County Kerry
Killarney is a very pretty town, enough for me to spend two nights there after an awful start. I arrived after dark in torrential rain and tried to find the hostel I'd booked which was a bit out of town. Drenched and lost on dark busy roads I gave up and was pleasantly surprised to find myself at the Neptune hostel, large but with a nice atmosphere and free internet (only one terminal though). I'm not sure what it is that makes Killarney itself so pretty, a nice mix of trees and buildings I suppose. The Cathedral doesn't look anything special from the outside but from the inside you can see that it was built using the traditional style of stonework so it has a lovely rough and worn look but still with the smooth beautiful quality of a Cathedral. I was only disappointed not to get a better look because on both occasions I visited it was in use.
The beauty of nearby Killarney National Park is immediately obvious. Ross Castle and Muckross House both have outstanding grounds situated on Lough Leane. The whole area has this wonderful fairy type setting with the lake surrounded by picturesque mountains. It's not an easy title to award but on reflection I think this would have to take the cake for the most beautiful spot I saw in Ireland. I didn't know this at the time though as I still had the Ring of Kerry ahead of me the next day.
The first part of the Ring of Kerry is riding up into the mountains overlooking Lough Leane, a very long steep climb up to Molls Gap but the views looking back are fantastic, several tiered loughs running down the valley into the national park at the bottom. Then there is an even longer descent down the other side to the sea. At about this point the sun came out and I enjoyed lunch on the rocks by the sea and even a snooze on a bed of long thick grass. From there the sun stayed out all afternoon without a cloud in sight, and hardly a breath of wind either - a very rare day in the south west of Ireland. So one of Ireland's best bits of coast was at it's absolute best making a great ride for me. The next day though Ireland or more precisely - the Atlantic ocean) showed just how changeable it can be. I woke to the sounds of a strong gale outside and looked out on a completely overcast day. Luckily the wind was behind me, so I set off thinking all was okay really. About an hour in it started to rain, real heavy. At first it looked like it might pass so I stopped under a tree and had something to eat while I waited, but all it did was set right in, so I had no choice but to ride on. I arrived at Cahersiveen wet, cold and hungry. I ate my lunch huddled in the porch of a disused building and then straight away had a second lunch (a hot pie) in the foyer of the supermarket where I bought it. I wasn't quite up to riding on in these conditions yet so I stopped in the library to use the internet for little while before riding on. From there though I rode the remaining 40kms to Killorglin full pelt and without a single stop! The longest I've ever ridden non-stop. I'd like to say that such a flow of adrenalin was inspired by the beauty of the mountains, (and on a nice day there's a chance they might be capable of such a thing) but on that day adrenalin flowed simply as a means of survival. I was wet through and the cold wind was blowing so hard that to stop was freezing. Plus it was blowing behind me meaning that I was going at a great pace not wanting to stop and just hoping I could ride fast enough to regain the feeling in my feet. This did not happen however I until reached the lovely farm house hostel at Killorglin and its hot shower. The day was not without reward though. The hostel owner my not have been the friendliest person but she was a great cook and left out some homemade cream cake and apple pie! I can only hope she's one of those cooks who takes it as a compliment when hungry cyclists devour huge amounts of their cooking ;-)
The next day I set off around the next ring 'of Dingle'. The same wind was against me today although thankfully not as strong, otherwise I wouldn't have made it to Dingle. However it did make cycling around the very end of the peninsular that day (and indeed on this trip given the tight schedule I was on,) unrealistic - so I hitch-hiked it instead. I got two short lifts with locals, then was picked up by three guys form north-Queensland who were doing the loop to have a look just like me. This was perfect cause it meant we stopped at all the good viewing points - and there were plenty of them - it's a very scenic coastline. By the time we got round I realised that if it hadn't been for them taking me the whole way I probably would've had a very late night getting back - them's the breaks I guess. Back at the hostel I played cards with a group of Belgian cyclists who then shared their pie and cream with me making it free pie two nights in a row!
That left my final long distance ride in Ireland from Dingle to Tralee (about 50km) but my last day on the bike was not going to be a pretty one. The wind was blowing the hardest I'd seen yet, luckily though it would again be a tail wind. To add to that the first part of my ride was over the Conner Pass, which the Belgian's had ridden the day before and said it was tough on a good day and that I was crazy to attempt it in these conditions. But as I said, the wind was behind me, why should that stop me. Well the pass was long and steep, it didn't feel much like the wind was pushing me up but it must have been. Halfway up the rain set in again and the fog came down, so I never saw how far it was to the top, in fact for most of the climb I couldn't see more than 20 meters in front of me, just enough to avoid on coming cars on the narrow road. If I had been able to see though, I might have turned back, or at least taken several rests more than the brief one I did take. Not long after that though, the top just appeared from nowhere and I started going down With the gale force wind still behind me and now on a steep downhill boy did I go down fast! - too fast. Everything was now drenched in the rain so I had my brakes on full but was still going full pelt. It was all I could do to stay on the road as it wound it's way down. I didn't like to think what might have happened if I'd met oncoming traffic at that point and it certainly didn't help me to relax that the fog was so thick I couldn't see off the side of the road. For all I knew it could have been a 300ft cliff! Then, as if that wasn't disturbing enough, the wind completely changed directions and blew into my face. From going full pelt, I stopped instantly, and it dawned on me that I was completely at the mercy of the elements. Luckily though it quickly turned back and I careered down the remaining 10 minutes of hill without coming a cropper. The wind is certainly a fickle friend, very fickle indeed. The rest of the ride though was mostly uneventful, the wind remained behind me, the rain stopped and it cleared long enough for me to get a bit of a view of the mountains, though the best bits had been hidden in fog. What was miserable though was sitting on a bus (the train was just too expensive) to Cork for couple of hours in cold wet clothes. I'd wrung out my socks at the station and did change my shirt and socks while sitting on the bus but still felt cold and damp, a hot shower fixes everything though.
