When you get as far as the Dingle Peninsula in southwest Ireland, you are on the edge of Europe. The next stop is America. The religious-minded local people used to put it a touch differently: "next parish America".

Dingle (also known in Irish as An Daingean) is a charming town with a New Age vibe. Well, it does have a resident dolphin, Fungie, and lots of craft shops, restaurants, pubs and brightly coloured houses, but for "real", remote, Ireland, drive on to Dunquin (Dún Chaoin) and take a ferry to the Blasket Islands.

It was a blowy day as we climbed down the steep concrete steps on Dunquin Pier. Past the traditional fishing boats, we stepped into a dinghy which took us out to a larger boat anchored some distance away. The boat tumbled and tossed across the waves to Great Blasket island.

It took about about 30 minutes and cost about 30 euros but was well worth the effort. The ferry leaves every hour, weather permitting.

Once upon a time, in the 1920s and 1930s the small island community came to the attention of scholars. Writers such as Tomás Ó Criomhthain (An tOileánach – The Islandman) and Robin Flower (The Great Blasket) published books on the lives and (often hard) times of the island people. One of these, Peig Sayers, is a name that strikes fear into the hearts of generations of people educated in Ireland. Her autobiography, written in Irish, was on the school syllabus for years and years and years.

Blasket Island was deserted in 1953 due to its declining population. It has a beautiful golden sand beach, some ruined houses, a few donkeys, sheep, rabbits and lots and lots of seabirds. From the beach you can see seals playing in the water. There is a very small tourist industry there; a restaurant serving hearty island fare - soup and bread, strong coffee and carrot cake - and a shop where you can buy rugged knits, gloves, slippers and sweaters. There is also a hostel that is open between April and September.

We climbed high up the island and sat near the top of this weathered outpost watching the sun shimmer on the water and feeling, yes, this is the edge of the world. Next stop America...