Ireland Scrapbooking: The Gap of Dunloe and Danny Mann Pub

I've been busy trying to finish up my Ireland trip scrapbook, which is HIGHLY overdue from September 2010! I made great progress shortly before I went on maternity leave, but needless to say, I've been a tad preoccupied with other things, and just finally got back around to this book. Here is a sneak peek of some of my second book, which highlights one of our favorite day hikes through the Gap of Dunloe while staying in Killarney, as well as our dinner at Danny Mann Pub in Killarney.

Top Travel Memories: The Gap of Dunloe

September 2010

Halfway through our big Ireland adventure, we found ourselves in Killarney, Ireland. We stayed at the most incredible little B&B there, which was the perfect landing place after the crazy day we had when we hiked the Gap of Dunloe.

The Gap of Dunloe. Incredible. Beautiful. Amazing. Powerful.

Of course, our guidebook mentioned taking these little "jaunting cars" on the road and said you were not allowed to drive. For the hefty $40 price for the jaunting cars (little horse-drawn carriages), we decided we could just as well get some exercise and walk. It was only 3 miles, afterall, and we were in fairly good physical shape.

I'll start out by saying that if you are NOT in good physical shape, spend the $40. Hands-down. Do it. It's not a difficult walk, but add in the rain, and it's not the most enjoyable when you're already physically strained.

Even in good physical shape, this was one of those experiences where we seriously questioned what the heck we were doing after a mile in. But we could see "the gap", so we figured it couldn't be THAT far away, right?

Wrong.

After the first 2 miles, a light mist started falling, and by the time we reached the Gap, it was coming down pretty steadily. Our clothes were mostly soaked through before we even started walking back. It was so windy that even with an umbrella, it wouldn't have made a difference. We did have on good rain jackets, but our jeans were drenched, and it wasn't much fun walking 3 miles back in drenched jeans.

But would you like to know why this was one of the most memorable experiences we have had in our entire lives? Because of this:

But really? Mostly because of this:

It was the most incredible scenery, and the sheer exhaustion of it - walking 4 miles in the rain, drenched, soaked from the waist down and cold - made for one of the most incredible memories ever. We ended up having to strip down once we got to the car (thankfully our shirts weren't soaked through our jackets) for the drive back to Crystal Springs B&B. That shower was one I will remember for the rest of my life lol It felt SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good!

Adding to the excellent day was our incredible evening at Danny Mann Pub where we enjoyed dinner and some fun entertainment for a few hours before crashing. Hard.

Ireland Recap - Kinsale to Killarney

September 9

This was one of the more relaxing days we spent in Ireland, and after the go-go-go schedule so far, we were grateful for it! We had breakfast around 8:30, then rested in our room for a while before packing up, checking out of Danabel, and heading into Kinsale to explore a little. We stopped at a few cute little shops and picked up a handful of postcards to send to our parents and friends, then the post office to pick up a few stamps, then explored a bit more before making our way to Killarney.

Exploring Kinsale

We arrived in Killarney a couple hours later, just in time for our grumbling tummies to find some lunch at Hannigan's downtown.

We were fortunate to be able to check into our B&B early, and enjoyed some tea and biscuits while looking through their vast plethora of Ireland books and pictures.

Crystal Springs B&B

Gap of Dunloe

We relaxed for a bit before deciding that we should probably do SOMETHING that day, so we decided to go for a hike along the Gap of Dunloe. We were told that you cannot take a car on the path (which was a paved road) because of all the pedestrians and horse-drawn carriage. We found out shortly into our hike that this was NOT the case: You're ALLOWED to drive it, it's just not recommended. We decided to keep on going, even with a slight drizzle starting to come down, and we had a really fun time walking along. However, about 2/3 of our way to the gap (i.e. 2 miles in) it started coming down MUCH harder, and by the end of our 6 mile hike (that's right - 4 miles in the pouring rain), we were soaked to the bone and freezing. But we made it, and that's what's important, right? :)


After our rainy hike, we made it back to the B&B to get a nice, hot shower, some hot tea, and to rest for a bit before finding a supper destination.

We settled on the Danny Mann Pub, mainly because it was one of the only places with live music that night. It was SO MUCH FUN! I posted a bunch of videos from the night on Youtube, but in a nutshell, we had SUCH a blast there :) The music was so typically irish, and I still find myself humming some of the tunes from that night :)



Mark had some sort of leg of lamb, and I had cottage pie (which is very similar to shepherd's pie).


We headed back to our B&B for the night, tummies full, and headed to bed, eager for the next day's scenic drive along the Ring of Kerry!

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For a full photo dump, visit:

http://picasaweb.google.com/rompte/Ireland05KinsaleKillarneyGapOfDunloe