Ireland Day 5 - Ring of Kerry

Meh.

Today was a mixed bag. The weather in the far south was too choppy for whale watching, and Nic informed us that, in fact, they wouldn't be going out until Thursday. We said we would stay another night in Baltimore if need be, but this would mean giving up two nights for the chance at seeing some early season whales. It was sad to leave such a wonderful little town, but we made the decision that it wasn't meant to be.

So we packed and started the drive north to Kenmare to experience the "Ring of Kerry." Along the way we climbed some mountains and passed through tunnels and near the peak stopped at a historic farm to spend a few minutes with the donkeys, sheep, foul and such. Irish animals are quite friendly too!

Now as for the 'ring' itself. Not so impressive to be honest! The weather was partly to blame of course, as there was a constant fog off the ocean that blanketed most of the vistas. In the breaks we could get views of the coast and some cliffs but all-in-all I feel it wasn't all its cracked up to be. I think the winding roads through the fog actually made it a more memorable experience. We weren't in bad spirits, however, as many tourists we spoke to said the ring was largely a tourist trap, and that true beauty awaits further North in the Dingle peninsula where busses don't often tread. Spoilers; they were right!

We also found the towns at the edge of the ring to be dull and not very hospitable. "Lets check the next town..." "Okay one more town..." etc, trying to find a place to sleep. In the end, we booted it to Killarney before nightfall. All the books say to allocate two days to the ring, but we managed it in a half.

Killarney is a very beautiful city, though. The streets are clean and busy through the night, even on a Tuesday. We learned that checking in late you can get a hotel suite with breakfast for less than a B&B, and to save a few extra euro you can get Chinese take-out, a few cans from the off-licence shop, and watch a movie in bed and still have a wonderful night. Killarney, though, is a money town. The ride in is flanked by golf resorts, the restaurants are pricey, and the clientele is mainly retiree 'elite' from France and Germany. Lovely to see, but not really our style.

I might have painted a poor picture but thats not entirely accurate. We had a lot of laughs and fun, and there were great sights. As we've often said, "If we stop and take a photo of EVERY view and EVERY castle we'll never get anywhere..." and we have lots of places yet to see!