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County Kerry
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| Attractions: Ballylongford Cahirciveen Dingle Peninsula Kenmare Leprechauns Crossing Skellig Islands |
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| Co. Kerry Ciarraí Prov. Munster Republic of Ireland |
| Major cities: Tralee, Listowel, Killarney, Kenmare, Beaufort, Kells, Waterville, Glengariff |
| Surface: 4,746 km2 Population: 132,424 |
The jagged coastline of County Kerry offers plenty opportunities for touring and walking. The Ring of Kerry, originally a walking tour, is perhaps world's most famous tour, meaning: worth avoiding in the high season! Luckily there are alternatives, like the Beara Way in County Cork, offering tranquillity, beautiful panorama's and a diverse scenery.
If you want to visit the Skellig Islands, and more in particular Saint Fionan's monastery on Skellig Michael, there is no getting round the traffic jam of the Ring of Kerry. Luckily traffic jam is a very elastic concept and in County Kerry it means one car is passing a certain point every 10 seconds or so.
A second alternative for the Ring of Kerry is the Dingle Peninsula. Most of the numerous ancient, mainly early-Christian, remains near the charming yet buzzing village of Dingle are extremely well accessible, while the more adventurous visitor can do his own thing in the even more scenic Lough a'Dúin, or Lake of the Fort.
The serious hill walker already knows that the highest and the second highest mountains, well strictly just hills, of Ireland are in Kerry.
The highest is the 1039 meter Carrauntoohil in the MacGillycuddy's Ranch a few kilometres south-west off Killarney. Mount Brandon, approximately 950 meter, on the Dingle Peninsula is the second highest. Both mountains are an irresistible challenge for the experienced hiker, but due to the rough surface and unpredictable weather conditions they are absolute no-no's for the average walker.
The less experienced hiker can indulge himself with one of the long-distance walking trails, such as the 179 kilometres long Dingle Way over the Dingle Peninsula or the Kerry Way, a 215 kilometres long trail looping around the Iveragh Peninsula. It is possible to walk only parts of these trails, but in that case you have to organise transport back to the starting point. In this respect it would be more obvious to pick one of the many available day trips.
Besides nice landscapes and old stones, which are interesting for adults but frankly boring to the bone for the average kid, County Kerry has some child-friendly attractions to offer. If your child is into fishy-things you might consider a boat trip with a change to meet and even swim with Fungie, a wild dolphin living in Dingle Bay, or a visit to the Oceanworld Aquarium in Dingle.
If you like to confuse your children (and of course you do, after all who told them Santa Claus really exist?) you might point out the famous leprechaun crossing.
In the north of the county, where Kerry borders on the Shannon Region, you will find the remains from the rich historical past of Kerry.
Every culture need nitwits for their jokes. The people from the counties Kerry and Cork have the honour to fulfil this role in Ireland.
The Kingdom Kerry
By its inhabitants and fans of Irish sports County Kerry is known as The Kingdom Kerry or as The Kingdom of Kerry. Despite the resemblance both nicknames have a different origin.
The designation The Kingdom Kerry appeared for the first time in a speech by John Philpot Curran, an orator and lawyer in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, and probably refers to the Earls of Desmond, well known because of the sixteenth century Desmond Rebellions. These Earls ruled over the county as if it was their regality. Just in case you are wondering: yes, John Philpot Curran is related to Robert Emmet's sweetheart Sarah Curran. In fact he is her father. Although trivial by itself we really get a kick out of these oblique connections.
The Kingdom of Kerry on the other hand relates to the Gaelic name of the county. In 65 CE Ciarrí, the progenitor of the O'Connor Kerry clan, laid hands on the area then known as Clar na Cliabh, or Plain of Swords, and in the sixteenth century the area is named Ciarraí, meaning Kingdom of Ciar, anglicized in Kingdom of Kerry, in manuscripts.
Ciar and John Philpot Curran are long forgotten by the general public, but the yell Up the Kingdom can be heard every weekend in the grounds of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) where the boys and girls in Kerry's green and yellow outfit play.