Walking the Beara Way 2001
Chrit Houben
The Beara Way is my fourth walking experience in the breathtaking, enormously picturesque and mystical settings of Ireland. My friends Evert, Riny and Catherine, are joining me (Chrit) on this new adventure. Again I booked this trip with the specialists in walking holidays, SouthWest Walks Ireland, in Tralee. As you all already will know, this travel agency uses the slogan, "in touch with nature"; a statement which is surely indubitable. Gillian, Linda & John again did a perfect job for which my group and I are most thankful.
The Beara peninsula looks like a long (48km) mountainous finger that stretches from the southwest of Ireland into the deep blue Atlantic Ocean. The island is shared by the counties Cork and Kerry. The Beara peninsula is unlike Iveragh and Dingle lesser known, but it is, like its neighbours, a magical world of mountains, lakes and seacoasts. The extremities of this magical island are remote and unspoiled.
The Beara Way is a tour along the island, following side-roads, bog roads, boreens and mountain tracks, which lead the walker into fascinating scenery. The route is about 195kms. long and takes the walker to beautiful towns like Kenmare, Glengarriff and Castletownbere as well as to villages and hamlets with intriguing names like Eyeries, Allihies or Lauragh. You’ll never be far from the sea. Even on the mountainous parts of the track you’ll mostly have eye contact with the deep blue water. The Beara Way includes a very interesting way of transportation: a really unique cable car near Dursey Sound, Garnish, that takes you across Dursey Sound to Dursey Island.
Altogether this Beara peninsula is a real magical place and, like all other walks I already made in Ireland, a walk around Beara will keep on tempting you to return to Ireland again and again. Such lovely scenery, such peace and tranquillity is almost like magic in the busy and hasty world we live in. A walk in the magical world of this emerald island really is a perfect opportunity to get rid of all stress and agitation. Do like we did: stay in Ireland for about three weeks, pick up your gear and walk and forget about time, newspapers, radio and television. Just walk and relax and get carried away in a wonderful world of peace, mystery and quitness.
On Sunday, 5th August, we arrive by car at our first overnight address, after a strenuous drive (about 1,200kms) from my home place, Stein, province of Limburg in the Netherlands, through the Euro-tunnel to England, through England to Pembroke, Irish Ferry to Ireland, Rosslare Harbour and finally a drive to B&B Rockwood House, in Glengarriff where Audrey O’Mahoney welcomes us with the typical Irish hospitality, lovely. The day after we have a day of rest in order to recover a bit, do a bit of sightseeing and start the next day on our Beara Way walk.
Original Source : Shamrock Memories
