“More than places, seek out journeys. Travels through cave systems, bike rides through patches of countryside or hikes through alpine summits. These earn fused experience and sights in a way that visiting tourism hotspots doesn’t.” – Old Sean
Arriving in Killarney
After a long, quiet bus ride past heavy winds, my brother, sister and I arrived in Killarney, the major access point to the Ring of Kerry.
The Ring of Kerry is located in the south-western portion of Ireland, a giant looping road that traverses some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
I decided on Killarney as a good base of operations to explore outwards. I had experience in the area and the small town worked as an excellent, well-connected hub to other parts of Ireland. The last time I was in Killarney, I had rented a bike and peddled all across the Dingle Peninsula into the seaside town of Dingle itself, but Killarney was my beloved starting point.
This trip would be a little different. I wasn’t confident my siblings would be up to the rigors of half-baked long-distance travel. Instead, I opted to do miniature day trips with frequent returns.
Along Muckross Lake
The first of these day-trips took us to Ross Castle and the surrounding National Park. We made our way to the Castle on foot, simply walking the minor distance to see the 15th century ruins and surrounding lake. The ground was lush green with ducks and waterfowl hugging the shoreline. The castle was cast of gray stones in blunt shapes, dominating the otherwise low skyline. The beach itself was made of flat, gray and sharp stones, which sat placid under shallow waters.
As we approached the castle, an Irishman tried to pitch us a ride to the Innisfallen Abbey, located on an island in Muckross Lake. We opted not to, preferring to hike around a bit more.
The following walk was a bit odd, as we were given directions for a shortcut which led through a horse-stable, down a mural path and onto the Ring of Kerry Road. We stayed on the walking trail until we reached Castlelough Castle. This castle isn’t nearly as impressive as Ross, but the ruins are nestled in deep foliage behind a large-reed-marsh. We picked our way around this area, eventually exiting the walking route which bypassed The Lake Hotel.
This turned out to be a splendid little detour. The Lake Hotel has a path back to Muckross Road with crafted fairy houses along its entirety. The walk back through this tiny patch of dense forest was long and slow, since I took plenty of time to take plenty of tiny photos.
The Gap of Dunloe
The following day, I rallied my small family to visit the legendary Gap of Dunloe. We started our day by having a proper Hobbit breakfast at the L.O.T.R. themed restaurant, The Shire. Then, it was off to the bus stop.
Usually the Gap of Dunloe accessible by a bus, but I hadn’t properly booked tickets based on information I found online. However, the original bus was crammed full. We were forced to take a taxi instead since the bus was at maximum capacity (ride prices were the same, however).
The ride prices worked as such: We would be dropped off at the northernmost point of the Gap of Dunloe at Kate Kearney’s Cottage. From there, we were expected to take a horse-carriage beyond the end of the trail, which would then result in a slow ride across the lake back to Ross Castle, where our taxi would be waiting for us. The whole route is 6 kilometers or 3.7 miles on a paved road with a steady incline near the end. Going past the Head of the Gap to the boats below is an additional 5 kilometers (3 miles) downhill.
Unfortunately unknown to us, the boats stopped running at 2 PM.
Pivot Point
We walked along the trail, not wanting to pay for a horse and carriage. The scenery was beyond splendid, with ancient stones standing stark on greened hills, great waves of clouds misting the upper passes of the mountain and spinning lakes slowly unspooling into narrow, dancing streams. We spotted sheep with blotches of bright paint to identify ownership, abandoned houses with decaying bricks, razor-thin waterfalls on stone cliffs and great heaps of flowers clustered between hills.
We took our time on our hike, especially when going uphill. However, as gorgeous as this trek was, it was also when we began having problems.
My sister started overstraining her ankle during this point of the journey. We thought that we would be able to reach the boat, but barring that, we could return to Kate Kearney’s Cottage for a ride home. However, a horse-carriage came along during the last part of the trek and the rider warned us the last boat would soon be gone.
Now, the boats going across the lake, without a booking, aren’t terribly cheap. They float along for about 10 Euros per person. But the horse carriage driver guessed at our desperation and demanded 50 Euros just to reach the boat.
