Went shooting in Ireland :)

[milemaker13]

Last week we were in Ireland for vacation. Had a really great time traveling around the Irish country side with my beautiful, amazing wife.
So amazing in fact that she set up a shotgun shoot for us about mid week.
Made an appointment at Lough Bo clay shooting centre in or near Roscommon .The owner Gerry is a terribly nice guy. And a great instructor. I'm no shotgun expert (yet! Lol) but my wife has never handled one. He had us both hitting birds. I think she may be hooked!
I did not expect to do any shooting while there. We spent awhile talking to him. Laws in Ireland are much stricter than here, but not nearly as oppressive as I imagined.
I could go on and on, but I've got to get back to work. Just wanted to share

 

[Zaydok Allen]

I was in Ireland about a year ago. It's a wonderful place. Yes, unfortunately there are fairly strict gun laws. But with a pub on every corner........

I didn't get to shoot at all but wish I had. What keind of shotguns were you shooting?

 

[Slamfire]

Last week we were in Ireland for vacation. Had a really great time traveling around the Irish country side with my beautiful, amazing wife.
So amazing in fact that she set up a shotgun shoot for us about mid week.
Made an appointment at Lough Bo clay shooting centre in or near Roscommon .The owner Gerry is a terribly nice guy. And a great instructor. I'm no shotgun expert (yet! Lol) but my wife has never handled one. He had us both hitting birds. I think she may be hooked!
I did not expect to do any shooting while there. We spent awhile talking to him. Laws in Ireland are much stricter than here, but not nearly as oppressive as I imagined.
I could go on and on, but I've got to get back to work. Just wanted to share

You gotta post some pictures. Friends of mine who have been to Ireland, they bring back pictures of fantastic beach scenes, and green hills and trees. Looks like a story book land.

 

[Milt1]

You do have an amazing wife! Sounded like a great trip for any couple, however, I'd have to replace the shotgun with golf clubs.

 

[Good Ol' Boy]

I don't have much desire to travel internationally but that does sound like fun, congrats.

I'd also like to see some pictures...

 

[Drail]

So is your wife an Irish girl? Irish girls are SPECIAL! We want pictures.......

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

You gotta post some pictures. Friends of mine who have been to Ireland, they bring back pictures of fantastic beach scenes, and green hills and trees. Looks like a story book land.

I spent the day in Dublin once, but the ferry had a broken ramp and we couldn't get our car off, so we couldn't see the countryside. Dublin is, well, an old city. You've seen one and.......meh.

Now Edinburgh, that was a whole 'nother story!

Didn't get to do any shooting, though.......

 

[Zaydok Allen]

You gotta post some pictures. Friends of mine who have been to Ireland, they bring back pictures of fantastic beach scenes, and green hills and trees. Looks like a story book land.

Those are accurate statements.

Irish girls are SPECIAL! We want pictures.......

They sure are.

so we couldn't see the countryside. Dublin is, well, an old city. You've seen one and.......meh.

The countryside is beautiful. I roadtripped around the island for a week. I actually thought Northern Ireland was some of the prettiest parts of the island.

Dublin is a fun town, but yeah, it's a city. The smaller towns have a lot more charm.

The entire time I was in country I never saw a single firearm. I wasn't exactly looking everywhere though.

It's my understanding handgun laws are really restrictive there.

Sorry to the op. I'm not trying to threadjack but it's hard not to comment. It really is a wonderful place. Interesting people there.

 

[milemaker13]

No problem, all of your comments are accurate to my experience. We landed in Dublin, drove down to Donegal, then roscommon, then to Waterford. Ended in Dublin again.
I feel like we couldnt have fit much more in. We stayed in old converted castles, climbed a mountain, visited a beach w/ cows and a surfer, shot clays, saw a waterfall, drove along an amazingly scenic single lane coastal road, met several locals in the pubs, walked around Waterford , took the train into dublin and walked around there. It was a really great vacation. I will try to post pics w/ captions when time allows.. still trying to put our everyday lives back together!

We shot a well used Beretta O/U, didnt catch the model. My wife has some Irish, but her family in Dublin was actually in the states last week! She has been wanting to take this trip for years now (since HS in fact) . I'm glad she was finally able to go.. and that she brought me with! Lol.

 

[Blackstone]

Yep, no centerfire handgun licenses have been granted since 2008. also, anything resembling practical shooting is banned. I'd definitely rate the laws as very restrictive.

 

[milemaker13]

Actually, he said they recently got their 9mm pistols back. He did talk about the ban on dynamic training of any kind, but said it was still allowed in northern Ireland.

 

[Odd Job]

Northern Ireland is a completely different territory legally, since it is part of the UK.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

Northern Ireland is a completely different territory legally, since it is part of the UK.

Indeed, and the difference is very noticeable when you cross the border, at least I thought it was. The construction and infrastructure seemed more developed to me, but more so the styling was different. Maybe it was just the power of suggestion knowing I'd crossed into a different country.

The UK is more permissive on handgun laws or licensing? Not trying to get off track but the distinction between Northern Ireland and Ireland seems relevant to me.

Noticing your location, I've been to London twice in the last three years also, and found it a wonderful city. And I typically hate cities. My avatar is one of the ravens that lives at the Tower of London.

 

[dak0ta]

I went clay shooting in Courtlough Shooting Grounds, we shot Beretta Silver Pigeons. Was fun! Lived in Dublin for a year, and travelled to Galway and the North. Pretty country, great culture and the music is awesome. Guiness tastes better over there too! Oh and the seafood..

 

[Odd Job]

The UK is more permissive on handgun laws or licensing? Not trying to get off track but the distinction between Northern Ireland and Ireland seems relevant to me.

Noticing your location, I've been to London twice in the last three years also, and found it a wonderful city. And I typically hate cities. My avatar is one of the ravens that lives at the Tower of London.

The laws are a bit strange in the UK, here are some differences:

1) England and Wales: no handguns on a Section 1 license (which is what the ordinary Joe can get).
2) Scotland: same as England and Wales but in addition to that, all air weapons must be licensed, regardless of power.
3) Northern Ireland: handguns are permitted in some cases, even for self defense reasons. That was one of the conditions of the Good Friday agreement.

Strange as it seems, the UK does not have a homogeneous licensing scheme for guns.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

Strange as it seems, the UK does not have a homogeneous licensing scheme for guns.

Well, gun laws are different from state to state in the US as you know. I agree weird, but similar.

Licensing air weapons. Wow.

 

[Blackstone]

Northern Ireland also requires all air weapons to be licensed. All shotguns are Section 1 (in the rest of the UK, double barrel shotguns as well as semiautos/pumps that have a 2 shell magazine restrictor are Section 2. The difference between Section 1 and 2 is primarily that for Section 1 firearms, you need to provide a "good reason" to own each of the firearms).
So in general, Northern Ireland is more restrictive on firearms compared to mainland Britain, but it does permit ownership of handguns for target shooting under Section 1, and in rare cases, for personal protection as Odd Job mentioned.