Ireland, 2023 – Fabulous mountain and valley walking on the Kerry Way

Black Valley to the Bridia Valley, 10 km, 270 m

It was very quiet as I set out from my accommodation on the second full day of my Kerry Way walk. I was heading first to the far end of the Black Valley and a little white house was like a beacon in the distance. I soon passed that milestone, and then when I passed the turn off to the Gap of Dunloe Road I was in territory that I had never trod before which is always exciting!

The views towards the end of the Black Valley were breathtaking!

As were the views looking back.

There were wildflowers all along the side of the road and growing on and around stone fences. I admired both dark red and pale pink fuchsia, a non-native plant that grows profusely over southwestern Ireland, as well as foxglove, buttercups and wild roses.

After several happy kilometres, I left the pavement and started up an old cobbled road with mama sheep and lambs my only company. In an hour of walking I had not yet seen one person or had one car pass by me. Near the top of this first hill I was thinking that I hadn’t yet encountered any stiles on the Kerry Way and then, just minutes later, I came upon one. It would be the first of many!

The trail passed through a small section of forest and then I was once again out in the open with views of Lough Reagh nestled below at the very the end of the Black Valley.

The Kerry Way once more joined a tarmac road and rose up past the somewhat famous “Slate House” ruin which is often photographed. I learned this from an English couple I passed that were doing a day hike around the Black Valley. They were the only people I would see to the entire day until I reached my accommodation in the late afternoon. I was very happy to be all alone in this magnificent landscape.

The Kerry Way passed the farmhouse and dipped down into the Cummeenduff Glen. This long and very isolated valley was filled with the rubble and outlines of so many old stone fences, animal enclosures, and dwellings.

And there was even older evidence of human occupation here, a standing stone surrounded by what appeared to be several collapsed dolmens.

Now it was time to really start climbing, first up a long gravel road that passed one lone farm near the end of the valley, and then up a rocky path that zigzagged its way up towards a saddle. The wind was very strong here and pushed at my backpack, trying to throw me off balance!

When I thought that I had reached the top of the saddle, I hadn’t! It kept mysteriously moving further ahead!

That was reason enough to stop, take a breath, and look back at the view down the glen.

As I continued to climb, I thought of how many people must have walked here before me over the millennia. How much harder their lives would have been! At last I was up and over the pass, with this spectacular view ahead of the Bridia Valley. Wow! I would have a very steep and tricky descent here, over uneven rocky terrain where every step had to be made carefully, but first I had time for well-deserved break. I rested for a good long while, reluctant to say goodbye to this view and to have this day of walking come to an end.

But, as they say, “what goes up must come down” and so I made my descent following the well-signposted path. And then I was down on a country road with a sign directing me to the Stepping Stone B&B, hosted by John and Sandy, where I would have a restful afternoon, a simple but very delicious dinner in the cafe, and a fabulous breakfast in the morning. The bottom left photo is of the view from my room!

Thank you, Kerry Way, for an absolutely marvellous day of walking!

Bridia Valley to the Climbers Inn, Glencar – 10.5 km, 350 m

Today’s walk would start immediately with a steep climb up to a height of 380 metres, complete with zigs, zags, and many stiles to climb. I had to stop often to catch my breath (I had just had a very big breakfast!), but the views back down the hill were worth the stops.

As I climbed towards and then above the ruins of this red-roofed cottage, I daydreamed that perhaps it could be mine to love and bring back to life. What a location!

But, on this day, I had to leave it far behind down on the mountainside. (Can you spot it, a bit to the right of centre in the photo below?)

I continued the steady climb until I rose to the top of a pass, with zoomed in views of a new valley and of Lough Acoose below.

To my right stretched a ridge line leading up to MacGillicuddy’s Reeks which are home to nine out of ten of Ireland’s highest peaks. Covered in mist for most of the morning, some of those peaks would later come into view when I was down in the valley below.

But first I had to get down! The descent here was the steepest yet and somewhat daunting!

I was certainly grateful for another day of perfect walking weather – dry and warm with a good refreshing wind. On both today’s and yesterday’s rocky climbs and descents I imagined what it would be like hiking through here on a cold and darkly overcast day with driving rain, wind blown mists, slippery rocks and boggy uneven ground! And that’s not uncommon here!

I descended with due care and attention, and reached the valley bottom quicker than expected. Then it was an easy ramble along a farm road with curious sheep, a meandering stream, and again, many remnants of previous farm holdings.

This is one of my favourite views of the day, overlooking an abandoned farmstead and with the Reeks in the background.

And here is another favourite view, taken from the same spot but looking in the direction of Lough Acoose. There was an elemental magic to this place, and I learned later that Bronze Age field systems dot the landscape here.

I reluctantly turned my back on Lough Acoose as the Kerry Way travelled away from it, towards and past a farm, then up and over some hillocks that were thick with bracken. As I climbed one stile, I was amazed by the tall stone fence that travelled all the way up to the very top of a mountain. You have to admire whoever built that!

The Kerry Way then led me down through a long pleasant section of forestry where I saw a baby deer,

and then back up onto a hilltop which was the perfect place for today’s rest, with a fine rock to sit on and a view of MacGillicuddy’s Reeks to the east. I wondered if one of those peaks was that of Carrauntoohil, Ireland’s highest mountain.

I kept expecting to see other Kerry Way walkers or day hikers pass by, either coming or going, but like yesterday I saw no one else on the traiI. The sole person I had seen and said hello to was a farmer who was opening a gate to drive his tractor through. Otherwise, it was just the birds and insects, many sheep, one baby deer, the wind, and me.

Soon though I would cross farm fields and a wide stream to arrive at a paved road that would lead me to the Climber’s Inn in Glencar where I would chat with a fellow Canadian who was doing his first long-distance walk, have my first cider and pub meal in Ireland, speak French for several hours with two travellers, and then have a good long sleep.

I was thrilled with my last two days of fabulous mountain and valley walking on the Kerry Way, and ready for what the next day would bring. Thank you for reading!