Overview

Ireland is like a nice pint of Guiness, best appreciated at a leisurely pace. The patchwork of farmland in County Cork is such an unreal green, cyclists have to pause to take it all in. Neighboring county Kerry's rugged coastline has been battered into deep bays and rocky coves best explored on two wheels. Only Spyns can let you kiss the Blarney stone, stay in a castle, cycle around the world's deepest bay, boat the lakes at Killarney and pet Billy the bulldog ("guardian" of Cork's most luxurious B&B). The scenery will knock your (biking) socks off but the friendly and talkative Irish will be the most memorable part your Spyns adventure to Ireland.   

Highlights

• Fully guided
• Luxury hotels and inns
• 6 days / 5 nights
• Start: Cork or Limerick / Finish: Killarney
• Destinations: Cork (Blarney, Bantry, Sheep's Head Peninsula) and Kerry (Beara Peninsula, Kenmare and Killarney)
• Activity: Cycling 4.5 days Optional: Sea Kayaking and Hiking

Day 1: Transfer provided from either Cork or Limerick to our departure point in the picturesque village of Blarney . Climb the battlements to kiss the stone before being given your 27-speed hybrid bike. After a brief safety chat and review of the maps and route instructions, we set off along the Lee valley for the market town of Macroom. Meander along the old muskerry train line with its farms and forest returning via small country roads to spend the night in a luxury hotel and spa in picturesque Macroom  Total ride: 20 miles (32 kms). 

Need more info? Click this button for real-time answers to your questions from a Spyns team member.

Day 2: After a morning swim and hearty Irish breakfast, cycle west for 4 miles before heading southwest for Gouganne Barra where St. Finbarr, the patron saint of Cork, founded a monastery. The approach to this wonderful wooded area is known to few but that does not take away from its incredible beauty where, among other features, the river Lee rises. After lunch in a local pub we continue on to Bantry via the Keimaneigh pass (translated as “the leap of the deer” pass). Home for the next two nights is the majestic Bantry House with commanding views over Bantry Bay and the Atlantic . Bantry House is the former residence of the 1^st Earl of Bantry (born Richard White). The mansion is still owned by the White family who rents out rooms to a select few guests each year. At dinner we feast on fresh seafood while enjoying the sunset over the Atlantic . Total ride: short 20 miles (32 kms) long 40 miles (64 kms) some climbs but overall of moderate difficulty.  

Day 3: Breakfast in Bantry House’s stately dining room awaits followed by an optional cycling tour of the first of three peninsulas. Choose to enjoy the ground’s gardens (some of the most beautiful in the country), walk down the hundred steps to the water, or perhaps play a morning round of golf. For those who wish to ride, wind your way along the north shore of quiet Sheep’s Head peninsula with Bantry Bay to your right and Beara peninsula looming in the background. We cross to lovely Ahakista on the southern shores now with the Mizen peninsula in the background. After a gourmet picnic prepared by Ryan, we return back to the manor via Durrus. Total ride : short 25 miles (40 kms) long 40 miles (64 kms). 

Day 4: Sadly we must leave the baronial splendor of Bantry House (pictured here) striking out for Beara Peninsula. The lush vegetation in this area is influenced from the warm Gulf Stream, almost 4,000 miles away. If you need more exercise, join an afternoon of sea kayaking or simply unwind in the breathtaking gardens of Mossie's luxury B&B with Billy, the manor's resident bulldog, standing guard.  Total ride : short 28 miles (44.8 kms) long 45 miles (72 kms). 

Day 5: We will enjoy perhaps a lighter breakfast this morning before striking out for Killarney via the majestic Beara Pass. This ride includes some of the most beautiful scenery on the tour. Camera at the ready, you will be making several stops the Pass and Killarney Lakes. Picturesque pub lunch followed by an optional afternoon ride and boat ride through the Black Valley; a spectacular unspoiled valley with more sheep than people. Named the "Black Valley" because it was the last place in Ireland to have electricity. We transfer riders and bikes to a boat for our transfer to our last hotel. The Cahernane House in Killarney national park. Total Ride: 35 miles (50 kms). Gourmet dinner at Cahernane House, a splended manor house hotel. 

Days 6 : Take another morning spin around the beautiful Killarney Lakes or head to town for some shopping before your final departure from Killarney station. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR TO BOOK THIS TOUR CALL 
888-825-4720 OR EMAIL info@spyns.com. 


 Background: Cork & Kerry

County Cork (Irish: Contae Chorcaí) is the most southwesterly and the largest of the modern counties of Republic of Ireland. Cork is nicknamed "The Rebel County", as a result of the support of the townsmen of Cork in 1491 for Perkin Warbeck, a pretender to the throne of England during the Wars of the Roses. In more recent times, the name has referred to the prominent role Cork played in the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921) and its position as an anti-treaty stronghold during the Irish Civil War (1922-23). Attractions include the Blarney Stone and Cobh (formerly Queenstown), the port where many Irish emigrants boarded for their voyage to the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or South Africa and also the last stop of the Titanic, before departing on its doomed journey. The city of Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and capital of the province of Munster. 

The remote western area of the county, known as West Cork, is a popular destination for tourists, who visit the small villages and islands including Sherkin Island, Oileán Chléire or Cape Clear Island and Dursey Island. Mizen Head, the "southwesternmost point in Ireland" is also in West Cork, as is Sheep's Head. In recent years land in the far west of the county has become in high demand internationally, and large numbers of EU citizens have settled in the area, along with celebrities such as Jeremy Irons and director Neil Jordan. West Cork is noted for its rugged natural beauty, fine beaches and distinct social atmosphere, which is more relaxed than most of the country.

