Day 9: Addendum to Parting Ways

After Andy left I finished typing up loose ends and then headed out into busy Killarney roadways. Immediately I thought, "Wow! This pack is heavy!" Turns out the "test-drive" I had given the pack a few days ago did not include food and was on rolling terrain. The first two days of this hike has spotty food sources so I had a lot of food and was walking on pavement. And it was hot. 

My plan this first day was a wise one: hike a short 6 km to to the B and B to try out the load, drop off the pack and then explore the Muckross House and gardens. 

I felt how different this adventure is from others. I am alone so no one to share the load of common items like first aid kit and emergency gear. I am 57 years old and carry a mental backdrop of apprehension about developing overuse injuries. I've had my share recently and had promised myself that I would be gentle and kind to my body on this trip. As I continued walking the 6 km along the busy tourist route with this huge pack it did not feel gentle or kind.

So I stopped at a park and unloaded into a trash bin a some precious items: an orange, vitamins, jar of peanut butter, honey and other sundries. I admit to have been pretty anxious and simply (and maybe just a bit rashly) jettisoning this "stuff." I chuckled to myself as I walked away a bit lighter. I used to invite discomfort! Now I am older and wiser. 

On the way from the Muckross Riding Stables B & B to Muckross, I saw a decent restaurant. This is good news, because without a car "going out" to dinner can be tricky. 

The day is gorgeous and sunny and so are the ground of Muckross House. The busyness of Killarney feels very far away as I walk under huge trees and along Lough Leane. People are exploring this lush oasis by jaunting cart, bike and two feet, like me. 

It was easy to lose track of time and distance as I wound my way around the paths and the big house and gardens. This is the joy of traveling alone, just following your nose. 

I ended the day by eating a 1/2 chicken and pint of Guiness at Colgans Gastro Pub to set me up well for my first big day tomorrow!

Day 8: Oh Killarney!

 Even with the massive traffic jams and crowds, Killarney is a wonderful place to celebrate the end of a great week together. But before we could get to the famous Murphy’s pub Andy needed to catch some fish and I needed to finalize my itinerary. We were both successful! Andy got a tastes of the coveted trout waters even if he had to struggle with old school pvc waders and wet flies only. It was enough, he said, to be out on the water again after a year and a half recuperation from a torn Achilles. 

I enjoyed my time getting everything sorted and was able to get a solid plan.

After Andy got back we celebrated his catch by going out on the town. St Mary’s Cathedral was a highlight as was the grounds around Ross Castle for the HUGE trees. We ended our time with a great meal of Sea Trout and Stuffed Pork!

Day 7: Leaving the Beara and Testing out my Set up

 Going to bed after our full day in Allihies, it felt incomprehensible that we our week together was coming to a close. But, indeed, it was time to head North to Killarney for the final two days of our trip. 

As I started to pack I realized that the Beara Way hiking loop goes from Allihies and over to Eyeres on the North West side of the penninsula. I could pack up my rucksack and hike over while Andy fishes a little stream we found and then meets me in Eyeres. This plan turned out to be a fabulous success for both of us.

Andy dropped off at the far end of Allihies.

The route weaved its way through the Copper mines we had hiked by the day previous and then up and over the mountains. The sun was out again and the views were glorious. Sheep greeted me at every turn and all the gear worked well. Getting the right boots is no small thing so I was very happy they passed muster.

I was a late meeting Andy but when I got there he was smiling and ready to tell me about the little Brown Trouts he caught in the small mountain stream. I wish I had the photo he took to show you. Here is a representation:

From there we headed to the wildly busy Kenmare before heading up Molls Gap, The Black Valley and the Gap of Dunloe. This ride is the most breathtakingly beautiful route I’ve ever been on. Last time Todd and I had our bikes and were shaking our heads at how crazy it would be to drive through these narrow passes, but here I was behind the driver’s seat. There was no way I was letting Andy leave Ireland without having front row seat to all that beauty. I will mix some internet images in with the few we took.  Moll’s Gap:

Todd has a great photo of the Black Valley and all I have to share is that high speed video! It is a magical place. I will get the photo from Todd.

We  stopped at the top of the Gap of Dunloe and hiked most of the way up Purple Mountain in order to get a proper look and then we descended the impossibly narrow and twisty road down to the outskirts of Killarney.

If you really want to know what the drive was like…

Killarney is a shocker after being out where we were. We sat in traffic for a good while before inching our way to our apartment. We still had enough time to get to a store and cook a nice meal!

