SKDP KERRY WAY 28Page.Qxp Layout 1
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Acknoledgements Many thanks to the Kerry Way Commiee members and South Kerry Development Partnership CLG for their contribuons of text, images and maps. Photographs courtesy of Valerie O’Sullivan. Some of the property traversed by the Kerry Way is private property. Access is available by kind permission of all landowners/holders on the route. 3 Cotents INTRODUCTION 5 BRIEF DESCRIPTION 6 • Terrain 6 • Development of the Trail 7 • Culture & History 8 • Flora & Fauna 10 OBJECTIVES OF THE MANAGEMENT PLAN 13 • Maintain the Trail in a Sustainable Way 13 • Continue the Development of The Kerry Way 14 • Conserve the Historic Sections and the History Thereof 15 • Minimise Environmental Impacts 16 • Promote the Use of the Trails by Local Residents & Visitors 17 • Promote Community & Rural Development 19 • Facilitate the Safe Use & Enjoyment of the Countryside 21 APPENDIX 1 22 Maps of Proposed Links/Extensions 22 4 Intoductio TO THE KERRY WAY PURPOSE OF THE MANAGEMENT PLAN The Kerry Way/Slí Uibh Ráthach is one of Ireland’s longest This Management Plan has been prepared by the Kerry established recreaonal walking trails. It consists of over Way Commiee and South Kerry Development 220 kilometers of old highway and paths, green lanes and Partnership. It gives a brief history and descripon of the local roads. trail. It sets out the objecves for the maintenance and development of The Kerry Way, in parcular to encourage It is designated as a Naonal Waymarked Trail by the the development and management of walking trails in Naonal Trails Office (NTO), the unit within Sport Ireland Kerry for the purpose of recreaon and health, educaon, that co-ordinates the recreaonal trails programme on a conservaon/heritage and community and rural naonal basis. It is managed in mutual cooperaon by development. The Kerry Way Commiee, South Kerry Development Partnership, Killarney Naonal Parks and Wildlife Services and Coillte. Recreaonal trails in Ireland are developed on a permissive access basis with both public and private landowners. 5 Brief Desciptio OF THE KERRY WAY The Kerry Way is a looped trail that circumnavigates the trail follows the Old Kenmare Road and crosses Iveragh Peninsula in South Kerry. It passes through the Esknamucky Glen to the ancient oak woods of Kerry towns and villages of Killarney, Glenbeigh, Derrycunnihy. The Way then traverses the inland Alpine- Cahersiveen, Waterville, Caherdaniel, Sneem and like valleys of mid-Kerry in the shadow of the Kenmare. MacGillycuddy’s Reeks – the Black Valley and the Bridia Valley. It follows the Lack Road over another mountain pass into Derrynafeana Glen to reach Lough Acoose and TERRAIN Glencar. From Glencar, the trail follows the Caragh River before circling Seefin Mountain to reach Glenbeigh. From The terrain along The Kerry Way is a mixture of quiet sea-level at Glenbeigh, it largely follows a line overlooking roads, peatland and open fields, woodland, field paths the coast, on the southern side of Dingle Bay passing and boreens. The Way is mostly below the 300m contour, Drung Hill. A spur at Foilmore connects the Way with but rises above this where it crosses through mountain Cahersiveen. From Foilmore, the trail traverses two passes, the highest point is 385m above sea-level, at ridges to reach Waterville. There are two possible routes Windy Gap between Glenmore and Caherdaniel. Where it from there to Caherdaniel, a coastal trail around does not follow a public road, the Way has been set up by Farraniaragh which touches the sea at Derrynane or an agreement with local farmers and landowners. It is inland trail, crossing the mountains via the Windy Gap, signposted and waymarked over its enre circuit. the highest point of the Kerry Way. An old coach road brings the walker to Sneem and on to Kenmare following It also includes many sles at field boundaries, wooden the coast above Kenmare River. This was a commercial and metal bridges, board walks and bog boards across “buer” road in the 18th and 19th centuries used by boggy ground. farmers bringing buer in firkins on horseback to the Cork Buer Exchange. It returns to Killarney along the The first secon takes the walker through the Killarney historic Old Kenmare Road. Naonal Park – the landscaped demesne of Muckross House and Gardens, passing the shores of Lough Leane and Muckross Lake to reach Torc Waterfall. From Torc, the 6 DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRAIL The idea of the Kerry Way was first proposed in 1978 with a number of objecves: • Conservaon of old highways, Mass Paths and driving routes • Rural development • Provision of a marked low-level walking trail (in the light of a history of accidents on the Kerry mountains). Work on the first secon – from Killarney to Glenbeigh – was largely carried out by members of the mountaineering clubs of Kerry, financed by the Cork-Kerry