In the morning we realized we had missed a couple things we wanted to see. Looking at the weather patterns we saw a couple days of bad weather that was going to cover the island. So we backtracked or same basic route to the coast to Airbnb we had found. The cost for lodging in Ireland had increased significantly since the last time we were here. And this looked like a deal. Needless to say you get what you pay for and there’s plenty of false advertising out there. I can’t go in too much detail as I made a deal between the owners and Airbnb that I would not publicize how bad this was. In return, Airbnb and that all my money was refunded. But I will tell the basics.
I had found a beautiful camper that was on a hill overlooking the ocean with access to the main house. The road getting to it was through a field and when we arrived we found a mess. The place had basically been destroyed in a storm. A chemical toilet was set up outside in the field. There was no gas for cooking or heat, no inside water and no other working inside toilet and no lockable door. The weather had already turned to shit by the time we arrived and everything else in the area was basically several hundred dollars per night, way out of our budget. We had some food with us and the road going in basically was flooded. We stayed three days later and contacted the owner and Airbnb since we had no internet out there. I won’t tell the name of the place, but the owner and Airbnb held up on their side of the bargain.
When the weather cleared shop back up towards Kenmare. Taking Back roads became a crossed a really cool car museum, Kilgarvan Motor-Museum located here, owned by John Mitchell, which happened to be closed but we saw several cars driving in the area. In town I found a small shop selling motor oil and did an oil change on my VStrom 650.
Leaving Kenmare in the morning we took a small ferry across scenic Kenmare Bay. The peninsulas that we had just been riding around are called Mizen, Sheep’s Head and Beara, riding south to north. After the ferry we would be on a New Peninsula to the north, Ring of Kerry and the Killarney National Park. Here’s a good link for exploring the area, and this one also.
We continued on the WAW, but avoided the magnificent Cliffs of Mohr. We had spent time there are on our last trip and chose to ride the lesser known areas. Riding a clockwise route we ended up in Killarney. We found a great campground, wonderfully located, on the edge of town, the Killarney Flesk Caravan and Camping Park. We spent the next day riding a loop through the Killarney National Park which included the scenic Ballaghbeama Gap and Ballaghisheen Pass and the Gap of Dunloe.
The entire day was spent riding on single lane asphalt with so many views I thought I would break my neck. As we were headed back towards Killarney the famous Gap of Dunloe turned off to the right. There is a series of three lakes that this road passes. Between the first and second lake, Black Lake, is the Wishing Bridge. This bridge is a famous spot where visitors can make a wish and toss a coin into the river. It’s a must visit for those seeking a bit of Irish folklore and tradition. Cars park all along the narrow road going towards the bridge where they take a cart and donkey ride up and over the bridge for a picture, then down along the lakes. As a motorcyclist, you understand what this means. Trying to stay out of the way of carts while avoiding donkey shit all over the road. More than once we were slipping and sliding along the road with donkey shit spraying off the wheels and onto the bike and our boots.
Next morning we rode out of Killarney and headed north to the top peninsula, Dingle. The first night we headed towards Dingletown and camped at the Rainbow Hostel. Walking into town and getting a good look at everything, we stopped at O’Flaherty’s Bar. Ordering a Guinness, we talked to some of the patrons, including the owner. Later that night we took the bike into town and parked in front of Dingle Pub. As we parked, we noticed a large crowd of drunk Americans there, the first we had really come across. They saw the bike and the excitement and chatter started. Come to find out, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish / Navy American football game was happening becoming weekend in Dublin. Some 40,000 Americans had made their way across the pond to witness this almost religious event. We sat outside and had a Guinness and ate some fish and chips while listening to the music inside. It was so crowded inside you couldn’t move. But we actually had a really good time.
I’ll finish Ireland on an upcoming post. Stay tuned for the crazy border crossing.
Cheers,
2WANDRRs
2WANDRRs 
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