Bere Island ~ our ancestral home. A beauty spot on the southwest coast of Ireland in County Cork. It takes an effort to get there but the trip is worth it, especially if you give yourself the chance to ponder the history and culture that, in spite of many modernizations, is still evident. To place Bere Island in perspective, I've painstakingly drawn this map of the southwest region of Ireland showing Bere Island (just below the red star) - just kidding, it's a MapQuest map of Castletownbere, the closest town on the mainland. You can catch the ferry to the West End from the Pier just off the square. Murphy's ferry to the East End (Rerrin Village) departs near the golf course up the road a ways at the Pontoon, 3km from Castletownbere on the Glengarriff side of Castletown next to the Berehaven Golf Course.

What to do on Bere Island

Relax, enjoy the scenery, explore the island, and go to the pub at night.

Here are some more specific suggestions of places to go and things to do on Bere Island:

• Take a coastal walk to Ardnakinna Point lighthouse
• Walk up to the hilltop ruins of a signal tower, the Cloughland Martello Tower coming to mind The best way up is from the road between the pub and the shop in the village and turn right at the fork in the road; soon you should see a sign pointing up and off to the left. Ardagh, another hill, also has a Martello tower on it. There is an effort underway to restore the Martello Tower there and make into a Heritage Center. There were four Martello towers in all on Bere Island, two of them remain today.
• Treck up to visit St. Michael's Well. I've done this, I should say accomplished this, as it was quite a feat to follow the stream uphill, in the rain, way up . . . then down again! St. Michael's well, that's a story in itself.
• Visit the Wedge Tomb in Ardra on the side of a road out from Rerrin beside O'Sullivan's Pub. This has always been known as the Druid Alter by Bere Islanders. The alter "flag" stone is akilter and the property owner, who happens to own the pub as well, and a neighbor tried to right the stone a while back. A strong gusty wind subsequently knocked it down again and they decided to leave it down "for safety reasons," but in the back of my mind I'm wondering if they just don't dare mess with the gods again.
• Tour the military barracks at Lonehort - you'll find vestiges of a high military presence on Bere Island as it was used as an outpost first by the Vikings and for many years by the British.
• Visit St. Michael's Church in Ballynakilla and the graveyard in the back of the church.
• Trek to the Holy Year Cross on Knockanallig, a huge concrete cross built by the people of Bere Island in 1950. You can drive up and enjoy the panoramic view from up there.
• Walk "The Bere Island Walking Route ."
  

  THE BEARA WAY WALKING ROUTE: BERE ISLAND* Bere Island 21.3km (13.3 miles)

  "From the pier at Rerrin village ( Lawrence's Cove) the route travels in a loop around the East End of the Island. It passes back towards the village passing a large wedge grave. There is the option here of taking a spur to the Martello tower (1.6km) or going west from the village to the middle of the Island where a much longer loop can be undertaken.

  A prominent standing stone marks the middle point of the Island. Here the walker can keep right and follow the Way along roads back to the West End ferry. The alternative is to keep left and follow the longer track on the hill roads passing just below the Marian Year cross. The Way continues along open hill to the very western end of the Island towards the lighthouse.
  
  A green road and a short trek across country will take you back to the ferry to Castletownbere."*

  *Excerpted from the website: Beara Tourism: Walking the Beara Way See more walks on the Beara Tourism website.

Some of the townland names on Bere Island are, starting west to east:

• Derrycreeveen (at the far West End); the lighthouse is located on Ardnakinna Point.
• Ballynakilla, crossing north to south, like Derrycreeveen but just to the right (east) of it. There is a shop, the church, the school, and the hotel (which isn't a hotel, but a popular bar). The West End ferry to Castletownbere leaves from there.
• Greenane, in the "far back" toward the eastern end of the island (on the Atlantic side).
• Ardagh, in line with Greenane but on the "front" or Bere Haven harbour side of the island; there are several holiday homes in this area near the Marina.
• Cloughlin (or Cloughland, we say), is within walking distance to the village at Rerrin;it goes from the Atlantic side high on the cliffs down to a narrow inlet, heading out to Laurence Cove. There are actually four sections of Cloughlin, both on high ground and low covering both sides of the island. There is a new B&B, Martello View, in Cloughlin.
• Rerrin is the lively village on the East End with a shop, a restaurant, a pub, Murphy's ferry at Laurence Cove, and the army camp.
• Ardra (say "ahd-rah" with the emphasis on the second syllable, versus "ar-dic", with the emphasis on the first syllable for Ardagh) at the far east of the island. There's a rifle range there and a strand, and the wedge shaped grave, or "druid's alter" [reference: Bere Island, A Short History, by Ted O'Sullivan, 1992, page 45].

If I've gotten my geography of the island wrong, I hope to be able to correct it as I get my bearings and learn more about Bere Island myself.

If you're feeling more adventurous, you could follow some of the ideas in the Adventure Guide Services Ireland Adventures description of their three-day Bere Island trip by kayak! Whether by foot or by car, by bicycle or by boat, there are many historic places of interest to visit.

If you spend much time on Bere Island, you will likely want to venture off the island for provisions or a day trip and eventually back home. A quick ferry ride will take you to the nearest city, Castletownbere, or just Castletown when you are there. See more info on Castletown and the surrounding area and the Beara Peninsula.

Neighboring Castletownbere

Castletown is great for a day's shopping trip on foot or a drive to the ruins of Dunboy Castle and the Puxley Mansion (also a ruins). There's not much left to see of the castle but you can enjoy the panoramic view from the Dunboy Castle. Read the history of the Dunboy Castle and the Puxley Mansion

The Beara Peninsula and the Ring of Beara

From Bere Island, you could also follow the Ring of Beara. The Ring of Beara circles around the Beara Peninsula. The Ring of Beara (see map) would take a half to a full day to drive the approximately 120 miles of rugged, hilly coastline. Enjoy a short travelogue of one couple's tour of the area by car and a young woman's account of her bike tour around the ring. Here are some suggested rides, whether by car or bicycle:

• Glengarriff to Allihes
• Allihes to Kenmare
• Cycling Routes on the Beara Peninsula including a map of the Beara Way Cycling Route and Map of Beara Gougane Beara Cycling Route, a cycling route from Cork to Ballylicky to Banty connecting to the Beara Way in Glenngarrif, which makes a nice leisurely drive as well.
• Travel Guide to the Beara Peninsula
  A tour route from Glenngarrif through Healy Pass, by the highest waterfall in Ireland on Hungry Hill, to Castletownbere.
• ABC News Video of Beara Peninsula
  View a video of the beautiful Beara Peninsula and read related story of Sam Champion, ABC's weatherman, who traced his roots back to Cork County, Ireland. [November 1, 2006]
  

Useful Information on Bere Island

There's a church, of course, and two pubs, one at the Hotel heading west and Desi's in the village (Rerrin). There are a couple of strands (beaches); you can swim in the good weather, but the water may be chilly. You'll find palm trees and other tropical vegetation on the island and in the area. It rains often, but it's usually a light rain so you can go on about your business with a light rain jacket or umbrella.