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
The Duff River in County Sligo was one of my favourite places to spend many leisurely hours. Its blackened water results in great measure from the prevalence of this boggy land. My father and our neighbour Tom Gallagher would come here often to fly fish for trout, or if lucky perhaps a salmon. Tom always
The River Shannon has been described as majestic and mighty, which it is, but to me it is an old friend. I find the water healing and consoling. I talk to it every day and I tell it things I wouldn’t tell another soul. I love to watch, as birds swoop and call to each
Grandfather arrived in Tullamore when he was three years old in 1931. He lived in a house in a place called Kevin’s Street known locally as Lumpur Lane. In 1932 he remembers the Eucharistic congress and all the flags and bunting out all around the town. He also remembers going to meet the funeral of
The River Liffey is located in Dublin, Ireland. It flows through the centre of Dublin. The mouth of the river is at the Irish Sea. Around 60% of the Liffey’s flow is used for drinking water. Guinness used to use boats to deliver barrels of Guinness and these boats started their journey at the Liffey.
Once, a long time ago my friend came to my house to play and we went to the River Mourne close to where I live. We came to a meadow that had a sandy place with cobbles near the river and we sat down to eat our lunch. Suddenly I saw a grey thing on
What lovely childhood memories I possess of the river that flowed at the edge of our farm. During the late forties and early fifties my curiosity about the river was never ending. The Clare, rose north of Ballyhaunis, meandered through Mayo and Galway, entering the Corrib at Annaghdown. My river was the centre of our
The River Barrow, second longest river in Ireland, one of The Three Sisters, rises in The Sliabh Blooms and together with The Nore and The Suir flows into Waterford Harbour. There are many important towns and villages along its banks, the Village of St. Mullins among them. In the past, The Barrow played an important
I find myself fishing the River Moy regularly each season and we anglers are lucky to witness some amazing wildlife while stalking the elusive salmon. Salmon and are the most obvious species you expect to hear about when you think of the Moy but I wanted to share a few experiences of close encounters I
My local waterbody is Morris castle beach in Kilmuckridge Gorey county Wexford. Before you get to the actual beach there is a take away a beach shop and an ice cream shop named Lawlor’s, all run by the same people. Morris castle is connected to Ballinoulart beach, and is about 22km Long. Morris castle was
I gaze out my village window at the rippling waves of grey-green luminescence that carry the ocean tide into Roundstone Bay. The witnessing of these daily tides takes on a greater importance now in this time of Corona virus lockdown. The repetitive daily cycles, governed by the moon and the ceaseless spinning of our planet,
My earliest childhood memories bring me back to the wonderful riverside of Wexford, to a beautiful and enchanted place- Castle Boro. We would come here on weekends as a family, and the place has remained the same over the years. A tranquil and serene scene, one of the many hidden treasures that the country side