Like I’m on the edge of something I can’t name. Not yet. The land looks at me with eyes I’ve known my whole life, and I want to believe it still claims me. I want to believe I can claim it back.
Day Fourteen – Castleisland → Farranfore
Distance:10 mi
Route Notes:
I leave Castleisland on quiet back roads, avoiding the main N22. The route threads through small farms, passing low hills and hedgerows. Occasional glimpses of the Slieve Mish mountains to the north and the MacGillycuddy’s Reeks far ahead to the west hint at Killarney’s approach.
Location Reflection– Halfway to Farranfore:
Stopped at a bend where the hedgerows broke open to a field sloping toward the mountains. The light was different here—clearer somehow, like the air had been washed. A lone horse stood by the fence, watching me the way animals sometimes do, as if they see more than the surface. For a moment, I felt like I was being measured… and––for once––not found wanting.
Journal:
This stretch feels quieter, like the road itself is catching its breath before the end. I passed a handful of cottages, each with smoke curling from the chimney, and caught the smell of turf fires. Somewhere behind me, Kerry is unfolding mile by mile. Somewhere ahead, Killarney waits. I’ve been picturing Josh at Ross Castle, not in some grand reunion, but just… there. Watching me come in. I don’t know what I’d say to him. I’m not sure the words exist yet.
I see:
The mountains in the distance, sharp against the sky, marking the edge of the world I’ve known.
I remember:
The first time I took Josh to Kerry—the way his eyes widened when the lakes came into view, how he just stood there, silent, like the land itself had told him a secret. Maybe it had. I hope he remembers.
I feel:
Like I’m carrying two weights at once—the one I’ve borne since Galway, and another I can’t quite name that’s only appeared now, so close to the end. Maybe it’s the fear that the man Josh is waiting for won’t be the one who arrives.
Day Fifteen – Farranfore → Killarney
Distance: 6 mi
Route Notes:
A gentle approach through tree-lined lanes and open pasture. The road skirts the edge of Killarney National Park, where the first glimpse of the lakes flashes through the trees.From there, the path winds toward Ross Castle, its grey stone rising from the water’s edge.
Location Reflection– First sight of the lakes:
The water appeared between the branches like something half-remembered from a dream. Still, bright, and impossibly wide, with the mountains folded behind it in shades of blue and green. I stopped without meaning to, just stood there and let the quiet of it settle in. The wind off the lake was cool on my face, carrying the scent of pine and something older, wilder. It felt like the land was saying, ‘I know you. I’ve been waiting. Welcome home’.
Journal:
These last miles moved differently—not faster, not slower, but with a kind of inevitability. The road narrowed, the trees closed in, and the air seemed to shift. When Ross Castle finally came into view, I felt my chest seize with joy. This place has always pulled at something deep in me, a thread I can’t name but can’t ignore. I’ve carried that pull through fire, loss, and all the miles between. Now I’m here again, carrying something heavier and something lighter at the same time.
I see:
Ross Castle stands at the lake’s edge, its reflection trembling as if the past and present strain toward each other. The sight settles in my chest—fierce, familiar. My ancestral soul reaches for it before I can move, as though it has been calling to me through every mile—pulling me toward itself across countless generations.
I remember:
Standing here once before, knowing I was looking at more than stone walls and battlements. Feeling the way this place speaks in a language I don’t have to translate. A language older than me, but somehow mine.
I feel:
Like I’ve walked out of one life and into another. The man who left Galway is still in me, but so is someone new—someone who knows that love isn’t about deserving or earning; it’s about showing up. And I’m here—for him, for us––but also, forme.
Day Sixteen – Killarney National Park / Ross Castle
