Skellig Michael - Final Night in Glin Castle

Gene, my chauffeur driver, arranged reservations with Des Lavelle for a trip to Skellig Michael and I was told to ring at 8:30am to find out if the swells were small enough for our trip out to the island and they were – we were heading 8 miles into the ocean to climb 599 steps created by monks who lived out there, sheltered from the mainland to pray for our souls.

Driving from Waterville to Portmagee was about 30 minutes, 45 if you aren’t familiar with the roads or area and I asked for Des when I arrived at the docks 20 minutes prior to our departure. Des was quite friendly and got our names, checking us off the list as he is only licensed to take 12 passengers at a time. A few minutes later I was approached by a man who started the conversation with, “We’re not stalking you but… we saw you at the Bamboo Park yesterday.” When I took a look it was the American couple sitting at the other table in the tea room as we were discussing adoption with Claudine – and he acknowledged he could hear our conversation and congratulated us.
He introduced himself as Ed and told us he drove from below Bantry to try and catch the boat to Skellig Michael – I couldn’t even imagine driving from Bantry to make it on time, with no guarantee there was room. Another couple drove 1.45 hours from Dingle to get there and they did have a reservation while a couple from Paris drove a few hours from Kinsale! My clients will definitely be placing themselves in Waterville for the night rather than driving the distance without knowing the tour is going.

Des loaded up the boat, allowed Ed and his wife to join us as someone did not make the boat – and it was 10 minutes past 11:00am so they were definitely late… everyone is to be there 15 minutes prior to ensure their seat. Just as we pulled away someone was running down the dock trying to flag us down but it was too late, Ed was on the boat and we were heading out.

The ride was 1.25 hours into the ocean with the Skelligs getting larger with each minute. The water was calm with 5-foot swells rolling the boat slowly from side to side, relaxing in one sense but after an hour my head was rolling as well and I felt a bit uneasy. We took the long way around the smaller skellig and watched as the Gannets flew overhead and roosted on this massive rock, created a while cap as they pooped all over it (nice, eh?) In fact there was so much poop that you could smell it on the boat, making everyone wrinkle their noses until we got a nice ocean breeze the opposite direction.

Pulling up to Skellig Michael we had to dock next to another boat which was offloading supplies for the few who live there, including the lighthouse keeper and tour guides who live there for the tourist season. Des grabbed a rope in the front of the boat and pulled us closer but the swells had two boats moving in opposite directions as our passengers tried to jump from boat-to-boat – my heart was racing! I grabbed a rope from the back of the boat and tried with all of my might to get the rear of the boat closer when another guy finally helped. He jumped and it was my turn, no one holding the back of the boat as they began to separate and pitch with the waves… my heart was racing and I jumped as the boats separated, sure I would land in the water. Nope, I made it to the boat, grabbing another guy as I landed on both feet, legs quivering and hands visibly shaking. It took me a few minutes to capture my breath and calm down. How do folks do this in normal Irish weather… slipper, drizzling rain?

We began our hike around the island, noticing a helicopter pad – a nice option to go home but we know it’s for bringing in supplies or perhaps evacuating the inhabitants in bad weather. We finally reached the steps and began our ascent, passing groups of German tourists heading down to their waiting boat for the ride back.
It’s hard to describe the ascent other than slabs of rock stacked to form steps on a steep incline, no railings or rocks to hold onto. My first thought was knowing we had to come back down, staring down rather than at the steps in front of you but I quickly put that to the back of my head for when I actually had to do it.
We ascended with Scott and Sarah to the first landing and caught our breath, allowing groups of people to descend before we continued on. The next steps were much steeper and at one point we were on a foot path with a drop straight down on a steep incline and into the ocean – not great for those who are afraid of heights.
At the top we had the most stunning views of the other island as well as beehive huts created over 1,000 years ago by the monks, no mortar at all and rainproof. These huts were designed using flat stone laid at such a slight angle that rain fell away and not inside. Very basic were their homes but that was their life, devoted to God.

The descent was quiet as our boat was the last to arrive and the last to leave. We watched as the boats floated in the Atlantic until their scheduled departure time, pulling into port one-by-one and loading up with their original passengers. This left the island quiet as we carefully descended each step, stopping occasionally to get my footing and take a few dozen photos. No one was going to believe the weather let alone the amazing photos. I had to take as many as possible to capture the moment.

Back at the bottom we met Sarah, Scott, Ed and the couple from France and talked a while before our boat came. Yes, politics came up and we vented about the current climate and hoping for change, mainly that Obama is our next President.
The ride back wasn’t bad at all with a little wind hitting us in the face and definitely helping with the sea sickness. Bob and Ed talked about our adoption for quite some time before Ed noticed a whale breaching the waters. We all stared the same direction and it surfaced again, Ed guessing it was a pilot wale and Des confirming it based on the dorsal fin location. Free whale watching tour for us since it wasn’t planned!

We all parted ways, Bob and I heading to Glin for our last night in Glin Castle. It was about a 2.5 hour ride however driving out of the Ring of Kerry was quick due to new, larger roads and plenty of room. We slowed down between Killorglin and Tralee due to traffic and a maze of roads in Tralee to get us through to the other side.
We arrived at Glin around 7pm, late by our standards but it was a long and productive day, with Irish suntans to prove it! We pulled up to unload our luggage and within minutes two men were unloading our car and advising us to leave the keys, they would park it. A short registration and quick tour of the public sitting rooms we were off to our room, the East Room on the 3rd floor. It was large and included a king-size bed which was quite nice after a double bed in Butler Arms Hotel. The room was magnificent and the castle was intimate, more than I ever thought. In fact, we were staying in the Knight of Glin’s home – a descendent of the Fitzgeralds of Limerick since the 14th century. The rooms were magnificently decorated and I can see why my clients like this on our Haunted Castles tour though I haven’t seen a ghost yet myself.

Dinner was a fixed price of €60 per person which is quite reasonable for castles and the dining room is small, intimate and furnished with paintings of what I believe to be ancestors.

We grabbed a small table for two near the window and the menu had many choices for each course and I was looking for a change so I went with the pan seared scallops and traditional Irish pudding (blood sausage), apple and Calvados Sherbert, fillet of sole stuffed with crab meat with a classic hollandaise sauce – and topped with a mixed berry dessert and coffee. The meal was amazing and we both agreed that it was our favorite so far, barring Florence’s home cooking of course.

We met another couple, Donald and Phyllis Epstein and had a good conversation on politics with them before an Irish couple joined in, discussing both country’s financial problems. Before long it was off to bed as we had a fairly busy morning with a 1.5 hour drive to the airport, stopping at Adare along the way.