Sunday, May 10 started sunny but with a very cold wind blowing that was going to be with us for a few days. We left our campsite around 09.15 to start our exploration of the Ring of Kerry. This is a 170km road trip around the Kerry peninsula. We had done a little bit of it from Molls Gap to Killarney but there was still a lot to do. The tour buses do it anticlockwise so we did the same so that we didn’t have to pass them on the narrow roads.

Our first stop was the Kerry Bog Village Museum. Unfortunately, it is definitely on the bus tour route so was pretty busy but they had a big car park. It was a bit like a living museum as the cottages had all been preserved in this one hamlet. From it you could tell those who were better off than others by the size of the windows and number of rooms. Ireland had a window tax (like in the U.K.) in Georgian times so poorer families had much smaller windows or created stable doors to let light in. This is where the phrase “daylight robbery” comes from. They even had some Bog ponies, which are small ponies about the size of Shetland ponies and just as hardy!

Onto Rossbeigh Strand beach then Cahersiveen, Daniel O’Connor’s birthplace. Interesting place to wander round on a Sunday afternoon, especially the Heritage Centre that was housed in the old barracks where the Royal Irish Constabulary was founded by Robert Peel in 1836. It also had an exhibitions on Daniel O’Connor and Hugh O’Flaherty (the Vatican Pimpernel).

We thought we would then drive across to Valentia Island where the first transatlantic cable was laid in the mid 1800s so we drove to Reenard Point to catch the car ferry for the 5 minute journey. It was a steep ramp down onto the boat which we thought we would clear but we didn’t. As soon as we heard the bike carrier touch the ramp, we stopped. We then had to take the bikes off the carrier and remove the carrier from the towbar. All of this meant that we were holding up the ferry as we were half on and half off! Still, no damage done apart from a few car drivers whose departure time was delayed for a few minutes!

We drove the long way round to Portmagee as that had a road bridge over to the island. It probably added 30 minutes to the trip. Over the bridge there is the Skellig Experience Centre which tells the story of the Skellig Islands off the coast of the Kerry Peninsula. These islands were inhabited by monks over 1200 years ago and they built beehive huts. Skellig Michael was used in the Star Wars films as a Jedi retreat.

We then drove a few miles up the road to the stunning Cliffs of Kerry. We were able to stay the night right by the cliffs, tucked in as it was still windy. The area is closed to the public after 18.30 so we had the place to ourselves to watch the sunset (P4N# 674660). Magical.

The next day, Monday May 11, it started out pretty wet and windy but we wanted to complete the Skellig Road. It’s a subset of the Ring of Kelly as it’s on very narrow roads that buses can’t get down. First stop was at the top of the cliffs at Coomanaspig where we were almost blown off it was so windy. Then onto St Finian’s Bay with a lovely beach before having a break at The Skellig Chocolate Factory. Next was Ballinskellig Bay with its atmospheric abandoned fort before dropping down into Waterville, whose claim to fame is that Charlie Chaplin used to holiday there a lot!

We then drove back to Portmagee as we had booked a boat trip around Puffin Island for 15.30. The four of us had the boat to ourselves as we witnessed hundreds of puffins dive bombing the water. It was really difficult to get close enough to get any decent photos but Maria managed to with her fancy camera.

On our return we ate at The Fisherman’s Bar and Restaurant where we shared a sumptuous seafood platter. We were able to stay in the town car park as it was still early in the season (P4N#86072).

Miles since last blog: 97

Miles this trip: 940