Hiking the moors and highlands

We left the castle by 11am to try our luck over Connor Pass. From the stories I heard in the pub last night, it is a harrowing, death-defying drive over to Dingle. Actually the road is the highest pass in Ireland and possibly the most narrow road I have ever driven. I thought two lanes, without any shoulders, was bad; but a two lane road that is one car width and no shoulders...that is narrow. Unfortunately, we could not enjoy the view from the top of the pass because of the fog. Fortunately, the fog prevented us from seeing the sheer drop offs.

There was a light rain, as we coasted into Dingle town. We pulled out the guidebook and started the driving tour. First, we saw a stone pillar left over from the Neolithic Age (4000 BC). It was either a grave marker or a property marker but looked quite similar to the stone boundary markers I saw in Mongolia. Down the road a ways, we pulled to the side of the drive to look at a Stone Age ring fort. This one was an elevated ring shape, mounded with earth. It would have been easy to walk by and never notice it, while others we saw later in the day were much more pronounced. These, and many similar "structures," are referred to as fairy forts. Folklore has it that farmers who disrupted these areas fell into very bad luck. That's what you get for disrupting the fairies!

Our first stop was at Dunbeg Fort. It is a stone structure, sitting at the edge of the peninsula, heavily fortified and well-constructed. Built between 500 BC and 500 AD, its rock roof is still intact, although some of the outer walls have fallen into the sea.

Just up the street we stopped to visit one of the beehive hut sites. These huts are made completely of stone and were used as living quarters. Often there would be a collection of the beehive shaped buildings within a protective stone wall. As the day went on, we found most of the countryside was dotted with beehive hut remnants.

The main road around the peninsula took us out to the western most point of the European landmass. We parked for a bit to walk on the beach and catch the surfers, which made me shiver thinking of the water temperature. This was the first bit of land Lindbergh saw on his Atlantic crossing that ended in Paris.

On the back side of the peninsula, we stopped at Gallarus Oratory. It was built about 1,300 years ago and is one of Ireland's best preserved early churches. Constructed purely of stacked rock, the structure is amazingly tight and dry. It was a part of a much larger monastic community. This was probably my second favorite site of the day, with the number one attraction just up the road: the church of Kilmalkedar. I have no idea how to pronounce it, but it was cool. Built in the 12th century, it features a full graveyard, an ogham stone (a gravestone from about the third century), a sundial (for which I could find no information), and a huge cross that probably predates the church. It is a fascinating history lesson, as you see a Norman church, built on older monastic grounds, built on a still older, pre-Christian, holy site.

We finished up our Dingle tour with the last of the fairy forts. This one was impressive, with several circular buildings constructed about 1000 years ago.

As the sun started to set, we said our goodbyes to the peninsula. Dingle dangled beauty before us all day! It is an amazing place but not a lot of trees. Kim suggested that the next time I go looking for a Dingle berry, I may want to stop concentrating on trees and focus on the bush.

We are hold up at Murphy's Farmhouse for the night. After settling in our room, we walked down to Murphy's pub, in operation since 1789. We had some great pub food and enjoyed the fire. We sadly leave Ireland tomorrow, but I'll be happy to be car-free for a few days. I think I've been traumatized by my own driving!Meer informatie