Skibbereen-Bantry-Ballylickey-Glengarriff

Today’s journey through Ireland brought me to the area where my father’s family likely lived, and this photograph is taken in Bantry on the way to Ballylickey and then Glengariff…the place that issued my grandmother’s birth certificate.  She was born in this area in 1891 and ultimately, according to what I’ve learned somewhat disappeared from the County Registry.  That would have been around the time she left for North America.  I think she was married to my grandfather, but am uncertain.  I know that my father was born in the Boston area (Cambridge, Mass.) in 1921, some 30 years after her birth.  I am told that it was common for Irish men to father at around age 30 so that would make sense.

As I continued my drive I wondered what life was like for them in this hard and rugged place.  I saw a couple of fishing vessels anchored in the bay, lots of buoys floating in the water.  It’s still cool here, and unbeknown to me, as I drove towards Glengarry, I’d end up in the midst of a 20 minute storm the pelted rain, sleet and snow.

As the car started to climb again, I noticed the energy mills high on top of the mountain.  I’d seen them two days ago when I’d taken the N22 from Cork through to Killarney and then Tralee.  I was practically on top of them at his point.

Ballylickey was beautiful, scenic and colourful row houses and shops.  I stopped at a shop that specialized in Irish knits….and almost bought this gorgeous sweater for only $29 (Euros), but decided against it, and got back into the car.  I wanted to see Glengarriff.

I was on the N71 which appears to be a major highway, but let me tell you at points it wasn’t much more than a path as I wound my way upwards.  The mountains no longer looked like mountains and eventually I lost them, because I was in the middle of them.  A sudden clearing of the brush on either side, and down below to the left I found my water; not the full blown ocean, but an inlet with more boats anchored.  I stopped and took more pictures, and then continued along the N71 which indicated would take me to Killarney.  Strange; yesterday headed west and south on N22 and ended up in Killarney, and here I was on N71 taking me north from the tip or peninsula.

As I hit the peak of the “hill” (no longer seemed like a mountain because I was on top), I was faced with a mountain wall….with a hole cut through it, that I was supposed to drive through!  Holy crap; scrambling for my glass case (still had my sun glasses on), I couldn’t find it, so I slowed as I approached the opening in the mountain….looked and prayed there was nothing coming, and began to crawl into the hole in the mountain!  I then accelerated when I saw no one coming, wanting to get through there before someone entered from the other end!  Phew…made it, and then looked and saw dead ahead, yet another hole in the mountain waiting to be manoeuvered!  I made it through that one, and was greeted with a sign, “Welcome to County Kerry!”  Enough already, I’d travelled through County Cork and was now in County Kerry!  I pulled over, checked the map…and decided I wanted to go back via N71 the way I’d come, so I did a u-turn….and ultimately arrived back in Cork.

It was a long and emotional day.  I still don’t know how I am feeling; sad sort of, wishing again my Dad could have made the trip with me; thinking of one of my brothers and how I know he’d enjoy a lot of this.  Still that sense of awe at the bravery of my young grandparents leaving their home for God knows what or where.  Trying to visualize them working this hard land, tending sheep or perhaps grandfather taking up the fishing trade, given his father was a ship’s carpenter.  Too much to realize, and have such mixed feelings and weariness at the moment, I shall leave it at that for now.

I’ll leave you with one more photo of this amazing country Ireland…..a couple of my new friends!