Killarney Lakes
The Lakes of Killarney are a renowned scenic attraction located near Killarney, County Kerry Ireland. They consist of three lakes - Lough Leane, Muckross Lake (also called Middle Lake) and Upper Lake.
Lough Leane (Irish Loch Léin) meaning Lake of Learning is the largest of three lakes. The River Laune drains Lough Leane to the north towards Killorglin and into Dingle Bay
The lakes lie in a mountain ringed valley starting in the Black Valley. The mountains include:
- Carrantuohill (At 1039m/3409 ft, Ireland’s highest mountain)
- Purple Mountain (2739 ft)
- Mangerton Mountain (2756 ft)
- Torc Mountain (1755 ft)
The three main lakes of Killarney occupy a broad valley stretching south between the mountains. The three lakes and the mountains that surround them are all within the Killarney National Park. The Lower Lake is nearest to the town, it is studded with islands and has Muckross Abbey and Ross Castle on its eastern shore. The Lower Lake is separated from the Middle Lake (sometimes called Muckross Lake) by the wooded peninsula of Muckross. At the tip of the Muckross Peninsula is the quaint Brickeen Bridge and Dinis Island is further on with its sub-tropical vegetation and views of the ‘Meeting of the Waters’. A narrow straight called the Long Range leads to the island-studded Upper Lake, which is surrounded by lush vegetation.
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One Response to “Killarney Lakes”
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February 25th, 2008 at 11:13 am
I just adore this place. We spent nearly 3 months ther last summer. I could not get enough of the walks forest parks etc.hope 2 visit this Year again. Full marks for such a heavenly place xo jo