Ring of Kerry

A few days before our trip home, we went for a long bus ride. Part of this was the Ring of Kerry that we were taken on. The scenery is beautiful, but we had been travelling for six days, with stops at various tourist places. Mind you, we did appreciate seeing what Ireland is like and what their history entailed, but, I think that we were almost at the point of information overload, or scenery overload. I, personally, was definitely at that point as I don’t usually do tours. I usually determine where I want to visit, go there, maybe do a day tour or two, but I usually get to know a little about the place before continuing on. I do have a tendency to take a lot of pictures. Some people think that about a hundred pictures is a lot. I usually take in the neighbourhood of one to two thousand pictures so that I can go home, get rid of the blurry ones, choose the ones that show what I am trying to say when I do any sort of presentation.

Substitute driver so that Austin could have a day off.

Anyway, I don’t remember much about what we were told about the Ring of Kerry. I found that the Wikipedia tells it in a good way and I am finding it hard to paraphrase it. So, here goes:

“The Ring of Kerry (Irish: Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a 179-km-long circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passing through Sneem, Waterville,Cahersiveen, and Glenbeigh – before returning to Killarney via the N72.

Popular points include Muckross House (near Killarney), Staigue stone fort and Derrynane House, home of Daniel O'Connell. Just south of Killarney, Ross Castle, Lough Leane, and Ladies View (a panoramic viewpoint), all located within Killarney National Park, are major attractions located along the Ring. A more complete list of major attractions along the Ring of Kerry includes: Gap of Dunloe, Bog Village,Kerry Woollen Mills, Rossbeigh Beach, Cahersiveen Heritage Centre, Derrynane House, Skellig Experience, Staigue Fort, Kenmare Lace,Moll's Gap, Ladies View, Torc Waterfall, Muckross House, The Blue Pool, Ross Castle, Ogham Stones, St Mary’s Cathedral, Muckross Abbey, Franciscan Friary, Kellegy Church, O’Connell Memorial Church, Sneem Church and Cemetery, Skellig Michael, Beehive Cells and the Stone Pillars marking an important grave.^[1]

There is also an established walking path named The Kerry Way, which takes its own route, and a signposted Ring of Kerry cycling path which uses older quieter roads where possible. The Kerry Way roughly follows the scenic driving route of the Ring of Kerry.

There are numerous variations to the route taking in St. Finian's Bay and Valentia Island which the official driving ring misses (the official cycling route takes in Valentia Island). As well as beaches, it also offers the Gap of Dunloe, Bog Village, Derrynane House, the Skellig Experience Valentia Island, Molls Gap, Torc Waterfall, Muckross House, and Ross Castle.

"The Ring" is a popular day trip and numerous bus companies offer circuits during the summer months. As the narrow roads make it difficult for tour coaches to pass, all tour buses run in an anti-clockwise (or counter-clockwise) direction, traveling via Killorglin first. Some recommend that car owners travel in the opposite direction, going first to Kenmare to avoid delays caused by tour buses. Others advise traveling counter-clockwise to avoid having to pass the buses. In 2008 satellite navigation systems were blamed for directing bus drivers in a clockwise direction around the route.”

Ring of Kerry

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ring_of_Kerry

Here are a couple of pictures that I took at Ladies View.

Ross Castle

Ross Castle sits in Killarney National Park on the edge of Lough Leane which is Killarney’s lower lake. It is believed that Ross Castle was built in the 15^th century by O’Donoghue Mór and is the ancestral home of the O’Donoghue Clan. Ownership changed hands during the Second Desmond Rebellion to the MacCarthy Mór in the 1580s. The castle and its lands were leased to Sir Valentine Browne, whose descendants include the Earls of Kenmare.

During the Irish Confederate War, the castle was one of the last to be surrendered to Oliver Cromwell’s Roundheads. There was a prophecy that the castle could not be taken until a warship could sail on the lake. Well, it was believed that it would never happen, but it did. General Ludlow accepted the surrender of the castle.

After the wars were over, the Brownes were able to prove that the heir was too young to participate in the rebellion and the castle and land was returned to them. One hundred years later saw a mansion built on the land near the castle, but also saw the exile of the Brownes due to a relationship that was too close to James II. The castle then became a military barracks and continued with that purpose until the 19^th century. The Brownes returned to the area, but did not return to the castle, instead building Kenmare House in Killarney.

There is still a legend that “O'Donoghue leaped or was sucked out of the window of the grand chamber at the top of the castle and disappeared into the waters of the lake along with his horse, his table and his library. It is said that O'Donoghue now lives in a great palace at the bottom of the lake where he keeps a close eye on everything that he sees.” (Wikipedia) If this is so, he must be amazed at the change in clothing over the years, and the change in customs, habits, and technology.

Castle Ross was built to be a defensive structure, to protect the people in the area in time of need, and to assure the people that they will be protected. The castle has an iron gate that can be lowered while the front door is closed, the exterior doors were two ply with the layers at 90° angles to each other. There was at least one murder hole, and slits for arrows, and later guns. There are other defensive measures. The tower was five stories high and can be quite formidable to the attacker.

