Almost everyone has heard of the Cliffs of Moher. In fact, most of us have also seen them, even though we may not realize it: they were the setting of the Cliffs of Insanity in The Princess Bride. 
Ahhh, yeah, that movie; the one about love.
A few other facts.
They are part of the Burren (see my earlier post for more information on that). They are a little over five miles long and at their highest point, which is by O’Brien’s Tower, they are over 700 feet tall. 
They are named after an old fort, called Moher, which once stood on Hag’s Head.
Hag’s Head is the most southern point of the cliffs and is named after the old woman, Mai the Hag, who fell in love with, then chased after Chu Chullain, the great Irish warrior. He was vain and spurned her love, leaping away while she stumbled and fell to her death in the ocean below. Not a happy love story. 
They say the rock formation took on the form of her head to honor her.
There are an estimated 30,000 birds living on the cliffs, representing more than 20 species. These include Atlantic puffins, which live in large colonies at isolated parts of the cliffs and on the small Goat Island, and razorbills. 
I was impressed that the Irish government, during its late 1990’s development plans, made the cliffs, at least the part most often visited by tourists, mostly accessible. 
Well done, Ireland!
The visitor center was designed (and finally finished in 2007) to be environmentally sensitive with renewable energy systems, including geothermal heating and cooling, solar panels, and grey water recycling. 
I got there early and enjoyed near solitude for almost an hour. I wandered past the “official” barrier and on down the trail for awhile to see some of the things you don’t otherwise see. 
I loved this zig zag geology so much that after I took this shot
I had to go down there and sit awhile, looking out to sea. 
The Cliffs are one of the most popular tourist destinations in Ireland, with more than a million people going there every year so you don’t get them to yourself for very long. 
On my way back, the almost empty parking lot I’d arrived to looked like this, the source of the crowds 
And the paths and more accessible trails looked like this. 
That harpist down there set herself up in the middle and was making some change 
However, even crowds cannot take away the fact that,
no matter what, the place is spectacular.
Just try to get there early…