Dedicated to my Mother who lived on both sides of its shore. Is this the right road for the lake? was a frequent enquiry of my childhood; one that often gave rise to all manner of elaborate descriptions and warnings of diversions to avoid, when really all I needed have said was just follow the
Tá abhainn bheag thíos ón dtigh inar rugadh mé, i gCiarraí, Abhainn na Gáile, nó An Gháil. Bhí páirt lárnach ag an abhainn sin agus ar Dhroichead na hAbhann i mo shaoI agus i mo shamhlaíocht agus mé ag fás aníos. Dob é an droichead san croí-lár an tsaoil dom fhéin agus dom bheirt charad,
Bhíos 8 mbliana d’aois nuair a chuir Granda mé in airde ar dhrom seana-Mhaidhc. Ní raibh aon diallait air. Capall oibre ab ea seana-Mhaidhc, capall mín, capall mór, capall aoibhinn. Bhí an capall ag treabhadh leis sall an bóithrín, mise ar a dhroim agus Granda lasitar don ainmhí mín seo. Bhíosa lán do rógaireacht agus
Owneycree River, situated in County Kerry, is a stream that runs through my home townland, ‘Leamyglissane’ within a 500 metre distance of my house. I wake in the morning to open the curtains to view the river and bridge from my own front bedroom window. This river possesses years of endless stories however until enquiring
Since my childhood I have spent my holidays in Dún Chaoin, Co. Kerry, staying in an early 70’s bungalow after my Grand Aunty May, who had built it in her dream location only a couple of years previously, sadly passed away. It is a small house but still manages to dwarf the ruins of the
Many years ago a monk named Floinn lived at the foot of Stacks Mountain. There were oak woods and wolves, ringforts and rivers. Down the mountain came the water. Overhead, eagles flew and in the undergrowth the blackbird and the wren sang. Floinn grew old, and blind. A life of prayer gave him patience and
My first experience of Smerwick Harbour was as a pupil in the 1960s, a scoláire learning Irish during summer holidays with the Crescent school in Limerick, at the picturesque Gaeltacht village of Baile na nGall (Ballydavid) on the edge of the Dingle Peninsula in West Kerry. We spoke Irish, swam, played Gaelic football, cycled by
There are many holes or pools on the river Feale in county Kerry but one in particular stands out. It is called the Cot Hole or Poll na Coite in Irish. It is a rather deep section, about twenty feet, between the Kilmorna road and Duagh village near where the Callaghans now live. It got
The grass is always greener on Instagram #wildatlanticway. Scenes of brilliant green fields with cliffs, beaches and meandering coastline, sun breaking through cumulus clouds. A mythical fairy land, beautiful, stunning, spectacular. The images on my phone inspire me to get in the car and drive for an hour and a half until I reach the
When I was a young fellow growing up in Tarbert, a small village and sea port in the Shannon estuary there was an old man who lived beside me in Chapel Street. He lived in a little cottage with a thatched roof and a tidy back garden. It was one of those small yellow washed
The River Feale rises in the Mullaghareirk Mountains in Rockchapel, Co Cork, flows through Limerick into Kerry, finally emptying into the sea at the Cashen near Ballybunion. It is a fast flowing spate river subject to flooding in persistent rainfall, large, deep fish holding pools dominate the river seabed. The final six miles is called
A path snaked down the cliff. The rocks beneath held out the prospect of good fishing. We were young and the old neighbour as he cautiously led the way regaled us once more with memories. Dark memories, perhaps which were troubling himself. One I didn’t like. He used point to a spot known as ”