West Cork has a disproportionately large population of artisans, musicians, poets and playwrights.Much of what is now county Cork was once part of the Kingdom of Deis Muin (South Munster), anglicised as "Desmond", ruled by the MacCarthy Mor dynasty. After the Norman Invasion in the 12th century, the MacCarthy clan were pushed westward into what is now west Cork and county Kerry. The north and east of Cork were taken by the Hiberno-Norman Fitzgerald dynasty, who became the Earls of Desmond. Cork City was given an English Royal Charter in 1318 and for many centuries was an outpost for Old English culture. See also History of Cork city.

The Fitzgerald Desmond dynasty was destroyed in the Desmond Rebellions of 1569-1573 and 1579-83. Much of county Cork was devastated in the fighting, particularly in the Second Desmond Rebellion. In the aftermath, much of Cork was colonised by English settlers in the Plantation of Munster. In 1491 Cork played a part in the English Wars of the Roses when Perkin Warbeck, a pretender to the English throne, landed in the city and tried to recruit support for a plot to overthrow Henry VII of England. The mayor of Cork and several important citizens went with Warbeck to England but when the rebellion collapsed they were all captured and executed. Cork's nickname of the 'rebel city' originates in these events. The nickname was later applied to the whole county. 

In 1601 the decisive Battle of Kinsale (Irish: Cath Cionn tSáile) took place in County Cork, which was to lead to English domination of Ireland for centuries. Kinsale had been the scene of a landing of Spanish troops to help Irish rebels in the Nine Years War (1594-1603). When this force was defeated, the rebel hopes for victory in the war were all but ended. County Cork was officially created by a division of the older County Desmond in 1606.In the 19th century, Cork was a centre for the Fenians and for the constituional nationalism of the Irish Parliamentary Party. The county was a hotbed of guerrilla activity during the Irish War of Independence 1919-1921. Three Cork Brigades of the Irish Republican Army operated in the county and another in the city. Prominent actions included the Kilmichael Ambush in November 1920 and the Crossbarry Ambush in March 1921. The activity of IRA flying columns, such as the one under Tom Barry in west Cork, was recently popularised in the Ken Loach film The Wind That Shakes The Barley. The centre of Cork city was razed to the ground by the British Black and Tans, in December 1920 as were many other towns and villages around the county. 

During the Irish Civil War (1922-23), most of the IRA units in Cork sided against the Anglo-Irish Treaty. From July to August 1922 they held the city and county as part of the so called Munster Republic. However, Cork was taken by troops of the Irish Free State in August 1922 in the Irish Free State offensive, that included both overland and seaborne attacks. For the remainder of the war, the county saw sporadic guerrilla fighting until the Anti-Treaty side called a ceasefire and dumped their arms in May 1923. Michael Collins, a key figure in the War of Independence, was born near Clonakilty and assassinated during the civil war in Béal na Bláth, both in West Cork. County Cork has two Gaeltacht areas where the Irish language is still the primary medium of everyday speech. These are Múscraí (English: Muskerry) in the north of the county, especially the village of Cúil Aodha (English: Coolea) and ) and Oileán Chléire (English: Cape Clear) an island in the west accessible only by ferry.

The South-West region comprising of counties Cork and Kerry contribute € 22.298 billion (2002 values) towards the Irish GDP. The harbour area to the immediate east of the city is home to a large number of pharmacutical and medical companies.

County Kerry (Irish: 'Contae Chiarraí') is a county in the south west of Ireland, in the Munster province of the Republic of Ireland, informally referred to as 'The Kingdom'. It has an area of 4,746 km² (1,832 square miles), and is bordered by County Limerick (east) and County Cork (South-east). The county town is Tralee. One of Ireland's most famous towns, Killarney, is located in Kerry. The county has two national parks, the Killarney Lakes and Dingle Peninsula. The tip of the Dingle Peninsula is the most westerly point in mainland Ireland. Kerry has the highest mountain range in Ireland: Macgillycuddy's Reeks.

The county is bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean and on the north by the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland. Kerry's coast is a series of peninsulas and large bays. As well as the Dingle Peninsula there is the Ring of Kerry on the Iveragh Peninsula, a popular route for tourists and cyclists The pedestrian version is the scenic Kerry Way which follows ancient paths generally higher than that adopted by the Ring of Kerry. Just off Kerry's coast are a number of islands, including the Blasket Islands and the Skelligs. Skellig Michael is a World Heritage Site, famous for the medieval monastery clinging to the island's cliffs. The county has three local newspapers: The Kerryman and The Kerry's Eye, published in Tralee; and The Kingdom, published in Killarney. The county has a commercial radio station, Radio Kerry, which commenced operations on 14th July 1990, having replaced Kingdom Radio.

The North Atlantic Current, part of the Gulf Stream, flows north by Kerry and the west coast of Ireland, resulting in milder temperatures than would otherwise be expected at the 52 North latitude. This means that subtropical plants such as Arbutus and tree ferns, not normally found in Northern Europe, thrive in the area. There are a number of gardens in the county, open to visitors. Because of the mountainous area and the prevailing south-westerly winds, Kerry is among the regions with the highest rainfall in Ireland. Due to its location, the area is the site of a weather reporting station on Valentia for many centuries. The Irish record for one-day rain-fall is 243.5mm, recorded at Cloore Lake, in Kerry in 1993. In 1986, the remnants of Hurricane Charley crossed over Kerry as an extratropical storm causing extensive rainfall, flooding and damage.