Three road closures around the Ring this September, and only one you might meet
Kerry County Council has confirmed three road closures around the Ring of Kerry over the next few weeks. None of them closes the N70 or the N71, so the loop drive itself stays open throughout. Two are single overnight closures that almost nobody on holiday will meet. The third runs for a working week in daylight, and that is the one to note.
Beaufort, Thursday 10 September, overnight. The L-4041 at Beaufort closes from 9pm on Thursday 10 September to 7am on Friday 11 September for a water connection. This is the road on the Gap of Dunloe side of the valley, and the council's notice is unusually specific about it: there is no diversion signposted on the road itself, but signs at either end will send traffic bound for Moll's Gap around by Killarney, on the L-4040, N72, N71 and R568. Access to the Gap of Dunloe stays open.
Ballinskelligs, Thursday 17 September, overnight. The R566 at Rathkieran, The Glen, closes from 9pm on Thursday 17 September to 6am on Friday 18 September, also for a water connection. Traffic to and from Portmagee and St Finian's Bay is diverted via the L-4004 and the R565. If you are driving the Skellig Ring late that night, that is the detour.
Glenbeigh, Monday 21 to Friday 26 September. The L-11643 at Letter West Bridge closes from 8am on Monday 21 September until 6pm on Friday 26 September while the bridge is rehabilitated. This is the long one and the only one in daylight hours, though it is a local road inland of Glenbeigh rather than the coast road: traffic is signposted onto the L-11644 to reach the N70. Anyone heading for Rossbeigh on the main road that week is unaffected.
The pattern is worth knowing in itself. Kerry County Council does most of this work at night in September precisely because the summer traffic has gone, so closure notices cluster now and are mostly timed to miss visitors. Each notice is published as a PDF on the council's road closures page, which is the place to check if you are travelling on a specific date.