Tomorrow is a fishing day for Andy and I decided to get myself sorted out better for my trip. I still had a bunch of questions about my route and where I was going to stay. 

Day 6: Sunburn in Ireland?

 Yes. Sunburn.

When we woke up here in Allihies, in one of my favorite places on earth, the sun was shining. It was sunny last time I was here with Todd. What a beautiful place. If you come to Ireland make sure you visit. Everyone talks about going to the Kerry Penninsula, but the Beara has a more remote feel and is quieter.

Today we decided to milk the day and set off at 8:30 after a huge Irish Breakfast from our BnB host Irene. (Beachview BnB) We did a shore and mountain loop that included a few copper mine ruins and then spend 2 hrs at the beach swimming and searching for rocks. We laid down in the hot sand next to a freshwater stream that poured into the ocean, resting our bodies from the morning hike. Then we jumped in! Wow. It was cold! But as is typical, the Irish were swimming in it as if it was a pool — hardy people.

After that we decided to go for another hike and drove out to the Dursey Island area. We knew we had to take advantage of the sun! It turned out to be one of the most fantastic hikes I’ve ever been on. We ended the day with more fine food and Guinness from O’Neill’s Pub. 

Day 5: Gravestone Hunting and Pint Swilling

We left Kinvarra this morning and I noticed how my mind is slowly starting to unwind. For those who haven’t read from the start, the Burren is what originally called me to make this trip. I was listening to Krista Tippets interview with the late John O’Donahue called The Inner Landscape of Beauty and was reminded of the power the “outer” landscape can have on our interior. John grew up in the Connemara area. Krista asks, “Tell me a little bit more about where you come from and what formed you. What began to form you to come to this spiritual perspective and philosophical and poetic perspective that you have now?” John responds: 

Well, I suppose I was blessed by being born into an amazing landscape in the west of Ireland. And it’s the Burren region, which is limestone. And it’s a bare limestone landscape. And I often think that the forms of the limestone are so abstract and aesthetic, and it is as if they were all laid down by some wild, surrealistic kind of deity. So soon, being a child and coming out into that, it was waiting, like a huge, wild invitation to extend your imagination. And then it’s right on the edge of the ocean, as well, so the conversation — an ancient conversation between the ocean and the stone is going on.

For me, many parts of Ireland are “like a huge, wild invitation to extend your imagination.”  Tonight we will sleep in on of those parts — the Beara Penninsula. But before we do we must go to Limerick to try and find our great-great-great grandfather Garret O'Shaughnessy's gravestone.

Limerick has a reputation for being a rough town. In fact, it’s nickname is “Stab City”. They’ve done a lot to move beyond that reputation but we were still feeling a bit wary as we headed to a rough part of the city where St. Michael’s Church sits. Years ago my mom and dad found the gravestone before they knew we were direct descendants of Garret O’Shaughnessy. The notes she gave us said to go down the narrow lane to the right of the car park. Sadly, the lane was blocked by new row houses. We walked around to the church yard on the other side, but the graveyard had been paved over for use as a locked private parking lot! Undeterred I climbed over the fence to look behind the church. No luck. 

So off we went to the Limerick Cemetery to just have a look for O’Shaughnessy gravestones amidst the 1,000s there and in case Garret’s grave was moved there. While it may seem a bit morbid to some, exploring graveyards is one of my favorite memories from my childhood. Reading gravestone inscriptions is like peeking into someone’s life. At our house in New Hampshire there was a graveyard with birthdates from the 1800s. In Limerick, there were gravestones we could read from 1700s! Some were heartbreaking. One showed a women lost 7 babies at birth in her lifetime. In the 1800s infant mortality rate was 40%! 

We did not find Garret but we did find a couple other O’Shaughnessys, including one written in Irish from the 1700s that was behind an Iron grave marker from the 1800s. Andy brought supplies to do some grave stone rubbings. 

‘

The day was marching on and we still had a three-hour trip down to Beara. But first! We can’t forget to take Andy to meet Thomas O’Shaughnessy, proprietor of the O’Shaughnessy Pub in Glin. Our Uncle Kenny first visited this pub in the 70s when he was doing family research. He collected a lot of great information from Captain John (Thomas’ father) and thought there might be a slim family connection. The O’Shaughnessy’s of Glin have no problem knowing their heritage. Thomas is the 6th generation to run the pub and descend from Sir Dermott O’Shaughnessy who was knighted by King Henry VIII.  More important that the impressive pedigree of this pub is it’s owner, Thomas. So far my sister Susie, my Mom and Dad, my husband and me, and now Andy and me have sat and shared a pint with him. What a kind man and great story teller. Here’s dad and then Andy and a few more!

