Kickin' it in Killarney!

This past weekend Adam and I decided it might be nice to spend some time together catching up after three weeks apart. So instead of sleeping in on Saturday and being lazy we hopped in our little Toyota Corolla hatchback and drove one county to the West (aka Kerry) to check out Killarney National Park.

The park is 26,000 acres of lakes, lush green fields, woodlands, waterfalls, and mountains. In fact it includes the highest mountain range in Ireland. 

In addition to all the lush nature the park has to offer, it is also home to the Muckross House and Gardens. This amazing 19th century mansion is available for touring, but Adam and I opted to simply check out the exterior and grounds. There is a lovely greenhouse and walled garden where the last of the spring flowers were still hanging on.

 When we arrived the Kerry Greyhound Rescue group happened to be congregating on the lawn preparing for a charity walk that day. I was able to enjoy a few moments meeting two very sweet rescue dogs before moving on with our hike. Gotta get my doggy lovin' wherever I can!

Muckross House

On the road leading up to the Muckross House

Greyhounds Everywhere!

I could not resist snapping a picture of this poppy, it was just so vibrant!

We stuck to the trails just South of Muckross lake, wound our way up past the Torc waterfall, through the woods, back past the Muckross house, and over to the Muckross Abbey, to Grandmothers house we go!

The Abbey was founded in 1448 as a Franciscan Friary. The building remains well preserved and the land around it is host to a small but beautiful cemetery covered in wildflowers. Just outside of the abbey was a field with huge black cows laying in the green grass enjoying the beautiful spring day.  I've been thinking Ireland should steal the "Happy Cow's Come from California" campaign, because there is no way California cows are as happy as these guys!

Happy Cows Come from Ireland!

We packed PB&J's and enjoyed them on the trail. Adam was sporting his sweet Kerrygold backpack claiming to do a little marketing for the Irish Dairy Board. We chatted, laughed, and acted silly; and at one point we had a question we did not know the answer to, so Adam pulled out his phone to look it up! Nature and technology coexisting, what a crazy world we live in! Overall we lucked out with a lovely day and enjoyed our time together exploring another little piece of Ireland.

Enjoying my PB&J on the go!

Adam, technology, and nature in perfect harmony!

To give you some idea of the ground we covered below is a map of the park. We hiked in the areas marked in pink. We still have lots of park to see, so hopefully we'll make it back sometime soon!