Castle Ross is now run by the Office of Public Works and run tours seasonally. Tours for more than 10 people have to be prebooked. The following is the contact information for Ross Castle:

Telephone No: +353 64 6635851 Fax: +353 64 6635852 Email: rosscastle@opw.ie

A Ride in the Park

What would you consider to be an enjoyable ride? Would it be in a high speed, high performance car? Or, would you consider another type of ride? Would you consider the type of transportation that was in the British Isles prior to a hundred years ago?

Close your eyes and let your imagination take over. You are about to take a short trip with your significant other and you need to decide on the type of transportation that you are going to use. Are you going to use horses to race each other and get a “thrill” of a lifetime? Or, do you want something that is more romantic? Will you need transportation for just the two of you? Or, will there be a group of people going with you?

During the nineteenth century, there was a form of transportation used in Dublin that could be used with the help of one horse. It was a two-wheeled vehicle called a jaunting car and was designed to have a driver for the horse and to carry two or four people at a time. Samuel Coleridge made arrangements for one for a tour of Ireland with William Wordsworth, who named himself as driver, and Wordsworth’s sister, Dorothy. Apparently, Wordsworth did not do so well as a driver.

There were also two types of jaunting cars, outside jaunting cars and inside jaunting cars. If you are in an outside jaunting car, you look out, across the wheels at the scenery. If you are in an inside jaunting car, you are sitting on the benches facing inwards towards your companions. Our group used about three jaunting cars and they were all inside jaunting cars.

Jaunting cars today are designed to carry between ten and twelve passengers and have four wheels instead of two wheels. They are still pulled by one horse and are used mostly by tourists. The companies in Killarney take their passengers out to Ross Castle in Killarney National Park. They give their passengers enough time to visit the castle and the castle grounds before taking them back to their hotels. Almost all of the jaunting cars in Killarney have overhead protection from rain if there is no wind. The car that I was in also had plastic walls that gives better protection in the rain.

On the way out to Ross Castle, I rode in the back. It gave me a chance to experience what the ride was like in the back. Seriously, though, I wanted to ride up front, but I know how selfish I can be, so I chose to sit in the back so that someone else could have the privilege. The person who sat with the driver decided that she felt that the wind was too cold for her and wanted to go into the back with everyone else. I jumped at the chance to ride in the front and I don’t regret doing it. I had a chance to talk with the driver one-on-one and actually had a chance to drive the horse for about ten minutes.

We arrived back at our hotel with time enough for a quick break, and then we were off to our next adventure. I would suggest that anyone who visits Ireland and doesn’t go on a jaunting ride when given the chance, is not experiencing all that Ireland has to offer. I enjoyed the ride and the chance to actually drive the horse. If I come across the chance to do it again, I will not be missing the chance to repeat my experience.

Gaelic Roots, The Show

While we were on our way to Killarney, our bus driver told us about a show that had been running for about two weeks and would be continuing through the summer until the middle of October. The name of the show was Gaelic Roots, The Show.

This show is being held at the Killarney Avenue Hotel which is across the square from the Killarney Plaza Hotel. So it was a short walk for me to go to the show. There was a small number of people from our tour that opted to go that night. Those people who heard about it from us and wanted to go were out of luck as it was a night off for the cast on our second night in Killarney. As soon as I heard about it, I wanted to see it and not seeing it was not an option. So, I made sure that I was there in plenty of time to get in.

I arrived about 30 minutes early so that I could get a good seat. I first thought that the seats near the front would give me the view that I was looking for. After about ten or fifteen minutes, and with the help of other people sitting in front of me, I realized that I might not have picked the best seat to sit in. I looked further back and realized that some of the chairs were set up on risers. I headed back to get to the front of the last riser, and tripped and fell almost flat on my face at the first riser. I did a bit of damage to my ankle, but I knew that it would heal. There was not severe damage done except to my pride.

I found the seat that I wanted and had a very clear view of the show. It was a mixer of song, music, and dancing and you could tell that the cast was having fun with it.

The cast is a renown group of international Irish performers. The O’Neill Sisters were the singers and came in from New York to do this show for the summer. It is something that they believe in and they were happy to do so. Tomas O Se is a Kerry Minor football star and a world class Irish dancer who has danced with Riverdance. Kelly McDonnell is a world class Irish dancer who has danced with Michael Flatley. Tony Flaherty is a world renowned musician and plays with The Gaelic Roots Band. They cover a lot of instruments including the flute, the bodrhan, the fiddle, and more. There are also the Gaelic Roots Troop Dancers who have danced with Riverdance and other productions.

When the performance starts, it’s as if you are going back through the mists of time. The music is not just from the modern era, but also from further back in time. I think that maybe, “Danny Boy” is the only one that I have previous heard. I don’t know about the rest of the audience, but I was mesmerized for the entire performance. The show lasts for two hours and there is a fifteen-minute break about half way through. It gives you a chance to stretch your legs and come back to earth before continuing on in the world of fantasy. The cast received a well-deserved standing ovation.

