Killarney Day 3

From Killarney to Kenmare and Back

View Kerry in a larger map

So, this was our longest ride and we covered about 35 miles, but it was also one of our best days, I would say (though the boat ride day with the Gap of Dunloe was pretty incredible). You can see basically where we went on the map above, but briefly, we headed out from Killarney with the intention of taking the "Old Kenmare Road" part of the way to Kenmare before meeting up with the Kerry Way trail and riding through a valley down to the coastal town of Kenmare to watch the U.S./Slovenia World Cup game. Several people had told us that this would be an excellent bike ride and full of spectacular views. However, when we reached the Old Kenmare Road early in the day we found a rather obvious sign warning us that bicycles were not allowed on this road and so, we had to take the main road to where it met the Kerry Way. This meant dealing with more traffic, but we also got to ride by an old castle, an old church and a very pretty creek as we hugged the three lakes in Killarney Park on our way. I'll let the pictures below do the rest of the talking.

This was the old church which stood at our turn off of the main road and on to the Kerry Way. It was a bit of a climb up to this point and Laura felt particularly good to be at the top and off of the busier road. However, the celebration may have been a bit early as there was still plenty of uphill to go.

Another view of the church with the creek that runs past in the foreground.

This is a bit closer to the top of our ride. You can see the gap in the hills behind us which was the highest point on the way to Kenmare. There was absolutely no one on this trail except for a bunch of sheep, as the video below will show.

So this is our first attempt at uploading a video. Someone should let us know if it worked. Enjoy!

Looking back the way we had come, towards Killarney. We were happy to be at the top, and the sheep were happy to see us go. We pondered the idea of hiking up one of the hills at the top (you can see part of one better in the picture below), but decided against that, and for lunch, beer and the match.

This is the view of our trail as we came down into the area of Kenmare. As you can see, it wasn't much of a path for bikes, but we did our best and used our brakes often.

Another view coming down into Kenmare. You may just be able to see the ocean and the bay in the background off to the right which Kenmare sits on.

(And now Laura takes over the authorship of this post...)

Yet another look at the road toward Kenmare. We decided we'd wished we had just camped along the way, as one of this meadows would have made the ideal campsite. We hadn't seen another person for hours.

In Kenmare, we were too hungry and distracted to take photographs. It's an adorable town, and we found a fantastic little vegetarian cafe which served heaping plates of several varieties of salads as well as main dishes like butternut squash stuffed with bleu-cheese and walnuts, and red-onion Gorgonzola cheese quiche. YUM. We justified eating ridiculous portions with the 20-some miles we had just ridden. We justified topping off our meal with cheesecake...somehow. Anyway, then we asked around for the best pub to watch the game, and headed down high street for a pint of Murphy's Irish Stout. No justification needed, there. (By-the-by, it was a great game!)

Then, with very full bellies we ventured on, taking a smaller road as far as we could before joining up with the main highway. We enjoyed a leisurely ride for a while, and immediately after joining the main road began the climb we had to tackle to complete the loop. The picture above is at the point on the way up where my legs gave out, and looks back south, toward Kenmare.

This is at the tippy top of our ride back to Killarney, a spot called Moll's Gap, which is marked on the map by the westerly green arrow. I was overjoyed at this juncture, as I knew it would be downhill most of the rest of the way. Derek was overjoyed that I had finally stopped whining!

On our way down, we bumped into this spot, called "Ladies' View" apparently because it's a view fit for Queen Victoria. So, you're looking East, toward the lakes and mountains which lie in the boundaries of Killarney National Park.

Here we are, in front of the Ladies' View, looking North. I was ready to be finished, but didn't want the day to end. And, oh...ready for more food already (and a pint), and sleep. This truly was an amazing day. I was glad we had saved it for our last day of riding.

We spent the next morning returning our bikes, eating a leisurely Irish breakfast, and strolling about the town before heading home to London. When we arrived home, we decided it was time to start hunting for some "new" bikes of our own...