Our hotel in Kinsale was The Perryville House.

The Perryville House was built in 1820 by Captain Adam Warren Perry for his family whose ancestors continued to reside here until the late 1950s. It had various owners from then until 1997 when it was refurbished. It is now full of antique furniture and art in the main areas, but very modernised in the rooms. We were upgraded to a garden suite which was very spacious and comfortable. Yesterday we took a nap on arrival and passed out in the comfortable bed. Today we had an incredible breakfast. Rather than a buffet everything is served, and everything was homemade, from the granola, to the honey, scones and jams. I had a delicious mushroom on toast breakfast. It is worth staying here just for the breakfast. https://perryvillehouse.com

When we arrived late the prior day the weather was a bit overcast but we were able to enjoy the quaint bay area and walked around looking into the shop windows before dinner.

Our goal was to drive the Ring of Beara today. https://www.theirishroadtrip.com/ring-of-beara/. The Beara is one of three large peninsulas in this area, and each has a circular driving road/ ring designed to enjoy the landscape, villages and sites along the way.

We had learned of this Ring only recently and people said it was more beautiful than the more well known Ring of Kerry.

However, when we woke up the fog was so thick we could no longer see the bay just across the street from the hotel.

The weather just wouldn't cooperate. It rained hard the entire day. So we decided to pass up the drive and head directly to Killarney.

By the time we got on the most northern part of the drive, crossing a portion of the Ring of Kerry to take us into Killarney, the weather had improved a little bit so we enjoyed the scenery as we drove to the hotel.

We had a lunch at Muckross House, a stately home, before we checked in at our hotel. I had lasagne as a I fancied something warm. It was so funny to me when they loaded my plate with both mashed potatoes and French fries (or "chips" as they call them here). With pasta? Talk about a carb overload. Needless to say they were left behind. Since we were so damp we skipped visiting the home and checked in and warmed up with a nap.

That evening we ate at the pub at the hotel. The food was nice-- David enjoyed a Guinness Stew, which was ALMOST as good as the one he makes. There were some Irish singers for a couple of hours that were entertaining even if the music isn't our favourite.

Today, Friday, the weather was overcast and started with some drizzle. Fortunately, that stopped and we were able to make the drive around the famous Ring of Kerry. https://www.theirishroadtrip.com/ring-of-kerry-drive/

Here you make a drive along the entire coast of the Kerry peninsula which is 175 km long. The roads are often narrow or even single lane, but the traffic wasn't too bad today.

It's a beautiful drive and we slowed down and stopped several times to enjoy the dramatic landscape.

One highlight stop was Staigue Stone Fort. It is down a very narrow single lane road into what seems like nowhere. Even here, on this very out of the way road, we would pass an occasional home. We decided we definitely couldn't live this remotely.

The Fort is one of Ireland’s largest and best-preserved stone ring forts, built during the Iron Age, possibly around 300–400 AD. The dry-stone walls, reaching up to 5.5 metres high and 4 metres thick, were stacked with remarkable precision, without the use of mortar.

Archaeologists believe it may have been a stronghold for a local chieftain, offering protection for his people, livestock, and wealth. Others suggest it was a ritual or ceremonial site, possibly linked to early astronomy. The surrounding area was rich in copper, hinting that metalwork may have played a role in the fort’s significance.

Inside, stepped terraces are built into the walls, allowing defenders to keep watch from above. Hidden within the thick stonework are concealed chambers, possibly used for storage or as shelter during times of attack.

We paid the signposted request for 1 Euro for visiting in a lockbox and climbed the steps. Standing within its walls, surrounded by the vast Kerry landscape, you can almost hear the echoes of a distant era—where warriors stood guard, chieftains held council, and the fires of ancient Ireland burned bright. However, today all we heard were the sheep baaing as they grazed near-by as well as the waters rushing along in the near-by brook. The views were beautiful out to the sea in one direction and the rugged mountains to the other side.

There were many more beautiful views along the Wild Atlantic Way of the rugged coast lines we drove.

I read: "Ireland actually started out as parts of two different tectonic plates that eventually smashed into each other. The Laurentia plate forming the northwest of Ireland, originally from now North America, had its collision about 400 million years ago with the Gondwana plate, plate that made much of Europe and Africa today, forming the southeast portion of Ireland."

As we drive I noted that the coast line really is so jagged that it looks like it fits into a puzzle- perhaps that of another continent. And there has been so much volcanic activity here that there are jagged rocks strewn across the fields. So generally we didn't see much cultivated farming but rather lots (and lots) of sheep and cows everywhere.

Often I imagined it as the landscape of the moon (minus the green grasses and frequent waterfalls and streams, of course).

And often we would see the shells of ancient castles jutting into the sky. No doubt Ireland is not short of castles.

All and all it was a long but beautiful drive.

That evening we drove to the The Killarney Park Hotel to the Michelin Yum restaurant, The Peregrine. https://www.killarneyparkhotel.ie/dine/the-peregrine We enjoyed the elegant atmosphere, food and wine as we gazed into the roaring fire.

We were staying at the Muckross Park Hotel https://www.muckrosspark.com. We thought it was a bit McHotel as its relatively modern but trying to appear as a classic hotel. It was fine but not spectacular but I preferred its' pricing over The Killarney Park Hotel when I went on-line to compare the two!