Where to stay cool in Mayo as new heatwave awaits this weekend?
As a new heatwave is coming up this weekend, with temperatures predicted to hit 30 degrees in Ireland, there are places where it’s relatively easy to escape the most extreme weather.
As temperatures are forecast to rise over the course of the week, there will be showers along the way leading up the weekend.
Parts of Europe are trying to come to grips with wildfires, as in Portugal, Spain and France.
And this coming Friday will be a dry and hot day for most in Ireland with plenty of sunshine. Much of Europe will or another spell of intense heat, and people might ask why the weather in certain areas, especially in Mayo, is different.
Well, location is crucially important.
Belmullet for example is the first part of Ireland to meet weather systems arriving from the Atlantic. Long before that weather reaches the rest of the country, it has already passed over Blacksod.
Surrounded by the ocean on three sides, the sea has a huge influence on the climate in that part of Mayo. And it keeps humans cooler in summer, milder in winter, and often bringing rapid changes from sunshine to showers in a matter of minutes.
While temperatures soar across much of Europe over the coming days, the Atlantic will once again play its part in Erris. It may not always give people endless sunshine, but it helps protect them from the most extreme heat experienced elsewhere.
So, if you plan on spending some hours or a day away from the heat, the far northwest of Mayo might give you a perfect opportunity to escape it.