Ireland's Hidden Treasure Trail

Dear International Living Reader,

After reading about the Ring of Kerry, the famous 110-mile-loop in southeastern Ireland, I was anxious to experience what was billed as the most popular scenic drive in the country: a panorama of seacoast, mountain, and lake vistas.

Leaving the town of Killarney (with its masses of tourists darting across the road in front of us), we began the Ring loop as it headed southward toward our haven for the night in Kenmare, a quaint town of about 1,200 people. My husband concentrated on keeping our rental car in its left-hand lane while I expressed myself with urgent hand waving to stay away from the wall of rock next to my window, and gasps at the tour buses flying toward us with impunity.

I was about to utter my 33rd "stay left!" when I was taken aback by a cyclist who joined the ranks of the hurried. "He's lost his mind," I thought, but he was soon followed by other brave or insane cyclists sporting official racing numbers on their backs. There was actually a bike race going on, despite the traffic. At that moment an oncoming car swerved to miss one of the cyclists, forcing my husband to jump our car out of the way and into a small ditch. When we found a three-foot wide pullout a little further on, we discovered the back left tire hissing like a scared cat. Luckily, rentals carry spares.

We pulled into Kenmare and told our tale of woe to our hostess, Mary O'Brien, at her place, Hawthorn House. She sympathetically told us of a less traveled, more peaceful route to explore the following day: the Ring of Beara. This route went around the Beara Peninsula south of Kenmare, and Mary promised that it held just as many scenic treasures as the Ring of Kerry.

Mary was right. The Ring of Beara presented us with astounding scenery of bright green hills falling toward tranquil Kenmare and Bantry Bay. Villages, castle ruins, and tombs that are thousands of years old abound in the area, but the gem we found was Garnish Isle, outside the town of Glengarriff. We ferried over there on a rowboat with an outboard motor, whose skipper proudly showed us seals sunning themselves on the rocks, along with Maureen O'Hara's house in the distance.

Garnish Isle was developed by Annan Bryce and later Rowland L'Estrange Bryce, who imported plants from around the world to complete the island gardens, which were given to the country in 1953. We started at the Italian pool and wound our way around to a miniature temple, Martello tower, stone arches and steps, and paths lined with flowers. Often we were able to peek out at vistas of Bantry Bay from various heights around the island. Back at the dock, we relaxed and enjoyed a snack at the tea room before meeting up again with our skipper to take us back to shore.

Betty Mermelstein
For International Living