Exploring Ireland: County Kerry (part 2)

My Recommendations:

Must Do's ...

• Drive through the countryside & backroads
• Park the car on the side of the road and go sit in a field of the greenest grass you've ever seen!  
• Inch Beach
• Dingle

What You Can Skip ...

•  Not a thing!

continuing from Killarney to Dingle…

Driving from Killarney out to the Dingle Peninsula was one of my most spectacular drives in Ireland!  Fields of the greenest grass you've ever seen sway in the breeze on the side of the steep rolling hills.  The road twists and turns.  It was a lovely day with a perfectly blue sky and bright sunshine.  Every now and then a house appeared from nowhere always in a bright color of ... you name it.  Red.  Green.  Yellow.  The colors were so bright and vivid that they reminded me of Mexico.

I pulled to the side of the road to take these photos as the view was so breathtaking.  Many times, throughout my travels, I'm overwhelmed with a feeling or emotion that a specific view evokes.  At those times, I always take a photo of that exact view so that I can remember how I felt when I saw it.  And whenever I look at the photo, I'm transported back to that moment.  This was one such moment ...

The countryside was so quintessential Ireland. The side of the road dropped to a field where cattle were grazing.  I squatted down and leaned forward so I could capture a shot with the cattle in it when ... AGH! ... I suddenly screamed and fell backward!  I hadn't seen the cow that was just below me, nor had she seen me, until she raised her head and our faces were 8 inches apart!  We stared at each other for a second, I laughed and she stood as I stroked her face.

It is obvious why County Kerry is known as the most beautiful of all of the Irish counties.

You've probably heard of 'The Dingle Way.'  The Dingle Way refers to the Dingle Peninsula.  While in Dublin, several of the local Irishmen advised me, due to my short stay in Ireland, to skip the Ring of Kerry and instead 'go The Dingle Way.'  At the base of the Peninsula are the peaks of the Slieve Mish mountain range.  Baurtregaum is its highest summit reaching to 2800 feet (850 metres).  I longed to climb, but decided to save that for a return trip to Ireland.

Rounding a bend in the road, my jaw dropped open.  The view before me was ... indescribable.  I'd stumbled upon Inch Beach.

Inch is a fairly small community that sets around Inch Beach.  There's a wonderful view of the Atlantic Ocean and McGillycuddy Reeks (the highest mountain range in Ireland).  The beach is four miles long and stretches into Dingle Bay.  

Anyone who knows me is aware that I cannot pass a beach without, at least, getting my feet ankle deep into the water.  Beaches relax my body and re-balance my mind.  They are very spiritual for me.  I pulled into the large parking lot and turned off the engine of my car.  Being a chilly day with moments of sprinkling rain, I grabbed my rain/hiking jacket from the trunk and walked towards the beach.  

The beach was, for the most part, empty.  There were a few tourists sitting at the picnic tables just outside of the rough cafe / surf shop that sat on a small hill overlooking the water.  I could see a surf truck parked on the beach and one lone surfer in the water.  I hoped his wet suit was warm enough for the very cold water on this chilly day.  I, myself, prefer warm water diving.  The water was so cold that as soon as the wave pushed it over my feet ... that was enough for me!  

I spent about 45 minutes slowly strolling the beach, absorbing the mountains in the background, listening to the waves, and allowing my mind to do what it does best at the beach ... contemplate life.  Thinking back and thinking present and landing on the forward.  I thought back on the past five months of working entirely too many hours for anyone and promised I would not sacrifice that much of my life for business again.  Not the first time I've promised this to myself, but sometimes we have to relearn life lessons.  The future was bright.

Dingle, Ireland ...  
To the north and south of the Slieve Mish mountains are roads that provide fantastic marine and mountain views.  Especially as you go through Conor Pass on the way to the town of Dingle.  Dingle is a fishing village at the foot of Ballysitteragh beside what appears to be an enclosed harbor.  It had been the site of a Celtic fort.  During the Middle Ages, it was a western port trading with the Spanish. Throughout my journey, the locals had told me to see Fungi, the dolphin who lives in the Dingle harbor and has become a 'must see' on the tourist list, as he prefers humans to other dolphins.  He must have been napping during my visit.

Dingle seems to also be a fun destination town for the Irish for summer surfing and romantic getaways.  It truly is adorable.

Having skipped it, I can't speak to the famous Ring of Kerry but the Dingle Peninsula is so beautiful that I could not believe any other place could be more so.  I was glad I heeded the Irishmen's advice.

Next up:  From County Kerry to County Clare ...