I balked at the number and despite the rider’s endless warning and stuttering omens, I felt my heels stubbornly latch Earth.
I hate extortionists. I’d literally rather walk a dozen miles than give someone scamming me the satisfaction.
As the driver rode off and we finished our glorious, mist-speckled hike, my sister grew concerned. The hike had already been strenuous, and with the boats already stopping their service. Bereft of other options, we would have to return to the front of the park to manage.
Luckily, an elderly fellow named Gerry with a horse named Patty clomped along. He was more than happy to give us a ride back to the trailhead at a humane price, namely 10 Euros per person.
We had a very pleasant ride back, with Gerry telling us stories, fawning over our mildly Irish names and pointing out features of Dunloe’s Gap in a combination of jokes and facts. The small, white-tuft plants on the road were “Fairy Cotton Plants” which Leprechauns used to make underwear. The bell-shaped purple stalk-flowers were called Fairy Fingers or Foxgloves were beloved flowers of the Good Neighbors and had equal attributes of poison and medicine. The central lake was named Auger for the corkscrew motion it made when wind came off the mountain.
Recognition
We finally arrived back at our starting point and caught an easy bus back to Killarney. We opted to celebrate our first outing by going out for a pint before a pleasant surprise met us. Jenny, a friend of my younger sister and alumni from our high school sprinted out from a pub to tackle us in a hug. She was apparently in Ireland as well, touring with a work group from the states.
I made sure everyone had their first real pint of Irish Guinness and called it a night allowing my sister and her friend to catch up.
The following day, my sister began to grow very ill. The Gap of Dunloe had been hard on her and she hadn’t slept since arriving in Killarney. Our hostel roommates were long-term guests, so our room smelled grungy and it made her too nauseous to sleep. Unable to physically push onto another strenuous adventure, I went to a travel agency for advice. I was hoping to visit Kenmare for an easy day. But my information was faulty and the bus didn’t run on Saturday. I instead pushed my family to explore the town of Tralee, a short train-ride away.
A Slow Day in Tralee
Tralee, Ireland is… not much to write about. It’s a small town with a couple of nice features. But when we asked our breakfast waiter for a good place to wander in the city, he recommended we take a train and check out Killarney.
Disappointed and amused, we ended up letting my sister recuperate at a library. My brother and I forged through the city’s rose garden and Saturday farmer’s market to see Blennerville Windmill, a large, white restored structure from the 1800s that had some acclaim. The windmill, however, turned out to be a bit dull. We returned to the library without much to show for the town of Tralee.
Errands in Killarney
When we returned to Killarney, I decided to take the waiter’s advice and explore the town more closely. Over the next day, we had to check out from the hostel to be checked into a different room which would hopefully smell better and allow my sister to recover.
In that interim, I swapped between running small errands to help and long walks to keep myself sane. I typically don’t visit new countries and sit around for long.
I got to visit Cafe Lir, which is named for the famous Irish tale, The Children of Lir. It’s a bustling little shop with strong tea and robust WIFI. I convinced my brother to have a pint with me on an off evening at the Danny Mann Pub, which had live music singing upbeat Irish songs. It wasn’t the somber, Gaelic Trad Music I had been hoping for, but it was grand enough.
On another occasion, we stopped by (and continued to frequent) the Killarney Bakery, which serves a great slice of solo pizza amongst other treats. Wild is a blue-painted café chain with a fair amount of scones sold cheaply. Killarney House and Gardens is a wonderful, wide green space with lots of lads playing games while my family sat on green grass and read a book of Irish lore with me.
Best of all, on a little solo walk, I discovered a previously-unknown part of Killarney for myself. Knockreer is an enormous green space located just to the West of Killarney, with expansive trails, herds of Red Deer, high bluffs overlooking the lake, quite streams with herons, heaps of flowers, swarms of placid honeybees and happy cattle on nearly untamed fields. There was also a café named Deenagh Lodge which provides training to young people with Down Syndrome who wish to join the workforce. The entire wonderful area is just across the street from the stoic and impressive St. Mary’s Cathedral.
