On a sunny day last year my husband, Jim, and I decided to go sailing. My sister Kath and her husband Tony joined us as they were visiting us at the time. Our sailing boat is a 30ft sloop and named Rockabill and is easy to manage. All four of us are pensioners and enjoy
The quay was more deserted then usual on my early morning dog walk. The chimneys empty of smoke, roads car free. The stunning view of the flood refilling the river, mists rolling back towards the ocean. A heron squawked and flew off when I got too close. It reminded me of a story I heard
My childhood summers were spent running wild with brothers and cousins and neighbours in rural Mayo. Jim Conway took us fishing. He was a farmer, a small wiry man who played cards, cycled everywhere on a large black bike and smoked roll ups he made with tobacco stored in a small tin which he retrieved
Ballymore Lough is a freshwater lough in the parish of Attymass Co. Mayo; the parish is nestled by the Ox Mountains to the east and the River Moy to the west with Nephin in the background, surrounded by rugged scenery and steeped in local folklore and myths. The lough is overlooked by Old Killeen graveyard
Our minds weren’t on the foot cocking, that sultry July afternoon; the air as still as the breaking dawn. Tomas remarked “it will be a perfect evening for Dereken; the perch will be in shoals there”. I was so enthused by this optimism, I began to gather speed with my wooden rake. Worms were already
When I was in high infant’s class they decided to close the school while repairs were being done. The pupils were scattered to their next nearest school. In my case I was sent across the river Glore to Shanvahera. I didn’t know anybody up there and they did not know me. The only consolaiton that
Ever since I was a young girl the sea has been a place that I love. Every summer for as long as long as I remember we’ve spent down in Achill Island. Keel beach is a place that will always be close to my heart- the sound of the lapping wave’s sooth my soul. My
There’s a lake near my home in County Mayo that’s a very special place. I feel a strong connection to this lake and its rich biodiversity. This special place is Lough Carra. Lying beneath the water is a thick bed of marl, soft chalky mud. Around the shores of the lake there are still a
The first time we met she was winter-cold and grey. A chill wind furrowed her face. Her bones showed through broken skin and blunt teeth appeared amid a lather of foam. Even the sky was weeping, as if mourning her aged state. I passed by. Spring brought me back on another dark day with low
My water story begins with the moon- the phased journey of my being governed by and piloted by the ebb and flow of energy through the universe. Each month the moon journey around the earth creates tides that ebb and flow, high and low and carries a power that I believe is rooted in my
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
Late summer 1979, a cool onshore breeze kisses the rugged coast of Mayo as the pale, apricot sun sets over a small picture postcard pub, little changed in over a century; it sits unobtrusively on the banks of Killary Harbour, one of only three fjords in Ireland I am reliably informed by the genial host