Sounds like a hell of a trip. I love Ireland, I was there in August 2011. My family went to Sweden for a wedding and stopped in Dublin for 3 days before going to Sweden. Then on the way back we went to wicklow. Wicklow was a medium sized town and was right on the east coast. A perfect place to visit and just outside the Wicklow mountains.
But you said you won't be near Dublin, so Wicklow is probably out of the question. In the 80's my dad went to Ireland for six months and he stayed in the western side. It was a big part of his life.
I hope you have a blast, and stay out of the rain. On second thought you better learn to enjoy the rain. Would like to hear more about your trip and possibly see pictures.