The beauty of nearby Killarney National Park is immediately obvious. Ross Castle and Muckross House both have outstanding grounds situated on Lough Leane. The whole area has this wonderful fairy type setting with the lake surrounded by picturesque mountains. It's not an easy title to award but on reflection I think this would have to take the cake for the most beautiful spot I saw in Ireland. I didn't know this at the time though as I still had the Ring of Kerry ahead of me the next day.
The first part of the Ring of Kerry is riding up into the mountains overlooking Lough Leane, a very long steep climb up to Molls Gap but the views looking back are fantastic, several tiered loughs running down the valley into the national park at the bottom. Then there is an even longer descent down the other side to the sea. At about this point the sun came out and I enjoyed lunch on the rocks by the sea and even a snooze on a bed of long thick grass. From there the sun stayed out all afternoon without a cloud in sight, and hardly a breath of wind either - a very rare day in the south west of Ireland. So one of Ireland's best bits of coast was at it's absolute best making a great ride for me. The next day though Ireland or more precisely - the Atlantic ocean) showed just how changeable it can be. I woke to the sounds of a strong gale outside and looked out on a completely overcast day. Luckily the wind was behind me, so I set off thinking all was okay really. About an hour in it started to rain, real heavy. At first it looked like it might pass so I stopped under a tree and had something to eat while I waited, but all it did was set right in, so I had no choice but to ride on. I arrived at Cahersiveen wet, cold and hungry. I ate my lunch huddled in the porch of a disused building and then straight away had a second lunch (a hot pie) in the foyer of the supermarket where I bought it. I wasn't quite up to riding on in these conditions yet so I stopped in the library to use the internet for little while before riding on. From there though I rode the remaining 40kms to Killorglin full pelt and without a single stop! The longest I've ever ridden non-stop. I'd like to say that such a flow of adrenalin was inspired by the beauty of the mountains, (and on a nice day there's a chance they might be capable of such a thing) but on that day adrenalin flowed simply as a means of survival. I was wet through and the cold wind was blowing so hard that to stop was freezing. Plus it was blowing behind me meaning that I was going at a great pace not wanting to stop and just hoping I could ride fast enough to regain the feeling in my feet. This did not happen however I until reached the lovely farm house hostel at Killorglin and its hot shower. The day was not without reward though. The hostel owner my not have been the friendliest person but she was a great cook and left out some homemade cream cake and apple pie! I can only hope she's one of those cooks who takes it as a compliment when hungry cyclists devour huge amounts of their cooking ;-)
The next day I set off around the next ring 'of Dingle'. The same wind was against me today although thankfully not as strong, otherwise I wouldn't have made it to Dingle. However it did make cycling around the very end of the peninsular that day (and indeed on this trip given the tight schedule I was on,) unrealistic - so I hitch-hiked it instead. I got two short lifts with locals, then was picked up by three guys form north-Queensland who were doing the loop to have a look just like me. This was perfect cause it meant we stopped at all the good viewing points - and there were plenty of them - it's a very scenic coastline. By the time we got round I realised that if it hadn't been for them taking me the whole way I probably would've had a very late night getting back - them's the breaks I guess. Back at the hostel I played cards with a group of Belgian cyclists who then shared their pie and cream with me making it free pie two nights in a row!
That left my final long distance ride in Ireland from Dingle to Tralee (about 50km) but my last day on the bike was not going to be a pretty one. The wind was blowing the hardest I'd seen yet, luckily though it would again be a tail wind. To add to that the first part of my ride was over the Conner Pass, which the Belgian's had ridden the day before and said it was tough on a good day and that I was crazy to attempt it in these conditions. But as I said, the wind was behind me, why should that stop me. Well the pass was long and steep, it didn't feel much like the wind was pushing me up but it must have been. Halfway up the rain set in again and the fog came down, so I never saw how far it was to the top, in fact for most of the climb I couldn't see more than 20 meters in front of me, just enough to avoid on coming cars on the narrow road. If I had been able to see though, I might have turned back, or at least taken several rests more than the brief one I did take. Not long after that though, the top just appeared from nowhere and I started going down With the gale force wind still behind me and now on a steep downhill boy did I go down fast! - too fast. Everything was now drenched in the rain so I had my brakes on full but was still going full pelt. It was all I could do to stay on the road as it wound it's way down. I didn't like to think what might have happened if I'd met oncoming traffic at that point and it certainly didn't help me to relax that the fog was so thick I couldn't see off the side of the road. For all I knew it could have been a 300ft cliff! Then, as if that wasn't disturbing enough, the wind completely changed directions and blew into my face. From going full pelt, I stopped instantly, and it dawned on me that I was completely at the mercy of the elements. Luckily though it quickly turned back and I careered down the remaining 10 minutes of hill without coming a cropper. The wind is certainly a fickle friend, very fickle indeed. The rest of the ride though was mostly uneventful, the wind remained behind me, the rain stopped and it cleared long enough for me to get a bit of a view of the mountains, though the best bits had been hidden in fog. What was miserable though was sitting on a bus (the train was just too expensive) to Cork for couple of hours in cold wet clothes. I'd wrung out my socks at the station and did change my shirt and socks while sitting on the bus but still felt cold and damp, a hot shower fixes everything though.
posted by James Tonson | 9:09 pm
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