Turns out Thomas and Andy had a love of portable saw mills in common!

Off we went for our final destination — Allihies. It is a twisty turn drive — challenging on any day, but today was drizzly and Andy handled the roads like a rally car racer. I did tell him to slow down a click for a bit so I could rest my breaking foot (as a passenger.). We got there in time for an amazing meal at O’Neills pub and some Sunday evening Irish music. Get ready for a wacky video. Wow. What a day!

 

Day 4: Rambling around Kinvarra

Day 4 has been a wonderful day! I left the planning to Andy today since he is bringing his Achilles heel up to full health. He chose a cool hike called Abbey Hill Loop only six miles away that turned out to be a perfect ramble with a few unexpected and delightful surprises.

First, we had to find the trailhead, and like yesterday’s hike, was not marked in any way. In Ireland, if the hike you’ve chosen is not a national waymarked trail it will most likely not have any marking. We used a combination of a screenshot of the AllTrails map with some saved Google Maps to find our way to the narrow farm lane leading to a parking spot. From there we just pointed ourselves up the Burren landscape to the top of Abbey Hill.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with this landscape it is profoundly beautiful in it’s stark and rugged beauty. Here is a description of the unique geologic phenomena. And here is a short clip of what it’s like to walk over it.

It’s mesmerizing to hike over it as the shapes of the rocks under your feet change in beautiful and often elegant ways. Here is one great example:

If the shifting rock shapes weren’t enough to carry one away than the wildflowers will. Spring Gentian, Mountain Avens, Primrose, Irish Eyebright, False Oxslip, Dark-Red Helleborine (a wild Orchid)So many varieties. My favorite is this delicate one — the Herb Robert:

With no trail to guide us, Andy and I had a lot of fun finding our way over Abbey Hill and down into the Valley, guided by the ruin of a 14th century abbey —  Corcomroe Abbey. To get there we had to climb over rock walls and through some brambles and past some really big cows. It was worth it:

From there we crossed another pasture and emerged 100 yards down from a gourmet gluten free bakery and chocolatier!! 

With a belly full we headed up the Burren on the other side of the Valley. This time we came across a large herd of feral goats!

The landscape is magical. It seeps into you over time. Andy did a great job of capturing it in this video:

 

After this magnificent ramble we headed down to the Atlantic and jumped in! Brrrr! (But not as cold as the brook at home!) 

Tomorrow we are off to Limerick to find our Great Great Great Granfather Garrett O’Shaughnessy’s gravestone.

Day 3: Doolin to The Burren and Kinvarra

 It was my turn at the wheel today as we headed out for The Burren. We said goodbye to Betty, a wonderful host at our BnB in Doolin and pointed our rental car South along the Wild Atlantic Way.  This highway has some similarities to the famous Western U.S. coastal highway, route 1, accept instead of a metal guard rail its a rock wall and instead of 12 feet, you have 10 feet or less for two cars and the occasional coach bus!

Despite some confusion we found our trail pull-out on the other side of Black Head. No signage at all, but we knew it was a lesser used access to the Blackhead Loop. We planned to do a shortened version of  the Blackhead Loop (16 miles) by heading up the Caher Valley back to the coast to cut off 4 miles. Well.. we stopped for lunch in the Caher Valley, along a stream and when our bellies were full we looked up at the beautiful trail running up the mountain and lost all sense of which direction we should go. We followed that gorgeous line and found ourselves 4 miles later with the ocean on our left — whoopsie. No regrets as we descended back down to the coast at Farone Beach, knowing we could hitch hike back to our car. Neither of us were up for the 16 miles.  

Sure enough, Igot a ride for 1 back to the car and I picked Andy up after we went for a short walk along with beautiful beach.  Off we went along the most beautiful stretch of this Wild Atlantic Way to Ballyvaughan. We stored up on groceries before our destination of Kinvarra, at the Atlantic Retreat Lodge. How lovely to make a huge dinner of veggies, rice and chicken! 

And.. I got the hang of driving and shifting on the left side quite quickly!