Scottish Tour Guide's Blog

Today our focus was on the famous Ring of Kerry which we undertook on an anti-clockwise basis starting and ending at Killarney.

First stop was Ballymalis Castle, a fascinating ruined Tower House then to. Killorgin, a pretty village with its famous Puck Fair in progress. Next to Glenbeigh and the Kerry Bog Village which comprises reconstructed cottages from the 1800s.

On next to Cahersiveen and then Sneem with its brightly coloured cottages (similar to Tobermory in Scotland).

Then to Molls Gap for refreshments and more photos. From a scenic perpective the tour improved from hereon.

Next we drove down stopping at the stunning Torc Waterfall. Here we connected with an Irish horse drawn jaunty car (see pic) and using this as transport visited the impressive stately home (now a museum) named Muckross House which is set in magnificent grounds and dates from 1843.

The road conditions for this tour are sub optimal. However, the roadside was covered in colourful flowers including hydrangeas and fuscias. I picked my first blackberry of the season at one of the many photo stops.

It was not possible to ignore the large number of properties for sale in the region, no doubt a function of the credit crunch which has hit Ireland hard. However, asking prices seem way too high.

Overall, another good day. Tonight we are staying at a farm near Killarney.

Off to Cork tomorrow!
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Today, we were hampered by light but persistent rain. This inhibited visibility and photo opps but otherwise the tour proceeded on schedule.

We departed some superb lodgings near Westport and drove to see the nearby religious site on which sits the Aghagower Tower which to my mind has similarities with the Abernethy Tower in central Scotland. The Aghagower site is very historic and it is stated that St. Patrick was there in there in the 5th century AD.

Next we drove on to Clifden driving past the Aasleagh Falls en route which provided a good photo opp.

Clifden proved a busy and pleasant little town.

Next we drove to Galway. This was extremely busy and heavily congested with car traffic.Parking was too difficult so we found a nearby country hotel for lunch.

Finally we departed for Limerick where we safely arrived after 8.00pm

Today we covered a large distance, mainly in rainy conditions. Most of the terrain was flat and very green. A particular feature is the large number of properties for sale, evidently forced sales following collapse of the property market and most of the banks.

Tomorrow we tour the famous Ring of Kerry.

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Today, we had to purchase a new GPS to cover all of Ireland. Once properly equipped we departed our lodgings at Londonderry and had a quick visit to the city including the medieval wall and the famous ‘Free Derry’ slogan dating from time of the Troubles.

Next we moved down to the small town of Letterkenny to cash travellers cheques then to Donegal, Bundoran and Sligo. En route we encountered some stunning seaside scenery,saw a raptor or two, picked some wild mushrooms (for tomorrow’s breakfast) and took lots of pics. We took a diversion to see Glencar Lake and Waterfall which proved well worthwhile with good photo opps. At Sligo we visted the 13th century Abbey which although a ruin retains most of its original features (see image with this post).

After departing Sligo we drove to our lodgings at Westport, a charming and very busy small town. Our lodgings are out of town set on a high elevation with superb views of the Atlantic coast. En route we encountered an Irish traffic jam in form of a herd cows being driven along a country lane thus providing amother photo opp.

Another great day. Watch this space for tomorrow’s adventure!
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