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Although the Gap of Dunloe - a narrow defile formed by glacial overflow that cuts the mountains in two - is one of Killarney's prime tourist attractions, it's possible to find a modicum of solitude if you're willing to use your legs. Jaunting cars continually run here from Killarney's centre, a fact which, as the drivers tout loudly for business, you're not likely to miss. They tend to be expensive, but the Gap of Dunloe is just about the most scenic jaunting car ride on offer. Castlelough Vintage Tours, 17 High St (tel 064/32496) offer a splendid full-day tour, which takes you by bus to the starting point of Kate Kearney's Cottage, from where you transfer to a jaunting car for the ride through the Gap, then after a lunch stop at Lord Brandon's Cottage you take a boat ride through the three lakes to Ross Castle, and finally a bus brings you back into town. At the foot of the road leading to the Gap of Duloe stands Kate Kearney's Cottage , a pub and restaurant which caters for the large number of tourists who climb down from pony and trap rides here during the summer months. Moderately priced meals and sandwiches are on offer, and this is the last place for food and water before Lord Brandon's Cottage (open approximately June-Aug), seven miles away over the other side of the Black Valley, which serves teas, scones and sandwiches. The best time to walk the four and a half miles from the cottage up the valley is late afternoon, when the jaunting cars have gone home and the light is at its most magical. The road, which is closed to motor traffic, winds its way up the desolate valley between high-rock cliffs and waterfalls - Macgillycuddy's Reeks is to your right, and to your left is the Purple Mountain, so called because in late summer it's covered in purple heather - past a chain of icy loughs and tarns, up to the top, where you find yourself in what feels like one of the most remote places in the world: the Black Valley . Named after its entire population perished during the potato famine, and now inhabited by a mere handful of families, the Black Valley makes you begin to feel that you've left mass tourism behind. The fact that it was the very last valley in Ireland to get electricity is some measure of its isolation, and there are no pubs or shops here. There is, however, a hostel run by An Oige (closed Dec-Feb; tel 064/34712), where you can also get meals. Moving on, you can either carry on down to the Upper Lake or pick up the Kerry Way .
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