Blarney – Cork Spring

Blarney Gardens…oh, and there’s a castle there, too

When we toured Ireland in 2017, our favorite city was Cork. One of the reasons we liked it so much is that it’s not really much of a tourist town. It’s scenic and there’s lots to do, and there are a few shops where you can buy souvenirs, but doesn’t have that Tourist Trap feel of summer in downtown Galway or parts of Dublin.

Outside of town, though, there’s Blarney Castle, site of the famed Blarney Stone, one of the biggest tourist destinations in Ireland. Fortunately for us, (1) it’s a short ride on public transit, so less than €2 each way, and (2) it’s way off-season, so it wasn’t crowded at all.

This sign was a fair distance from the castle, indicating how long the lines can be in the summer. We did not wait on any lines.

The real surprise of the trip was how large and lovely the gardens are. We didn’t even walk all the paths, as there are some that extend outward through the fields and forests and along the river, and around a lake that we didn’t even see. Even so, we spent more time walking through the gardens than we did in the castle itself.

Daffodils and crocuses at the base of the castle.

We followed this trail along the river to the Fern Garden, but we could have continued on a nearly 2-hour hike through the forest and around a lake.

An unexpected find, and an unidentified flower.

There are also a number of impressive trees throughout the arboreteums. I thought they some looked familiar, and indeed, they were not native, but were cedars from Northern California.

In addition to the castle, there is a much newer (1874) building on the property, a mansion that was currently closed for renovations. That is one downside to touring in the off-season…sometimes things are simply closed.

There are a cluster of gardens on the other side of the castle with whimsical names — Wishing Steps, Witches Kitchen, Druids Circle. They all sort of blend together though, in fact, we got a bit lost trying to figure out what was where. Is that the Sacrificial Altar? Or just a tree stump? Is that big tree the Irish Tree of the Year, or some other big tree?

There was also a “Pinetum”, essentially an arboretum focusing on pine trees, that struck me more like a rock garden. Also, another waterfall, and a pond.

Then there was the Fairy Glade. I wish our grandkids had been with us, because I’m sure they would have had better luck spotting the fairies than we did!

So after several hours touring the gardens, we finally went up to the castle.

Unlike other castles we’ve seen, which have essentially been military fortresses, people actually lived here. But it was also a fortress. So, instead of having a coat rack in the front hall so you could hang up guests’ coats, there was a “murder hole” so you could pouring boiling oil on their heads.

Some parts are in better repair than others. There was also a tower similar to the one on the right that was surrounded by scaffolding as repairs were being made.

There were a few other people around, but really, we had the place almost to ourselves. The rooms are cold and mostly dark, and except for the main hall, small, with claustrophobia-inducing doorways and stairwells. You could really get a sense of how bleak life must have felt even for those who could afford the fancy real estate of the time. I don’t think you would really be able to get a good sense of the space crammed in hundreds of people, cranky from being on line for over an hour, just wanting to kiss the damn stone and get back to the bus to the cruise ship.

No, the ceiling isn’t that high…the floor is missing. There would have been another floor, so the fireplace would be in a normal position, not halfway up the wall. It did allow for a nice shot looking down at the entryway, though.

It’s a long walk up a very winding staircase to get to the top. In some places the ceiling is quite low. Once at the top, though, you’re rewarded by fresh air and a lovely view.

The castle grounds, and the village of Blarney.

We had the ramparts to ourselves except for two very bored looking workers who are there specifically to help lower people down to kiss the Blarney Stone. I was glad to see they had a bottle of disinfectant spray nearby. There are some odd traditions in this world, but this one strikes me as one of the dumbest. Even if there weren’t a pandemic going on, no way am I going to kiss some stupid rock.

After this we poked around in some shops, but most of the restaurants were closed, so we caught the bus back into town.

Blarney

It’s been substantially wetter in Cork, and indeed all of Ireland, this February than normal. So we’ve kept our eye on the forecast for sunny, or at least cloudy days, in order to explore the surrounding areas.

Blarney, or at least the Blarney Stone, wasn’t high on our list. But it is an 800 year old castle, and it does have a nice set of gardens, and, most importantly, it’s a 20 minute bus ride in the local zone, about 2 Euro each way.

Wednesday was our day.

The bus stops adjacent to the Blarney Woolen Mills, which, having been shuttered 45 years ago after a 150 year run, is now a tourist destination where you can purchase all manner of Irish woolen goods and trinkets. And i guess there are some folks who come to Blarney just to buy a sweater, but i assume it’s mostly the kind of thing you do after climbing the castle steps and kissing the stone.

Only 1 restaurant in town, and the one at the mill, were open when we were there. I was having a hankering for sausage rolls, and they weren’t on the menu at either, so we skipped it, and ate when we got back home.

Anyway, from town, you can get your first view of the castle.

*Actually, this photo is from the castle grounds, but the view is essentially the same as from town.*

Had a nice chat with one of the groundskeepers, who seemed eager for a break, about native species, invasives, both in Ireland and North Carolina, some of the odd ferns growing on the grounds, whether he had given names to the trees he was tending. He had an interesting theory that, after the last Ice Age, almost all of Europe and much of the Americas had been denuded of plant life, so whatever took in the aftermath couldn’t be considered invasive. I told him about kudzu, so maybe that data point will lead him to modify his philosophy.

*One of several waterfalls on the grounds*

There is, of course, a lot of history on the grounds. This old lime kiln, where limestone was converted into quicklime to use as fertilizer, fascinated me. On the placard was a reminder that “lime enriches the father, but impoverishes the son.” Referencing that the continued use of lime as a fertilizer ends up depleting the soil in the long run.

*I like to think of these as the servants’ quarters, but in reality it’s a residence built in more recent times (late 19th century) by the family that currently owns the castle*

This formation of nine rocks, 7 standing and 2 toppled, supposedly dates back centuries. The story is that the king on the land, father of 9 children, led his people to a war in which he lost both his sons and so, in mourning, toppled the two stones representing them.

There was also this fallen dolmen, whose portal i passed through. Perhaps i now have some mystical powers.

On to the castle itself! We obviously were not the first to be here.

Also had some company on the way up.

The view from the top is pretty spectacular.

And, finally, the great stone itself. It’s the smooth, almost bluish thing at the bottom of the wall. And no, i didn’t put my lips on it. But i did tip the two attendants who help contort you into the ridiculous position you need to assume in order to get your face near enough to kiss it.

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