Our second day on the Ring of Kerry, and our last full day in Ireland, was by far our favorite day. We grabbed an assortment of snacks, treats, and beer from a local shop and set off for Derrynane. The drive was lush and green (like straight out of a car commercial) and hugged the Irish coastline dipping in, now and then, to cut through the rolling farmland hills. As an L.A. girl I was just so impressed by how GREEN everything was. Completely mesmerized by it actually. It’s amazing what a bit of rain – or a lot – can do to a landscape!
As we neared Derrynane we stopped at a pub called The Blind Piper for a lunch of coconut curry mussels, French fries, and Irish coffees (soooooo good). They had a beautiful little garden and play structure area out back with picnic tables so we were able to eat our food in peace while the kids played (one of life’s little luxuries for me).
After that, it was just a short drive to Derrynane Beach where the children had the best time playing in the ocean. The skies were gray but the weather and water were warm so the kids even swam around a bit. I loved the ominous Skellig Islands (where Star Wars was filmed) in the distance, barely visible through the fog. Unfortunately for me though, no puffins were at the beach that day (I was embarrassingly excited to see them).
Outfit details above:
Hannah (Armor Luxe Striped Shirt, J Brand Jeans)
Henry (Armor Luxe Striped Shirt)
Vivienne (Armor Luxe Striped Shirt)
The next stop was the cherry on top of the day for the kids. A short drive from Derrynane Beach are the Irish Fairy Trails. If you head to the Ahamore Tearooms located at the Derrynane House they have cute little maps of the trails and it’s the perfect opportunity to grab last minute refreshments before heading out. Once we downed our tea and ice creams we followed the kids into the woodlands in search of the fairy houses. Under the shady green canopy of the forest are winding little trails dotted with intricate fairy houses, each different than the last and there seemed to be no shortage of them. They were absolutely precious and the kids just couldn’t get enough of exploring the trails to find them, in all their magical, delicate beauty. It was such a treat and even inspired us to make our own fairy house back home.
My boots are by Aigle
Vivi’s jelly sandals are by Meduse (gold version of them here)
The next day we drove back to the airport, sad to leave but so happy have made those memories. What a stunning country Ireland is. We desperately want to do a Scotland/Ireland trip in the future.
