Ring of Kerry on a BMW motorcycle

Today we rode the iconic Ring of Kerry, a 120 mile loop around the Iveragh Peninsula in southwestern Ireland. Yesterday we enjoyed bright blue skies, but that type of weather doesn't last for long in Ireland and today we were thrilled that we didn't need raingear as we rode under cloudy skies.

N71, N70, and N72 are the 2-lane paved, mostly narrow and sometimes really narrow roads that comprise the Ring of Kerry. We road counterclockwise starting and ending in Killarney, with views of the mountains on one side and often the Atlantic Ocean to our left.

Our first stop was the Torc Waterfall in the Killarney National Forest. The waterfall itself is beautiful, but what really struck us were the moss covered trees. We expected a leprechaun to jump out and start dancing around us at any minute.

Soon we were climbing through Moll's Gap, named for Moll Kissane who ran a small pub, or shebeen, during construction of the road in the 1820's. She was popular for selling home-brewed whiskey to the road workers, and the Gap was named in her honor.

We rode this way yesterday in the opposite direction on our way from Kinsale to Killarney, and it was fun to see sheep once again in the middle of the road and on the hillsides.

We continued on into Kenmare, turning onto the N70 and heading west along Kenmare Bay past Sneem where we stopped a few times to let the views of the coast and mountains on the other side of the Bay sink in.

Everything I read said that the section of the Ring between Caherdaniel and Waterville is considered the most beautiful, and we have to agree. We looked out over the beaches and the Atlantic Ocean, imagining life here centuries ago.

After Waterville, the road cuts across the peninsula. Instead of mountains and ocean views, I was mesmerized by the brilliantly colored bushes and flowers that lined the road.

We were warned about heavy tourist traffic, and especially tour buses, but mostly had the road to ourselves except for one close encounter.

We stopped in Glenbeigh, on the northern side of the Iveragh Peninsula, for lunch at Rumour's Bistro where we enjoyed local mussels in white wine sauce that tasted like they had just been plucked from the sea. The next time you're on the Ring of Kerry, make this your lunch AND dinner stop - the food is that amazing.

We hit the worst traffic of the day as we rode into Killorglin, where the annual Puck Fair was taking place. Legend has it that the fair started in the early 1600's, although many people believe it's far older. Puck is actually a wild goat, who is crowned King Puck by a local school girl who is the Queen of Puck. We've been to numerous street fairs in different parts of the world, and this one easily was the largest we've seen, with people parking over 1 mile away to walk to the festivities. We didn't see this year's King Puck, but we did see his statue as we rode past.

We enjoyed the shorter yet absolutely beautiful ride today, yet it's bittersweet because tomorrow is our last day on our Ireland motorcycle tour. We walked around busy downtown Killarney, listening to street musicians and savoring our last evening in County Kerry.

The Wild Atlantic Way by motorcycle: Look right, stay left, watch out for the bends, mind the sheep and mountain goats, and don't forget about the cattle crossing!

When we picked up the BMW from Celtic Rider, Paul reminded everyone to always "look right and stay left" as we learned to ride on the 'opposite' side of the road. Today Mike kept that in mind, as he also dealt with sweepers and 'bends', or as we would call them 'twisties' riding up, over, and through mountain ranges in southwestern Ireland on the Wild Atlantic Way that winds up the southwestern coast of Ireland.

Wayne and Colleen on the Healy Mountain Pass

Then there were the sheep - hundreds of sheep on the hillsides, high up the sheer rock walls of the mountains, and often standing in the middle of the road or voraciously eating leaves.

At one point earlier in the day, all traffic came to a halt as a family herded their cows across the narrow lane. Toward the end of our ride, a black mountain goat calmly sauntered across the road, again stopping traffic in both directions. He lives there, we're visitors, and he's obviously in charge.

Our day started with brilliant blue skies and sunshine, a comparative rarity in cloudy and rainy Ireland. We waved good-bye to Grianne, our host at the Desmond House in Kinsale after enjoying a stupendous breakfast prepared by herself and her husband, Paddy. 

Our first stop was Charles Fort, just outside Kinsale. Completed in 1682, it was built on the site of an earlier fort. The star-shaped fort is designed to repel cannon attack, and it occupies a high point on the harbor to defend the town from the sea.

Our route today took us on normal-size 2-lane highways, narrow 2-lane roadways, even more narrow side roads, and every now and then a lane with grass growing down the middle - my very favorite Irish road.

Along the route we stopped at the Dromberg Stone Circle, a circle of 7 standing stones with an urn burial in the center, established between 153 and 127 AD.

We stopped in Glandore, a small town in County Cork on the ocean, where we sat outside to enjoy our lunch and watched children in the sailing school take an ice cream break.

After lunch we rode through Baltimore, a harbor town raided by pirates in 1631 who sold the townspeople into slavery. The town plays up this history in a variety of ways, including a 'pirate' climbing the church wall.

We kept heading north into the Beara Peninsula, one of 5 peninsulas in this part of Ireland. We rode on narrow lanes with hedgerows so close to the side of the road that at times my knees were brushing the bushes on my left.

Then it was up and over the Healy Pass through the Caha Mountains, where we first encountered the sheep.

We continued on N71 into Kenmare, the start of the Ring of Kerry on the Iveragh Peninsula. N71 on this stretch goes through Moll's Gap with views of Ireland's highest mountain range, the Macgillycuddy's Reeks, the Black Valley, and lakes around Killarney, our stop for the next 2 nights.

We rode 150 miles over 7 hours through some of the most beautiful country and fun motorcycle roads we've ever been on. Tomorrow we complete the Ring of Kerry, riding along the Atlantic coast.