July 27: The Road To Glengarriff

Our next stop on our driving tour of Ireland was Cork.  We went to Glengarriff first so we could  have a short visit with a friend.  The drive took us back on the Ring of Kerry road to Kenmare and then we headed toward Glengarriff and Bantry Bay.  As we left Killarney we discovered there was a bike race traveling on the same narrow road as us.  Each time we passed a group of bikers and thought that would be the last of them, we rounded the bend and there was another group.

Killarney jaunting car

Bikers along the way

The slow drive gave us time to take some photos and enjoy the scenery once again. The road took us through Kenmare, another picturesque town.

Kenmare

Kenmare Betting Shop

We stopped at Molly Gallivan's Cottage and Traditional Farm, a perfect spot to get a view of the valley to the high point on the Barra-Bui mountain.  There is a Druid, a large carved figure in the car park, which honours the first settlers in the area over 6000 years ago. We took lots of photos of the cottage and farm which are representative of the simple country life in Ireland many years ago.  Legend says that Molly was widowed with seven children and through her resourcefulness was able to survive.  She sold produce from her farm, butter eggs and  her brewed whiskey to visitors and locals.  There is a tea house, craft shop and buildings for tourists to visit.

The view of the valley

Druid statue carved from a pine tree

Vintage truck

Craft Store

Molly Gallivan's

The stone house

Potato fields

The rest of the drive to Glengarriff was beautiful, but we marvelled at the speed limit on the roads here as well as elsewhere in Ireland.  Very few would be able to maintain the speed on the narrow and windy roads.

Tunnels along the way

The view of the valley

When we arrived at Glengarriff we met Jackie at a local pub. We had time for a  short visit and then it was time for us to head on to Cork.

Glengarriff

Old friends