KILLARNEY

=SCHULL TO KILLARNEY - The RING of KERRY - The DINGLE PENINSULAR= We farewelled our hosts Tim and Ann and set off for our next port of call – Killarney. Its easy 2 hour drive from Schull to Killarney but, with the must-see spots to stop at, it took us about 4. It led us through some beautiful hilly countryside and the lovely town of Kenmore. Kilmare is famous for its traditional lace and it gourmet restaurants – it’s a very popular tourist place. It was busy on the Sunday we passed through but we could only imagine what it must be like in July and August. It also has the largest stone circle in southern Ireland dating from 2000BC. It is formed from 15 stones which seem to alternate between green and brown stone. It is around 17m in diameter. In the centre there is a boulder burial under a very large stone that has a single cup mark on the top. The rest of the drive was over and around Macgillicuddy’s Reeks – a bare stony mountain range. We picked up a hitchhiker on the way over – a farmer type aged around 50, who, although he spoke English, was almost incomprehensible to our ears – we did get his “thank you and God bless” as he left us (at least that’s what we think he said). The scenery was quite breathtaking (this road forms part of the Ring of Kerry drive) with rugged hills, large rock outcrops, deep gorges filled with heather and views of the Killarney Lakes far below. Occasionally the road would slip through a tunnel hewn from the rough rock. There were several of these although none were of any great length. The RING of KERRY
 * [[image:TimAnne.jpg caption="Tim and Ann outside their house"]] || [[image:Ring.jpg caption="Typical countryside on the way"]] ||
 * [[image:Ring3.jpg caption="Stone Circle at Kenmare"]] || [[image:Ring2.jpg caption="The circle is situated in the centre of the town making it very accessible."]] ||
 * [[image:Ring4.jpg caption="Part of the Killarney Lakes"]] || [[image:Ring1.jpg caption="Rock tunnel"]] ||