Ring of Kerry Tour: Getting Started and Killarney

Map of Ireland

Today Kayla, Kyla, Montana, and I decided to take a Paddywagon tour of the Ring of Kerry.  While we knew this could potentially make us insanely obvious and annoying tourists, we thought it would be worth it.  I think, overall, we weren't that bad...although that could perhaps be because we got a smaller white bus as opposed to the green ones with leprechauns on them.  Either way, the tour was great and I highly recommend them.  To give you some idea of where the Ring of Kerry is, I included a map with Cork and the Ring of Kerry.

The Sunrise

We had to get up kinda early to get on the bus tour on time so the walk to the tourist office was kinda chilly. I was quite happy with my decision to have worn three sweaters.  It was a little weird to see the city that empty, but the sunrise was quite beautiful.

Foggy Mountains from the Bus

It was a really foggy morning, which was really cool to see when we got farther out into the country.  We got a little worried about the weather at one point, but it was a beautiful, if somewhat chilly day.

Killarney and Our Bus

Our first stop was Killarney.  It was a beautiful town, and the largest one in County Kerry.  Since it was still kinda early on a Sunday morning, not much was open but I still managed to find some hot chocolate.

Just Outside Killarney

After taking a few minutes to stretch our legs, get a snack, and use the bathroom, we drove a little farther so that we could get a good view of the surrounding area.  It was gorgeous.  The photo I included does not do the place justice.  I wish we could've spent a bit more time there, but then my camera might not have had enough battery life for the rest of the day.

Parkavonear Castle

Just a little bit away from where we pulled over there was a structure, so I went to investigate.  My first theory was that it was a round tower house, but we later found a sign that stated it was a castle made in the Anglo-Norman period called Parkavonear.