When we talk about emeralds, one immediately thinks of precious stones, diamonds, ruby and sapphires. However, today, the emerald I will speak to you about is Ireland !
The country is nicknamed the Emerald Isle or the green island. Ireland is also known as the land of 40 shades of green. We must point out that these nicknames have not been given by chance ! Indeed, Ireland has a surface area of 70 273 square kilometers and its population is relatively sparse (less than 65 inhabitants per square kilometer) with an urbanization rate of barely 60%. Ireland is made up of towns and villages, but also and above all of large wild spaces, between mountains, moors, fields and thick forests, all dotted with impressive lakes !
Some figures :
To give you an idea, Ireland represents approximately 1/7 of the area of France.
In Ireland, almost the quarter of the total population can be found in Dublin, the capital, which remains the main city, far ahead of Cork (120 000 inhabitants).
One place that perfectly illustrates the Emerald Isle, is the national park of Killarney in the county of Kerry. Killarney's park is one among the numerous that Ireland owns but it stands out as it is the biggest of all ! This park stretches along more than 10,000 acres and offers unforgettable and various landscapes of mountains, lakes, woodland and waterfalls.
The park includes 3 lakes :
Muckross Lake
Lough Leane
Upperlake
On the map above, there are the Muckross Lake and the Lough Leane lake. In the southeast of the Muckross Lake, there is the Upperlake lake.
There are 4 main mountain peaks : Purple Mountain, Shehy Mountain, Mangerton Mountain and Torc Mountain.
Did you know it ?
The Killarney national park is listed in the UNESCO world heritage since 1982 under the designation of "Biosphere reserve".
I had the opportunity to go and discover the Killarney Park with two other MTU interns. On that day, we went by car from Cork for an approximately one-hour trip towards the city of Killarney. We took the national 22 and when we were looking through the window, the landscape was stunning : from green fields to high mountains to large bodies of water, we had the impression the road was lost in the middle of nature. We were driving within "the green jewel"…
Arriving in Killarney, we began our day by wandering through the city of Killarney. A lot of carriages were parking in the city. It was possible to take a carriage and do a tour of the lake. The city of Killarney is not big but it has a busy street with a lot of gift shops.
After our visit in the city, we got to Muckross House and Gardens in the Killarney Park. It is an old Irish mansion from 1843 with 65 rooms. Today, it is a museum.
The mansion has huge gardens stretching to the lac and the view onto the lake is breathtaking from these gardens.
Some other people were also enjoying these gardens within this green heaven for having picnic, walking, playing sports and admiring the view.
Afterwards, we headed to the Torc waterfall. To get there, we walked through a forest that looked more like a jungle. It was almost impossible to see the sky, the trees were so high and leafy. At last, we went out the forest and we arrived in a kind of meadow with a view on a mountain covered with trees in the distance. It was the Torc mountain where spring out the Torc waterfall. We had to climb up a short way up this mountain before beginning to hear the waterfall. But there, the spectacle was of any beauty. The waterfall fell in front of us from a height of 18 m !
The Torc waterfall is a wild waterfall situated in the middle of the forest at the foot of the Torc mountain. Its setting makes it a very popular place for visitors. We weren't the only ones who came to admire it ! All that was missing from the decor were the elves and leprechauns...however, it was not difficult to imagine them...
After having admired it, we decided to keep on climbing the Torc mountain and, at the same time to go around the smaller of the Killarney park's lakes : the one of Muckross, that is to say an adventure of a bit more than 15 kilometers, all by foot ! This choice offered us the possibility to cross the Brickeen bridge separating the two lakes and to contemplate the very rich nature of this park.
Killarney Park has the biggest natural forest of Ireland and an unique fauna can be found here such as the last herd of red deer in the country. This herd numbers more than 800 animals. In addition to the red deer, you can also see the Japanese deer introduced to Killarney in 1865. Besides the deer, this park is a natural refuge for umpteen species of birds and fishes too.
At the beginning of our adventure, we walked down the Torc moutain on dirt and stones paths. We were lost among the trees of this mountain and seeing the lake was quite difficult.
Surprisingly, when we began walking, we noticed that around the lake, there was a paved road making the walk very easy. You can even find a coffee shop halfway there.
In Killarney Park, you have the impression to be tiny. Green is everywhere around you. The beauty of the wild nature reminds us that we have to protect them to keep on appreciating it during a lot of years.
Brickeen bridge was situated after the coffee shop. This stone bridge separates the small lake of Muckross from the large lake of Lough Leane.
We finished our 15 kilometers by heading to the Muckross abbey which dates back 1448. This one is special. Partly tumbled down, it houses a century-old yew tree in the center of its cloister. The trunk of this one turns on itself giving the impression that the tree is moving and rising towards the sky ! The wild nature surrounding the abbey and its mysterious corridors make it an impressive place. Destroyed and rebuilt several times throughout history, this abbey bears witness to the past...
When we looked through its windows, we could see graveyards erected here and there in the middle of wild nature. The abbey cemetery is scary after dark. The atmosphere that reigns there seems to be indescribable...
After the Muckross abbey, we began our return to the Muckross House and Gardens car park. We will remember from this day one thing : the Emerald Isle owns its 40 shades of green !
In my next post, I will talk to you about myths and legends...
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