Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Beara: The Other Peninsula
This sleepy yet scenic wedge of land (just south of Kenmare) deserves honorable
mention as a distant third choice after the Dingle and Ring of Kerry peninsulas. But
locals rave about it like we would our home sports team. If you have the luxury of
two nights in Kenmare, Beara is worth considering. If you don't have a full day to
spare to drive the length of it, you can spend a memorable half-day enjoying Gar-
nish Island and Healy Pass, skipping the western half of the peninsula.
Garnish Island
isarockyislandrefuge,cloakedbyalushgarden,ploppeddown
in the corner of Bantry Bay. Crowned by a martello tower (a stout bunker built to
repel feared Napoleonic invasions, free to climb for views), the gardens were the
creation of a rich landlord, who turned the barren 37 acres into a lushly vegetated
fantasy in the early 1900s. You'll meander past Italian reflecting pools, a Grecian
temple framing views of a placid bay, and a walled garden nursery clad in roses.
Pine-forested trails, punctuated with rhododendrons, connect it all. Boats depart
from the well-marked pier in Glengarriff,about 18miles (30km) south ofKenmare,
for the scenic 15-minute cruise past seals sunning on rocks to the island (boat-€12
round-trip, 2/hour; gardens-€4, March-Oct daily 9:30-17:00; tearoom, snacks, and
WCs at island's pier; tel. 027/63116,
www.harbourqueenferry.com
).
A narrow, eight-mile mountain road (R-574) feels like a toboggan run as it
squiggles over the peninsula's lumpy spine at
Healy Pass.
The views from the
1,000-foot summit make you marvel at the road-building skills of the famine-era
workmen.Theroadlinkedthenorthcoast(CountyKerry)tothesouthcoast(County
Cork) to facilitate food-relief deliveries nearly 170 years ago. The barren, rocky
landscape makes it easy to spot approaching cars (remember to look up on hairpin
turns). Be cooperative by pulling over at wide spots to allow safe passage, and honk
to alert other cars as you approach blind, rocky curves.
