The Kerry Way: Self-Guided How to plan your multi-day backpacking trip around Ireland’s scenic Ring of Kerry Many are familiar with the beautiful Ring of Kerry in County Kerry, Ireland, but far fewer are aware that the entire route can be walked instead of driven. Despite The Kerry Way’s status as one of the most popular of Ireland’s National Waymarked Trails, I had more difficulty finding advice to help me prepare for it than I did for hikes in Scotland and the United Kingdom. At approximately 135 miles, it’s also the longest of Ireland’s trails, and in retrospect I’ve noticed that many companies who offer self-guided itineraries actually cut off two whole sections of the route - in my opinion, some of the prettiest sections. In honor of completing my own trek with nothing but online articles and digital apps to guide the way, I thought I’d pay it forward by creating my own budget-minded backpacker’s guide (for the WHOLE route) so that others might benefit from what I learned. If you prefer to stay in B&Bs rather than camping or budget accommodations, I’ve outlined how you can swap out some of my choices for your own. Stats: English Name: The Kerry Way Irish Name: Slí Uíbh Ráthaigh Location: Iveragh Peninsula, County Kerry, Ireland Official Length: 135 miles (217 km), but there are multiple route options Completion Time: 9 Days is the typical schedule High Point: 1,263ft (385m) at Windy Gap, between Glencar and Glenbeigh Route Style: Circular Loop Table of Contents: (Click to Jump To) Preparedness: Things to Consider Weather Gear Amenities Currency Language Wildlife Cell Service Physical Fitness Popularity Waymarking To Camp or Not to Camp? Emergencies Resources Getting There // Getting Around Route // Accommodations Preparedness: Things to Consider WEATHER According to DiscoveringIreland, “the average number of wet days (days with more than 1mm of rain) ranges from about 150 days a year along the east and south-east coasts, to about 225 days a year in parts of the west.” Our route along the Iveragh Peninsula follows the southwest coast of Ireland. It’s often cited that the best time to hike there is between the months of May and August, when the cold has subsided but temperatures still rarely exceed 77°F (25 °C), plus more local services are available. I went in late September and my nine-day route was split into four sunny days and five rainy days. The rainy days were all over the place, sometimes on-and- off with light rain, other times a consistent rain all day. September and October are hurricane season in the United States, so when the remnants of those storms make their way across the Atlantic, they often influence the weather on the western coasts of Europe. I never experienced lightning or thunderstorms in Ireland, so the rain itself isn’t a huge issue as long as you pack the proper gear and have opportunities to get dry. The bigger problem is the boggy wetlands underfoot. It can cause hikers to slip, especially on any kind of hilly incline. Again, proper gear can minimize risk. For a more in-depth look at the Irish climate check out Climates To Travel, with special notice of the temperature and precipitation grids for Valentia. GEAR I never got very cold, so extra jacket layers are not necessary. Everything that helped me the most was to do with the rain. You can find my full gear list and a review of everything I brought along for my hike, including exact products and brands, HERE. Below is a brief overview: - Sweat-wicking Smartwool base layers. - Extreme waterproof jacket (mine had no insulating down or fleece material). - “Waterproof” hiking boots (any brand will submit to the wetlands eventually). - Multiple pairs of socks, preferably tall ones to protect your skin from brush and insects. - Camp shoes to change into when you need to dry your feet out (I brought Chaco sandals, which can also be used for water crossings to save your regular shoes the submersion). - Rain pants. I wore mine over leggings so I could take them off if the rain stopped, as they’re a bit restrictive of movement. - Waterproof and windproof tent and footprint if you’re camping (I had one particularly windy night that gave my tent a run for it’s money), and definitely a sleeping pad to keep you off the ground in case it’s wet and cold. - A synthetic sleeping bag. Synthetic dries easier than down. - Trekking poles to aid with the uphills and downhills, especially in boggy, slick terrain. - A portable battery pack to recharge your phone, especially if you plan on using your phone for picture-taking or consulting maps. - Rain cover for your backpack. - Dry bags or some other method of keeping valuables inside your pack safe from moisture. - Sunscreen - don’t let the cloudiness fool you. - Permethrin. I read about the prevalence of ticks and sprayed all my clothes and tent down with repellant prior to my trip. I never had an issue, and of course can’t be sure whether that’s because of my precautions, or if it turns out ticks just aren’t a huge concern after all. - First Aid Kit - Trowel - As always, a map and compass, and the ability to read them. Keep in mind it can be very different in the summer, and you may want to add shorts and extra water to your list. I only carried two liters and never needed to use my water filter or iodine drops to collect from natural water sources because the route goes through towns often enough to resupply, but in warmer weather when staying hydrated is key, I might have been glad I brought them. Many people opt to have their gear transported from one accommodation to the next via a car service, while they hike with just a day pack of essentials. If you’re a purist about backpacking, you’ll want to carry all your own gear. If you’re looking for a more relaxed holiday, and especially if you’re not camping, you might prefer not to have a big heavy pack on your back every day. Some folks think in order to take advantage of a baggage service, they need to book their tours with a company who will also charge you to book all your accommodations and other logistics. We self-guided hikers know that isn’t necessary, right? You can hit up a baggage transfer service yourself directly and have them take care of it for you without the middle man. One such service is The Pathway Porter. If you’re staying in B&Bs, many of them will also coordinate your baggage transfer for you for an additional fee. Amenities You will walk through towns with markets and accommodations so often that you need not overpack too much extra food or be concerned about having an injury far from civilization. The following towns will allow you to resupply: Killarney, Glenbeigh, Cahersiveen, Waterville, Sneem, Kenmare. There may not always be bathrooms nearby, however, so pack a trowel and follow Leave No Trace principles. Currency Ireland uses the Euro. Northern Ireland uses the British Pound, so if you’ve made a pitstop in somewhere like Belfast, you’ll need to exchange to local currency on your way towards Kerry. Language The Irish mostly speak English. As my tour guide in Dublin explained, they are encouraged to learn Irish in school, but most kids don’t see how it will serve them and don’t put much effort into it. You will see a ton of road signs with Irish writing, but shouldn’t run into anyone who speaks only Irish and no English. You might, however, have trouble understanding the accent from time to time, or be confronted with phrases of slang you don’t recognize. As with any destination, brushing up on a few local phrases is always a good idea before arrival. The most important one in the origin country of Guinness, of course, is “Cheers!”, for which one might say “Sláinte” (pronounced “slawn-cha”, which translates to “health”). Wildlife There are no major predators to be worried about on The Kerry Way. The only real concern might be ticks, for which you can take precaution by spraying your clothes with permethrin and wearing tall socks so as to leave skin unexposed. Be vigilant when crossing farmland with livestock, mainly cows and sheep. Wild animals you might encounter, though, according to The Dunloe, include the red deer, bank vole, pine marten, silka deer, squirrels, rabbits, badgers, hedgehogs, the Irish hare, grey seals, dolphins, minke whales, beaked whales, leatherback turtles, plus hundreds of bird species. Cell Service Depending on your cell carrier, you may be able to opt into a worldwide travel plan. I have Verizon here in America, and the TravelPass was too expensive at $10/day. I thought about getting GoogleFi, which I’ve heard great things about, but waited too long to sort it out and ended up just getting a local SIM card that worked in all the countries I was visiting. Having a lot of data was important to me since I was hiking and camping and would rarely have WiFi access. I wanted to be able to chronicle my adventures on social media, access maps and weather, and use my browser to search anything I might get confused about. I paid £30 at a Tesco in Glasgow for 20GB of data for one month.