Travels with Beth: Killarney National Park

Killarney National Park (Irish: Páirc Náisiúnta Chill Airne) is located beside the town of Killarney, County Kerry. It was the first national park established in Ireland, created when Muckross Estate was donated to the Irish state in 1932. The park has since been substantially expanded and encompasses over 102.89 km² (25,425 acres) of diverse ecology, including the Lakes of Killarney, oak and yew woodlands of international importance, and mountain peaks.It has Ireland's only native herd of red deerand the most extensive covering of native forest remaining in Ireland.The park is of high ecological value because of the quality, diversity, and extensiveness of many of its habitats and the wide variety of species that they accommodate, some of which are rare. The park was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1981. Nature conservation is the main objective of the park, and ecosystems in their natural state are highly valued. The park is also known for its beautiful scenery.

Innisfallen

Some of the most impressive archaeological remains in the park are from the early Christian period. The most important of these features is Inisfallen Abbey, the ruins of a monastic settlement on Inisfallen Island in Lough Leane. It was founded in the 7th century by St. Finian the Leper and was occupied until the 14th century. The Annals of Inisfallen, a record of the early history of Ireland as it was known by the monks, was written in the monastery from the 11th to 13th centuries. It is thought that the monastery gave rise to the name Lough Leane, which means "Lake of Learning."

Red Deer at Inisfallen

Artwork in the ruins

Human presence in the Killarney area dates back at least to the early Bronze Age, over 4,000 years ago, when copper was first mined at Ross Island . In early Christian times, monastic settlements provide the main evidence of the occupation of the area.

Following the Norman invasion of Ireland the lands around the Lakes were held by McCarthy Mór and O'Donoghues of Ross. Later the lands came into the hands of the Herberts of Muckross and the Earls of Kenmare respectively.

In 1911 the Muckross Estate was purchased by Mr. W. B. Bourn as a wedding gift for his daughter, Maud, on her marriage to Arthur Vincent. Muckross Abbey, a Franciscan Friary, was founded in 1448 by Donal McCarthy Mór. These well-preserved ruins were the burial place of local Chieftains and, in the 17th and 18th centuries, of the Kerry Poets, Aodhgan O' Raithaile, Eoghan Rua O' Sullivan, Piaras Feiriteir and Seafraidh O' Donoghue.

The Lakes of Killarney are Lough Leane (the lower lake), Muckross Lake (the middle lake), and the Upper Lake. These lakes are interlinked and together make up almost a quarter of the park's area. Despite being interlinked, each lake has a unique ecosystem. The lakes join at the Meeting of the Waters, a popular tourist area.