Going back to the hotel, I chanced on some of my friends from the tour. One of them decided that I could not do the short trip back to our hotel by myself, but needed someone with me. I really didn’t but I decided to humour her.

Would I go to Gaelic Roots, The Show again? With a resounding yes, I would go again if I have the chance. I love the Irish music and dancing and don’t have much chance to see the dancing. 

Day Sixteen – Field Trip, April 2016

We were back to an early morning schedule this morning but not the earliest that we have been. Tomorrow, we will be back to the earliest schedule. 0 dark thirty comes awfully early. But we are nearly finished our trip. Do I want to go home? I think so. Some mornings it has been hard to get up so early. But I have enjoyed the trip and will have good memories from it.

In Killarney, they have a road rally about three times a year. The first one for this year is this weekend. Our driver was able to get us out of Killarney before the rally started and we had a long drive ahead of us. Members of the group fell asleep because we have been very busy since we arrived in Ireland. I was in bed by 9:30 pm for the last couple of nights and was asleep by 10:30 last night.

Our first stop was at Blarney where we could go up into the castle to kiss the Blarney Stone. We didn’t have to do this, and you could go up to the top of the castle just to take pictures if you wanted to. Some just wanted to wander the grounds for while. There was a number of us that did go up to the top of the castle including myself. I even kissed the Stone! Surprise! Surprise! My brother also did. I do have to say that on the way up, I did have to stop at one point and take a rest. I was going to go back down but when I found out that it was only one more flight of stairs, I decided that I might just as well complete what I set out to do. It was much easier going down than going up.

Before going back to the bus, I happened to see the sign for the “Poison Garden” and went to see what it was all about. It was much bigger than I had anticipated, but I’m pretty sure that I saw all of it. I then started to wander towards the path, taking pictures along the way. I didn’t push myself and got all of the pictures that I wanted.

While we were at Blarney Castle, our driver had taken the rest of the group over to Blarney Woollen Mills. They are within walking distance of the castle and we were to walk over to rejoin the group. When I arrived there, the bus was locked up, so I went into the restaurant for a smoothie. It was enjoyable. We had a total of approximately two hours in Blarney.

At our next stop, we visited the replica of a sailing vessel that was built in 1845 and transported emigrants from Ireland to North America. The original vessel was built in Quebec City. We had an opportunity to see what kind of conditions that these emigrants had to endure to leave Ireland during the potato famine. They had a couple of people act as emigrants, one as a steerage passenger and the other as a paying passenger. It was quite interesting.

After this, we travelled to our hotel and did a walking tour around the old part of the city. We learned interesting things about the history of the city and saw some interesting sites.

Many of you may question why I haven’t given names of some of the places that we have been over the last couple of weeks. I gave some of the names after we had left the place that we visited only as a precaution. I will be expanding on these posts and will be posting pictures after we return to our homes. I hope that you will continue to read these posts as I do my wandering, both in reality and in imagination.

Day Fifteen – Road Trip, April 2016

We were able to sleep in this morning! I didn’t have to set the alarm for 5:30 am! I was able to set it for 7:15 am! The reason why: our activities were all in the neighbourhood of Killarney.

After a leisurely typical Irish breakfast, we crossed the street at our hotel to board upon the jaunting cars. I think that our group filled four of the cars. We had eight passengers in the one that I was in and we then had a pleasant ride through Killarney National Park to Ross Castle. The park is either within the city limits or are on the outskirts because we didn’t have to go too far to get there via city streets. On the way, we saw a few deer and were told that more deer would be out this evening when there were not so many people around.

Ross Castle is an old keep on the shores of the Lower Lake. It is in beautiful surroundings and has a history that goes back to the 15^th century. We were given time to wander the surroundings and take pictures. After all, pictures are the best souvenirs, especially if you have a digital camera. It will be interesting to look into some of the history of this castle.

After travelling back to our hotel by jaunting cars, we then boarded our bus to travel to the town of Kenmare where we had lunch. If you are ever in Kenmare, P.F. McArthy’s is a good place to eat. They have a pulled pork sandwich that I found delicious.

After lunch, we continued on our journey along the Ring of Kerry and through Moll’s Gap back to Killarney. We had a couple of stops along the way, one at Ladies’ View where the view is spectacular and another at Muckross House. We were given an hour at Muckross House and it was almost as if we all scattered to the winds. My brother and I took a different route than most of our companions and still managed to cover just about everything. Apparently, Muckross House has tourists visits all year round.

As we boarded the bus to return to our hotel, some of us did not know exactly where we were. It took about half an hour or less to travel the distance. Once we were delivered back to our hotel, we were free from any activities and could go where we want for dinner.

At this point, I should mention about the entertainment that I attended last evening. The name of it is “Gaelic Roots, The Live Show” and was held in the hotel across the square. The O’Neill Sisters are among the very talented cast. It is a venue that blends music, song, and dance with its serious parts and humourous acts. It is a show that is well worth seeing. The audience gave them a standing ovation because of the fine work that they did.

Early morning again tomorrow.