldungarvan. com.
Cliff House Hotel, Ardmore, 024-87996, www.cliffhouse.steinhotels.com.
Where to eat
The Tannery Restaurant & Townhouse. Dungarvan, 058-45420, www.tannery.ie.
Quealy's Cafe Bar and Restaurant, O'Connell Street, Dungarvan, 058-24555.
Crew's Steak & Seafood Restaurant, Church Street, Dungarvan, 058-23422, www.crews.ie.
Ballyrafter Country House Hotel, Lismore, 058-54002, www.waterfordhotel.com.
Richmond House, Cappoquin, 058-54278, www.richmondhouse.net.
White Horses Restaurant, Main Street, Ardmore, 024-94040.
Where to go
Waterford Festival of Food. Runs from next Friday, April 11th, until Sunday week, April 14th. www.waterfordfestival offood.ie, 058-21104.
Féile na nDéise. Runs over the May bank-holiday weekend, May 1st to May 5th. www.feilena ndeise.com, 058-41741.
Call into Dungarvan Tourist Office, in the Courthouse Building, for more details about festivals, places to stay and areas to visit around the town and farther afield.