Killarney, you astound me again without fail or effort.
A Bus Tour of Kerry
Now, originally, I had hoped to explore the entire Ring of Kerry over a two or three day bike ride. However, with my sister’s health in decline, I battered away my old instincts for athletic rigors and booked a bus tour. The advertisement implied the tour would meander slowly, allowing guests to hop on and off.
This was a colossal error on my part. The stops in each town were barely fifteen to thirty minutes. All the nearby hiking areas and points of interest I had wanted to see were bypassed entirely. We were often brought to incredible viewpoints for photos, but actual activities were minimal.
Bog Village
That being said, there were a fair number of things that were enjoyable. The countryside along the Ring of Kerry is unmatched by nearly anywhere else in the world. Our first stop was the Kerry Bog Village Museum, which housed a sort of living-museum of life in Old Ireland near bogs. Ireland is notorious for its immense peat bogs, which made huge tracts of the country nigh-impassable.
The Bog Village Museum (famously connected to the Red Fox Inn serving Irish Coffee in the mornings) had a pair of Irish Wolfhounds come over to get pet by crowds.
The enormous dogs are Ireland’s most famous sight-hunting hounds and they effectively drove the native Irish Wolf to extinction. They were so good at their job that once the wolf went extinct and warhounds weren’t needed in large packs. As such, their numbers began to diminish. It was only through the efforts of Captain George Graham in the late 19th century the breed was saved. He took the last few pure strains of the wolfhound and crossed it with European breeds until the legendary dog had a robust population, beloved by modern folks.
The Bog Village is also home to the unique Irish Bog Pony, a hardy animal that served the Isle well for centuries. Other buildings include various lifestyle houses, a traveling cart and samples of peat-bog. (Peat is often used for fuel, even in modern Ireland. If treated, the modern version looks like a compressed brick of black plastic but burns long, steady and slow.
We continued on our way around the Ring of Kerry. The bus exposed another problem. It was terribly cozy and warm. Despite all my best efforts, I nearly fell asleep within five minutes every time the bus lurched forward. This was a recurring issue that was never solved until the bus door actually broke at one point, giving cold gusts of wind that managed to slap me awake. My dozing was something of a pity since the outside scenery was beyond gorgeous.
Cahersiveen
Our next stop along the Ring of Kerry was Cahersiveen. I was bouncing in my seat, since there were a lot of things I wished to see here. However, I was disappointed. We completely bypassed the beautiful Glenbeigh Tower and its quirky fairy forest. Nor did we get to see the beautiful beaches of Rossbeigh. Even in Cahersiveen, we only were given enough time to browse a couple of window-shops (which were nice) and The Old Abbey of the Holy Cross. The old Ring Forts, legendary Balleycarberry Castle and the rock platforms were entirely missed entirely, never even mentioned.
I grew grumpier as the tour dragged on. We were allowed over an hour in Waterville for lunch, but that didn’t allow for enough time to visit the amazing Eightercua Standing Stones. We ended up getting a nice meal of soup and sandwiches at the slightly-pricey Charlie’s Restaurant near the bus station. The scenery was nice enough, and even on my worst days, I have trouble grumbling at the sea.
We were allowed to glance at the legendary fairy fort, Loher Stone Fort during the next stop. The ancient structure is a wonderful hallmark, but we only saw it from a viewing platform far above. The bus had long-passed it by the time it was pointed out to us in the distance.
Sneem
Next came Sneem. Gorgeous, vibrant, sculpture-saturated Sneem. I was so excited, but only twenty minutes wasn’t enough time to properly explore. It was probably well enough. My sister was getting tired, her illness sapping her strength tremendously. In Sneem, there are rivers which waterfall between narrow rocks, triangle parks with odd sculptures, traditional houses painted bright, ice cream worth punching a gator for and large crowds of people soaking it all in.
Our tour bus actually didn’t take us the rest of the way along the Ring. Instead, it took a shortcut through Molls Gap, giving a chance for more photos at Ladies View (an Upper Lake overview point). When we finally returned to Killarney, sleepy, I was happy to be off the bus. I took my brother out for a short hike and some errands before calling it a day.
