If Emy Lough Could Talk

If Emy Lough in Emyvale County Monaghan could talk, many a historical story it would tell. One of these stories, below, is about Leo Mc Mahon and his family on the era of trout fishing on Emy Lough. As a young boy, in the late 1950’s, Leo Mc Mahon remembers the then Inlands Fishery Trust

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In Days Gone By

Growing up I was incredibly lucky with the location of our house. We lived right beside the River Shannon and Lough Derg. From a noticeably young age my brothers and my dad would take me out with them in the boat, or even just go for a swim in the lake. We were members of

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Fairytales in Reenkilla

Once upon a time a young girl at the age of twelve named Cassie lived under Reenkilla in a city called CLAM TOWN. Cassie lived next to her best friends Johnny and Dory. Then one brisk evening they were outside a Coral Diner finishing off their Kelpcorn when all of a sudden ……………………..BANG!!!!!!!! Out of

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Interwoven Meandering

Several years ago as a Belfast medical student I spent an Erasmus term in Galway. Such a vivacious & welcoming place with many new friends made. Now I’m working as a junior doctor in the middle of the Covid pandemic. Such a difference from my carefree student days, this bewildering and angst laden time, everyone

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Itenerant

Humanity and I, we are on a short tether. I awoke this morning as happy as I have ever been. My heart was full of gratitude for my husband, my children, my relationships with friends and neighbours. I was fully aware of the comfort and order and opportunities that are mine. I decided not to

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Jacko the Toad

Drip, drip, drip. It must be raining. Ah yes I can feel the ripples now on my eyeballs. Not that it makes much of a difference to me. I’ve been a toad at the Shannon Wetlands for 10 years now – man and boy. I love it here. I’ve got my 20 siblings around me

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Jamesy the King of the Bog

Newpark in the 1960’s was isolated on the periphery of Kilkenny City. A plethora of young families settled on the newly constructed estate. This dynamic helped to change the neighbourhood into bustling community. Freedom of movement allowed youthful enthusiasms to flourish as children made their way in a relaxed, friendly and safe environment. Central to

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John Paul Jones and the Lanterns

Everybody knows about John Paul Jones, the great naval hero of the American War of Independence (1775– ‘83). Not everybody knows about the most daring escape of his career in the Tarbert estuary of the River Shannon, which I heard from a local historian many years ago. The future ‘Founder of the American Navy’ was

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Escape to the Mississippi

Growing up, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn, was my favourite TV programme. Twain’s classic gripped me with the escapades of the duo on a raft on the Mississippi. Could we have such a raft in Clondalkin? One summer, 1984, my cousin John O’Byrne came to stay. It so happened that there were

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Far from the Bogs

It’s amazing how you can spend your whole life passing through a space, and still know so little of it. Caught up in the clamour of everyday life, you often overlook the backstreets and the laneways. The nooks and crannies off the beaten path from which we seldom stray. The lockdown changed that for lots

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Finding Water by Mysterious Ways

Ah NO – this is not about water-divining, but about the wealth of clues in Irish place-names to tell us about the significance of some waterway or water source in that area. It could be a clue to a search. Meaningful Irish words often found incorporated into place names include Cora – a weir –

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Fior Uisce

Beyond Gallows Green in Cork city is a great lough, where people once skated in winter-time. At the bottom are buildings and gardens, more beautiful than anything seen today. The tops and towers are visible to those who look into the lough with perfect eyesight. These buildings come from the time of King Core, whose

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