Regional Tourism Organisaon, with assistance from the local authority and statutory bodies. It was opened officially by Minister Dick Spring TD in September 1985 – the second long-distance trail in the Republic ajer the Wicklow Way. With the cooperaon of many community groups and schemes, the full circuit with spurs was completed by September 1989 and opened officially by Minister Frank Fahey TD. 7 THE KERRY WAY COMMITTEE receipt of long term social welfare payments, who in turn provide certain services of benefit to rural communies The Kerry Way was inially developed by members of the for 19.5 hours per week. One of the eligible project Laune Mountaineering Club, Killorglin and the Kerry categories for support through the RSS is the maintaining Associaon of An Taisce. This formed the basis of the and enhancing of way marked ways, agreed walks & bog Kerry Way Commiee. They were inspired by a series of roads. SKDP assigned a number of Rural Social Scheme local history lectures given by Father John Hayes. parcipants to the Kerry Way. Local farmers, through the Realising that "there was a spider's web-like network of Rural Social Scheme, provided the Kerry Way with an roads and paths that could be combined to form a route important local labour resource for the undertaking of around Kerry", the group began devising the trail that maintenance tasks on the Kerry Way. would become The Kerry Way. Mission Statement of the Kerry Way Commiee: To THE WALKS SCHEME encourage the development and management of walking trails in Kerry for the purpose of recreaon and health, The introducon of the Walks Scheme in 2008 was a educaon, conservaon/heritage and community and further significant development for the Kerry Way. This is rural development. a naonal scheme involving all landholders on Naonal Waymarked Ways, Looped Walking Routes and Heritage Aims of the Kerry Way Commiee: To manage and Routes, along with other trails that have been approved promote (in associaon with other relevant pares) and by the Naonal Trails Office. connue the development of the exisng Kerry Way walking trail and associated loops; to conserve the The scheme ensures that Naonal Way Marked Ways and historic legs (old highways, roads and paths) and the priority walks that traverse public and private lands are history thereof; to engage in appropriate educaonal and maintained and accessible. Parcipants in the Walks environmental acvies; to promote the use of the trails Scheme undertake to complete the enhancement and by local residents and visitors; thus to facilitate safe use maintenance of the trails. and enjoyment of the countryside. A Rural Recreaon Officer (RRO) was employed by South Kerry Development Partnership and SKDP implement the THE RURAL SOCIAL SCHEME Walks Scheme on behalf of the Department of Rural & Community Development. The introducon of the Rural Social Scheme in 2004 was a significant development for the Kerry Way. The Scheme, Currently there are 248 Walks Scheme parcipants on the managed by South Kerry Development Partnership, Kerry Way. provides income support for farmers and fishermen in 8 CULTURE & HISTORY Killarney on to North Cork; Tonn Toirne, the magic wave Aside from the superb landscape and views, the that took Oisin and Niamh to Tír na nÓg; the year-long unparalleled culture of this trail adds to the walker’s bale of Fionn Trá, Ventry. A walk along The Kerry Way enjoyment. from Cahersiveen to Glenbeigh largely follows in the footsteps of the magician and his students (ancient myth: History, Mythology, Archaeology: The Kerry Way has Forbuis Droma Damhghaire). been deemed ‘a walk through history’. The backbone of the trail is old highway, much of it upgraded in the late History abounds. Since much of the line is old highway, it 18th century following older lines of travel. A number of must have been the route for all acvity – economic, legs are recognised as buer roads used in former mes insurrecon and the likes. The Daniel O’Connell’s Road, for the important economic acvity of transporng, on Bóthar an Chuinsailéara is the (coastal) leg between horseback, buer made in the homes of South Kerry Waterville and Caherdaniel/Derrynane, also recognised mainly to the internaonally-recognised Cork Buer as a buer road. The Old Kenmare Road once was Exchange and to ports such as Bantry. deemed the most westerly route in the (then-known) world. Mythology is ‘lived’ while walking the Kerry Way. The Glencar area is rich in Fianna lore, supported by There is a plenitude of archaeological sites to be viewed placenames, Derrynafeana (Doire na Féinne, oak wood of from the trail. An archaeological base-line survey, The the Fianna) and Seefin (Suí Finn, Fionn’s seat). The legs Kerry Way – An Ancient Highway, published 2009, covers from Waterville to Kenmare overlook the locaons of the many archaeological sites on the trail. Milesian landings/ invasions (Ballinskelligs Bay, Kenmare River/Bay).