As much as I complain about the bus tour, it did have one major bonus. My sister enjoyed it greatly and it was something she could do with her limited energy. So, despite my personal gripes, it was still a win.
Visiting Kenmare
The following morning, I asked my sister to stay in bed to recover. It was clear her improvements had been marginal at best, and it was our last day in Killarney. Tomorrow, we would under go the strains of switching cities. I recruited my brother to visit Kenmare by bus, despite the rain sitting on top of us.
Kenmare is sort of the “last stop” on the Ring of Kerry. The small town is defined by a three-street-triangle packed with shops, but the real points of interest are spread much further. My brother and I visited Cromwell’s Bridge, a picturesque 11th century stone construct climbing a narrow river. The bridge actually has nothing to do with the famous Oliver Cromwell. Rather the name is thought to be an English bastardization of the Irish word for “mustache.”
My brother and I also visited the Lady of the Well, which was an extremely brief glance.
Stone and Hawthorn
More importantly, I desperately wanted to see the notorious Kenmare Stone Circle. This was an absolute gem to visit in the rain. The mysterious structures are most commonly found in South-Western Ireland, and the one in Kenmare is the most compelling of the bunch. Aside from the mysterious stones, there are also two Hawthorn trees nearby.
Hawthorn Trees are sacred in Irish culture as meeting places between mortals and fairies. The trees are considered good fortune and road-construction projects have been diverted to avoid disturbing the trees. Modern folks take tags and tie wishes onto the tree branches, which lounged and dripped in the rain like so much ripe fruit. Despite this, the soft wishes of hundreds of people are still visible in faded ink.
We made it back into the city proper for breakfast at Café Mocha. Another Irish Breakfast stuffed us properly and we checked out Fair Green Public Park with its many sculptures and benches before walking to Reenagross Woodland Park.
Reenagross is located behind the grounds of Park Hotel Kenmare. But the park itself is amazing, with lots of thin trails sneaking through dense forests, brackish waters, arboretum gardens and marshlands. There are Giant Rhubarb plants with spines going up the stems and vast, spikey leaves stood out the most, looking like something straight from the Jurassic Period.
Best of all, Reenagross boasts a strange, curving tunnel of purple flowers and dense trees. My brother and I did hard-mud sprints and struts through these arcing vines.
Seeking Ruins
When we finally exited the park, I pushed for a fairly large travel-gamble. I wanted to see Dunkerron Castle, an obscure castle supposedly half-ruined with heaps of plants devouring all remaining stones. Information was somewhat scanty and directions weren’t ironclad, so I knew we were risking a fair bit of time on a potential goose chase.
We walked along country roads for an hour, stepping off to the side whenever oncoming traffic drew near. Unfortunately, the area around Dunkerron House was closed off, as a guest had started living there and wanted privacy. My brother and I were forced to wander long and far before realizing there wasn’t an access road to Dunkerron Castle we could easily use. Instead, I had to take us back to the main road and hike back down, finding Dunkerron Castle hidden behind another building.
I was ecstatic.
The castle is gorgeous. Plants have eaten the entire thing alive, leaving only enough stone on the interior to make stunning photos. Plants creep up the wall and white stones lean inwards like haunting specters.
Happy to have spotted our goal, my brother and I returned to Kenmare in a forty minute return-hike. We got a milkshake, browsed a bookshop and took one last walk to Kenmare Pier for overlooks of the water (which weren’t terribly impressive).
Last Moments in Killarney
Finally, we boarded the bus to head back to Killarney. The ticket machine on the bus was fortunately broken, so the sheer mercy of the driver allowed us on without having to pay a fee.
Back in Killarney, our sister was recovering slightly. We made sure she ate a bit of dinner and got her ready to travel the following morning.
Tomorrow, my family and I will go to Galway for the next stage of our vacation. I’ve rented an Airbnb which will hopefully allow my sister to fully recover.
Until then, we’re traveling cautiously and carefully.
Best regards and excellent trails,
Old Sean
Written June 21st 2022
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