Long Description:
Fungie is a bottlenose dolphin who has made the Dingle Harbour his home since 1983. He is a very playful dolphin and loves to swim alongside the boats that enter of leave the harbour. You can take a boat trip from Dingle Harbour to see him up close (well worth it!), but you can also walk up to this cache location to see him swim around.
At least that was the case for many years...
On the 13th of October 2020 Fungie was last seen by a local fisherman. It wasn't unusual for Fungie to go missing for a day, but this time it was more serious. He wasn't seen for days and search parties were organised by the local boatsmen including a dive team from Macroom Search and Rescue. Fungie's disappearance made national and international news and the whole of Dingle was hoping against all hope that their famous pet would return. But it seems that Fungie left as he came and nobody knows where he came from or where he is gone.
Keep your eyes peeled on the water when you go searching for this cache, you'll never know! And if you see Fungie, make sure to tell it to somebody in Dingle, you'd be the hero of the town!! (don't forget that dolphins are regularly spotted in the mouth of the harbour and it might not always be Fungie, but you'll never know!).
You can park your car at the end of a small narrow road leading towards the beach (please make sure not to block the farmer's gates) or if you are up for a longer walk you can park at The Skellig Hotel or walk all the way from Dingle Town (about 2.5km).
Either way, before you reach the cache location you will pass Hussey's Folley, a tower build during the Famine in the 1840s, which was only used for a very short time as a customs watchtower. Just past the tower is a nice little beach, called Slaidin, where it is nice to sit on a sunny day and great for swimming. Make sure to check it out!
To get down to the cache you need to follow the path towards the lighthouse. Just before the cache location you will see a small pathway going down the cliffs (where the opening in the fence is). Take care going down! The path can be a bit slippery and there is a bit of a drop next to it! This cache might not be suitable with small children or on a wet day At low tide the cache can also be reached by scrambling over the rocks under the cliffs from Slaidin. But be careful, these rocks can be very slippery!
Thanks to John Fahy and to Mark Greely from Reel Dingle Fish (Best Fish & Chips in Ireland!) we figured out what the structure at the cache location is. Apparently they are ladies changing rooms, build in the 1920's and used right until the 1960's. Thanks for letting us know guys!
If you feel like going for a walk, you can walk on to the lighthouse and further to Beenbawn Beach. Here you can turn left and keep following the road to make a full circle back to the parking spot.
Congratulations to Juergen1313 and Minnidog for the FTF!
Please try to log in English (or as Gaeilge if you like)