Draft Tour of the Wild Irish Coast from Killarney to Ennis

DAILY ITINERARY

This 11-day tour is based on a section of the Grand Tour of the West of Ireland offered by Green Marble Tours. A section of the Ring of Kerry will be followed by the coast of the Southwest of Ireland. We spend evenings in the following towns:

Killarney, one night
Kenmare, two nights
Cahersiveen, two nights
Tralee, one night
Ballybunion, one night
Kilkee (two nights)
Ennis (one or two nights)

I left out the Dingle because of the tourists and the amount of traffic on the road getting there.

Killarney

Day 1: Fly from Boston to Shannon airport. Take the Bus from Shannon to Killarney. Arrive in Killarney, free time to explore the town. Green Marble tours will meet us with the bicycles, equipment, and all the information either in the evening or the following morning.

Kenmare

Day 2: Killarney to Kenmare (43mls/705m – longer 46mls / 750m). Leave Killarney through the Gap of Dunloe into the Black Valley and on a beautiful back road you climb up to Moll’s Gap. From here the shorter option will bring you down along the busier N road to Kenmare, a heritage town. Take the longer option on backroads. Here you will stay for two nights. There are fabulous restaurants and music pubs to entertain you in the evening.

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Day 3: Loop day Kenmare to Beara Peninsula (32mls, 66mls, 84mls). Start the loop with easy cycling to exotic Derreen gardens, for the longer options head to spectacular headlands or cycle over the stunning Healy Pass, one of Ireland’s most spectacular cycles. Beara Way Cycling Route

**Kenmare to Barre Peninsula** 31.7miles, 1,878 ft. Long/short options

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Cahersiveen

Day 4: Kenmare to Cahersiveen. A beautiful day starting out cycling along the famous Ring of Kerry road until Blackwater from where the route will bring you onto a quiet back road. Stop in Sneem for lunch before continuing on along the coast. Visit Staigue Fort, one of Ireland’s best-preserved prehistoric ring forts. Tour O’Connell’s estate at Derrynane before reaching Waterville or Caherciveen for a 2-night stopover.

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Day 5: Cahersiveen to Valencia Loop. Spend a second night in Cahersiveen

**Cahersiveen to Valencia Loop**. 32.5 miles, 2,795 ft (Ferry, ancient ruins, cliffs, little or no traffic)

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Tralee

Day 6: Cahersiveen to Tralee. Head inland on spectacular and quiet back roads to climb the Ballagisheen pass. From there it is a gradual downhill to the lunch stop in Glencar. You are then cycling along the lakes to the small town of Killorglin, famous for the annual Puck Fair, the oldest fair in Ireland.

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Ballybunion

Day 7 Tralee to BallyBunion. Stay along the coast to the small village of Spa and then to Ardfert with it’s beautiful cathedral ruin dating back to St Brendan the Navigator (6th century). At Banna you will be back on the coast and cycle to Ballybunion. This village is famous for the golf courses

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Kilkee

Day 8: Ride from Ballybunion to Kilkee. Keep along the coast and cycle through the green pastures of County Limerick to the ferry port of Tarbert. From there you take the ferry across the Shannon to Killimer in County Clare. The Shannon estuary is home to Dolphins and if you are lucky they will follow the boat. Take to the backroads to bring you to the small seaside town of Kilkee. In Victorian times this was a favourite holiday destination due to the secure beautiful horse-shoe beach. Stay here for the next two nights.

**Ballybunion to Kikee** 38.4 miles, 1,418ft

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Day 9 Kilkee Cliffs Peninsula. Loop Head is the most westerly peninsula and will offer you some sublime coastal scenery with its cliffs, arches, and freestanding pinnacles. At the tip of Loop Head you will find a fully working lighthouse (open to the public) offering a wide sweeping vista. The cycling is on very quiet backroads. Stay a second night in Kilkee

**Kikee Cliffs Peninsula** up to 39.5 miles, 2,023ft

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Ennis

Day 10 Kilkee to Ennis. Ennis is the Capital town of County Clare. It is a picturesque and historic market town whose origins date back to the 13th century when the Kings of Thomond invited the Franciscans to establish a settlement. Eight hundred years later, the narrow and historic lanes and bowways give character to the town while monuments, buildings, and waterways showcase its rich heritage.