Ireland's Skellig Ring Road

Everyone knows the Ring of Kerry, many may be familiar with the Ring of Dingle, but few know of the Ring of Skellig on the tip of County Kerry's West Coast.  This drive an extension of the Ring of Kerry and the jumping off point for the mystical Skellig Micheal Island...

Gortaforia

Tucked away, all cozy in our charming little cottage that looked out across Dingle Bay, the misty Irish morning beckoned us outside to explore.  The house was halfway between the village of Kells and the town of Cahersiveen on the Ring Of Kerry and was a convenient haven for exploring the South West of Ireland.  Our Airbnb host had told us about a chocolate factory that gave out lots of free samples (she was ALL about the free part) on the Skellig Ring Road, which started just past Cahersiveen.  Hey, an Irish chocolate Factory near our house-what were we waiting for?   On the drive to Cahersiveen, we passed by men digging black little "bricks" out of the soil and placing them in large piles...turf!  Turf is peat that is dug up from a bog and dried in the sun, then the turf bricks called "turves" are burned in fireplaces like wood.  I was dying to try some because the smell of a turf fire was supposed to be intoxicating.   We found some compressed turf briquettes for sale at the Cahersiveen gas station and bought some for our cottage fireplace that evening.

Skellig Ring Map

The Skellig Ring Road is a 32 km/20-mile loop off of the Ring of Kerry that is just as beautiful as the Ring of Kerry, but WAY less touristed.  That's right, no tour buses folks! The Skellig Ring Road is the R565 (which looks like a one-lane alley at times) and is far too narrow to allow tour buses.   The turnoff for the Skellig Ring was just past the town of Cahersiveen on the N70 which is the Ring of Kerry.  Look for the signs heading to Portmagee (An Caladh in Irish), or if you are coming from the opposite direction on the Ring of Kerry, you will turn left onto the R567  towards Ballingskelligs, just past Waterville.

Beautiful Portmagee

Portmagee (An Caladh in Irish meaning "The Harbour") is a bustling small town on the tip of the Iveragh Penninsula, most famous for the starting off point for boat tours to the Skellig Islands 12 km out to sea.  It's a cute little fishing town that sports some good seafood restaurants. There is a small one lane bridge here to Valentia Island where there is the Skellig Experience Visitor Center. The centre gives a lot of information on the Skellig Islands, including a short film about the history of Skellig Michael.  About 3km away from Portmagee on the Skellig Ring Road are The Cliffs of Kerry.  You can pull over off the road and stand on these 1000 meter high cliffs looking out to the Skellig Islands offshore.

The Moody Skellig Islands looming offshore

Chocolate Heaven

Just 10 minutes down the road further from Portmagee to Ballinskelligs is beautiful St. Finians Bay which is a beautiful beach and The Glen where Skelligs Chocolates is located.   The chocolate factory is a family run business and is an "open-air concept" factory meaning you can actually watch the chocolates being made!  There is a cafe in the building called the Puffin Cafe that is open from Easter to the middle of September that serves hot beverages and baked goods.  The hot chocolate is fantastic!  There is also a beautiful beach in The Glen.

Ballingskellig Castle Photo by Stefan Schebelt

For history enthusiasts, there are plenty of Heritage sights and Sacred Places along the Skellig Ring Road including a ruined castle, a ruined abbey, a holy well, and standing stones called  "moon-stones" because they are aligned with the path of the moon...just to name a few!  Ballingskelligs Beach is a gorgeous long beach of golden sand and a picturesque castle!  Lifeguards are on duty in the summer, and this beach is a very popular swimming beach with the locals in the summer.

Cliffs Of Kerry Photographed From Bray Head

Ballinskelligs or "Baile na Sceilge" in Irish, means "town of the rocks" and the rocks referred to here are the famous Skellig islands about 12 miles off the coast.  Ballingskelligs is a Gaeltacht which is an Irish language speaking village.  Ballingskelligs had a monastery dedicated to St. Michael here called "Cill Rialiag" that was related to the monastery on Skellig Michael, and many of the monks who abandoned life on Skellig Michael settled here in the 12th century.  Today the historical remains of Ballingskelligs leave you with a castle on one end of town and an evocative ruined abbey with a fabulous graveyard on the other!
For more information on historical sites, hit this link on Ballinskelligs Tourism site. 

Views Down On The Skellig Ring

There is a tourist information centre on the main drag in Ballingskelligs across from the beach.  You can find information here about how to get to St. Michael's Well and the moon-stone alignment that you can hike to from the Cil Rialiag artists village. 
The Skellig Ring Road splits into two roads just past Ballingskelligs the R566 (which is what the R565 turns into) and off to the right the R567.  Both roads then hook up with the Ring of Kerry (N70).

The Skellig Ring was just a small detour off the beaten path from the world famous Ring of Kerry that most people fly past in their cars, yet felt like it was miles away from any kind of tourist hotspot.  Back home at our little thatch-roofed cottage, we settled down by the stone fireplace next to our cozy turf fire (which smelled out of this world!) A pint of Guinness and some handmade chocolates from the factory at the edge of Ireland completed our local slow-travel experience.  

Have you ever had an off-the-beaten-path experience next to a major tourist draw?  I would love to hear about it in the comments below❣


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