Day 5
Our goal today is to end up in Dingle. With Sir James at the wheel I have no doubt that's where we'll be. As when we arrived, the hotel jeep comes to our rescue and transports our bags while we enjoy an unencumbered walk to meet Sir James.
On the early part of the ride, our guide Pat O. introduced us to the story of Michael Collins, the leader of the Irish Army during the Irish Civil War. We would soon have a more personal experience regarding Michael Collins. Sir James pulled off the highway at a large stone cross. We learned that this was Béal na mBláth and the cross commemorated where Michael Collins was killed in 1922. All of a sudden it became apparent this wasn't just a vacation in a pretty place. This is a country whose freedom was forged from a violent past and we were just beginning to realize that.
Kenmare Stone Circle
Our next stop is the little village of Kenmare. Kenmare bills itself as the "Tidiest town in Ireland". It appears to be a popular staging area for both the "Ring of Kerry" to the west and Killarney National Park to the north.
After lunch in a small deli, the Original Six (Vicki and Keith, Susan and Kerry plus Robin and I) followed the signs to a small stone circle just outside of town. It wasn't very large or imposing but since it was our first of the trip, we were all suitably impressed.
Back on the bus we checked our daily itinerary and found our next stop to be Molls Gap, a pass on the road between Kenmare and Killarney. The gap was named for Moll Kissane who ran a small pub there in the early 1800's. We didn't know it yet but we would have another connection to Moll Kissane today.
Slow to make enemies and quick to make friends.
And may you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward.
Pat C. runs into some fellow riders
We stopped at the pass to stretch our legs and take some pictures. Pat C., a bicyclist who has ridden across Iowa several times, ran into some fellow RAGBRAI (Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) as they were cresting the pass on their tandem bike. Come on....say it with me......"what a small world". They were seeing Ireland the hard way!
We boarded the coach for our ride down the other side of Moll's Gap but only a few minutes later Sir James pulled off the road again, this time into the parking lot of a sheep farm. This was the first of several "surprises" that Pat O. had in store for us. Surprises that were planned but conveniently didn't show up on the itinerary. This is my third Rick Steves tour but the first with "surprises".
Ann and John Kissane
This sheep farm is Kissane Sheep Farm. Does that name ring a bell? It turns out that John Kissane, the current owner is a descendent of Moll Kissane. Pretty amazing. John, with his wife Ann, is the fifth generation of Kissanes to own the farm. The farm is 3000 acres of mountainous terrain near the top of Moll's Gap. There are 1000 sheep and because of the location they are all Black Face Mountain Sheep, a breed particularly suited to these conditions.
John gave us a demonstration of the herding abilities of his dogs....utterly amazing! Then while we watched a shearing demonstration, Ann described the workings of the farm. Because of the breed of sheep they raise in this rugged terrain, the wool is not soft enough to be used for Irish sweaters or other clothing. Their wool is used for blankets and similar items. They only earn thirty cents per fleece.....that's right, thirty cents. As a means to help supplement their meager farm income they have started these tours. They also have an Adopt-a-Sheep program which also helps to maintain the farm. Have a look at their website and consider adopting a sheep to help them out.
Sheep Shearing Demonstration
This was a wonderful surprise.....I hope Pat has some more up his sleeve.
After leaving Kissane Sheep farm we drove through Killarney National Park. Much of the park is old growth oak forest and looks like a perfect setting for leprechauns and fairies. "Hey Pat.....do you have another surprise for us..........?"
Guess not. As we headed west towards Dingle Pat explained to us that the Dingle area was one of the Gaeltacht regions of Ireland. These regions, mostly on the west coast of Ireland, have Irish as their predominant language and hold tight to their Irish traditions. The government subsidizes the Gaeltacht areas as an incentive to do so. As we approached Dingle we noticed that all the road signs were in Irish and English with Irish first, so "Dingle" becomes "An Daingean".
When we arrived in Dingle we had a short orientation walk at which time we stopped outside a cleaners and laundry. Pat explained that if we wished, we could drop off our dirty laundry here in the morning and they would have it ready for us the next morning......sounds good to me. I know where I'll be first thing tomorrow morning. After the orientation we were on our own for the evening. Ten of us formed a group and invaded the Dingle Bay Hotel for dinner. The company was good and so was dinner. I had a delicious smoked haddock and spinach gratin. I can never get enough seafood.
An Droichead Beag
After wandering around town for a while we went to An Droichead Beag (The Small Bridge) Pub where we were joined by Pat O. and some others in the group. We listened to Eoin Duignan play the Uilleann pipes, the Irish version of bagpipes. This is an incredibly difficult instrument to play and Eoin is fantastic. I've decided I really like "trad" music. This was definitely a WOW moment for me.
