October, 2015
Making our way to Tralee we were excited to treat ourselves to the Ballyseed Castle where we had 4* accommodations booked in an elegant room, with a 5-course dinner in the O’Connel Restaurant and a full Irish breakfast in the morning. After driving up from Portmagee along the Ring of Kerry, we were excited to settle in and be pampered for a night of luxury.
From the moment we arrived we were treated like royalty, and settled into the last leg of our Irish adventure in style, taking a step back in time. We ironically received the Japan themed room, which made me laugh as I had literally just returned from a seven week stay in Japan. We enjoyed walking the woodlands and gardens, an afternoon of tea and sweets and meeting Mr. Higgins, an Irish Wolfhound and Bubbles, too!
Our evening started in ‘Pappy’s Bar’ gathered around the fire, playing the rock game with Einstein – you know I love dogs and this castle has them all! We enjoyed a few cocktails prior to our 5-course dinner in the O’Connell Restaurant. The cuisine, the wine, the venue, the view and the company made this experience truly an authentic Ireland experience from start to finish.
The original plan for the next day was to explore the Emerald Isle – the Dingle Peninsula. We had heard that this rugged landscape had a rich history, outstanding restaurants, authentic pubs, local artists, fascinating archeological sites, stunning landscapes and a rugged coastline. Life is not always about rigidity and rule following, and therefore sometimes you need to feel free to deviate from the plan. When lounging in our suite at the Castle, we stumbled across an article on Mount Brandon in a magazine which referred to it as “arguably the most impressive hiking route along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way”. All of the sudden, we had a new plan and headed out to find Mount Brandon the following morning, after fueling ourselves with breakfast in the stone room. Breakfast offered a variety of freshly baked breads, fruit, juice, cold meats, pastries and Irish cheeses on top the traditional Irish breakfast fare consisting of eggs, fried tomatoes and black and white puddings.
There are two paths up Mount Brandon; the Saints’ Road (easier one) lasting 3-4 hours and the Pilgrims’ Path (scenic, but harder) lasting 4-5 hours. Guess which one we opted for? Neither! We chose, instead, the Brandon Range Walk, 6.5 hours (15km), which covers the main peaks of the Brandon Mountain range, including Gearhane Mountain, Brandon Peak and Mount Brandon. Mount Brandon is the second highest mountain in Ireland at 951.7m. Mount Brandon towers over everything the Dingle Peninsula has to offer, including views of jagged sea cliffs, sandy beaches, isolated villages and the glistening sea. Trust me, if you are in the mood for a good hike – not for the faint-hearted – along with incredible views of coastal Ireland, it doesn’t get any better than this. It has been said, life is not about the destination, but the journey and this journey was completely worth it. Pause and reflect at the top, looking at your accomplishment and relish in how lucky you are for this moment and this view. As this was not on the original itinerary, I definitely recommend hiking shoes with a solid grip, compared to the running shoes we both hiked in – it can get a little dangerous in some sections with the rocks.
