Aug 03, 2012

Snippets / Memories / Photos of the day:



Ross Castle, Killarney.

• Waking to sunny skies even though there was some light rain.
• Forecasts of thunderstorms and flash flooding where we were heading.
• A beautifully manicured town.



Cantilever stairs to the guard’s tower at Ross Castle. These are very clever, with rock ¾’s of the stair width set in the wall so there is nothing needed underneath to support it.

• Dramatic leaden sky descending upon us as we viewed the castle.
• Beautiful leafy National Park on the edge of town.
• Seeing a sign ‘Irish Tidy Town Winner 2011’ on the way out of town. No surprise that one.



The Cathedral on the way out of Killarney…from the footpath, very handy!

• More lanes of red fuchsias and assorted flowers…we need to get the combination of somewhere safe to pull off, flowers and no rain. Has yet to happen!
• Magnificent vistas up the mountain edges to a crown of cloud on top.
• Countless farmers’ fields intersected by fuchsia hedgerows. The dramatic red against the green was awesome…still raining!
• Many picturesque areas of farming settlements.



Inch Beach which was full of would be surfers, instructors and tourists in crappy weather. Apparently the site of a famous movie in 1960 also has great coffee at the coffee shop in the sand dunes.

• Nice welcome at the Hotel when we dropped the bags.
• Scary steep stony road to the upper car-park.
• Quaint fishing village jam packed with holiday makers celebrating the Bank Holiday (on Monday).



Stonehouse Restaurant above the ancient Dunbeg Fort.

• Tramping down to the Dunbeg Fort which was interesting
• Dramatic views from the Fort site of the crumbling walls
• Small waterfalls pouring down over the cliff to the ocean
• Areas of rocky marshland with dense growth of heather and coarse grasses.



A view across to a rugged cliff face from the Dunbeg Fort site.

• Finding a flooded corner on a mountainous little road and getting across in one piece, phew!
• Finding more and more man hole covers in strategically awkward position on the road. Can be very slippery.
• Gratitude that we found a laundry which could wash and dry all our wet stuff and return in to the hotel tonight. Yay!

Bits and Bobs:

A PS to last night’s comment re moving the bikes because the ‘Boss’ was coming in later and they didn’t want to get the bikes damaged……well later the ‘Boss' came in ….that would be a Bus / Coach. Ha ha. Some of these Irish accents are almost indecipherable.

Last nights’ Accommodation:

Randles Court Hotel, Killarney, Ireland

This was a beautiful building with multiple restful and gracious spaces. Our room was wonderful, bathroom great and the lounge and bar beautiful to relax in and dining room wonderful to experience. The staff was terrific and I would love to return at a later date. Well done to all who work here because you do it very well! It also has a pool and health spa…shame we weren’t here for a longer period of time.



Randles Court Hotel