Thursday, October 8
Today was the day to do a lot of driving on the Ring of Kerry. We started after breakfast and first stop was to see Ross Castle. We didn’t pay to go in but you can park for free and walk in and around to view it and the lake. The story is that this was the last place in Munster to hold out against Cromwell. Its defenders, then led by Lord Muskerry, took confidence from a prophecy holding that the castle could only be taken by a ship. Knowing of the prophecy, the Cromwellian commander, General Ludlow, launched a large boat on the lake. When the defenders saw it, this hastened the surrender – and the prophecy was fulfilled.
It was then a very short drive and a 5 min walk up to see a terrific, 20-meter waterfall. It cascaded on a series of outcrops and was part of a very mossy damp forest.
We continued on the loop in the clockwise direction, as instructed, to avoid getting stuck behind a tour bus. Buses are required to go in a counter-clockwise direction so this means you can pull over to let them by rather than not being able to get around them.
We stopped at a viewpoint, known as Ladies View. The café there was closed and, as we were climbing in elevation, the mist/fog was getting thicker. We could see the lakes below but it was not a clear and sunny picture.
By the time we got higher up, to Moll’s Gap, we couldn’t see a thing. We didn’t stop.
Much of the rest of the drive was in a combination of mist, rain, and fog. We drove through Sneem where each house was painted a pretty color. Given most houses seem to be a white stucco, this was fun to see.
We did see some sizeable beaches at Derrynane and Rossbeigh.
It was back to the castle for another night. It is a treat to drive back into a castle driveway and feel you know the place. We had fun chatting with the receptionist and wandering around the castle some before having another delicious, though not so rich, dinner.
