Category: Irish History

Torr Head Stories VI

Down and Down

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Weathered masonry at the height of Torr Head was there to serve the custom house and as support for a spotting station where ships transiting the Strait of Moyle (Irish Sruth na Maoile), the 12 miles of water to the Mull of Kintyre.

Lloyd’s of London, vitally interested in the appearance of ships’ progress crossing the oceans, had notice of passage via semaphore (and, later, Marconi’s “wireless”). Destination ports were copied in.

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Rickety Descent

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The same stairs, looking up
Another view
Time to move on……to “The Causeway.”

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Copyright 2022 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills

Torr Head Stories V

The Way South –

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Scottish influences touched the landscape covered by yesterday’s post, today we continue on this subject with these south facing views from Torr Head. The far ridge of Torrcor marks Loughan Bay.

A townland on the other side of Torrcor hill (and townland) has an eponymous ruin, Altagore Cashel. Mores the pity we did not visit this site, a thick drystone enclosing wall from the 5th century (you can see photographs from another site at this link). Cashel is from the Irish Caiseal, a circular, defensive fort (“ring fort”).

Books such as “Antrim and Argyll: Some Aspects of the Connections” tell of connections over the millennia, clan associations between the islands and ring forts such as Altagore Cashel.

Argylshire Scotland across the North Channel from Torr Head

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Copyright 2022 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills

Torr Head Stories IV

Salmon Run

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Late spring and summer, weekdays, a net is stretched across the bay to catch salmon nosing up the coast, searching for their home spawning stream, here called Altmore Burn. “Burn” is a Scottish term for a fresh water source, evidence of the influence 12 miles across the north channel.

The small harbor seen here from Torr Head is for the salmon fishery. Small boats will seek shelter here from the wind and tides strong enough to roar in passing the Head, like a fast flowing river.

Portaleen Bay from Torr Head
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Torr Head Stories III

Neolithic Passage Tomb

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Taking in a flower meadow, foreground, coaster sheep pastures, the photograph, below, looks north from Torr Head. The high hill, midground, is Greenanmore, notable for a the largest passage tomb of the Antrim Glens. Locally known as “Barrach’s Tomb,” for the Red Branch knight of the 1st Century AD fort on Torr Head, tree ring research of the mid-20th Century dates these tombs in the neolithic The hilltop passage tomb was an ancient relic when the mortar of Barrach’s Torr Head fort was drying.

When I enlarge the original photograph, visible on the ridge is a decommissioned Cold War listening post, the tomb is near that. The distant land across the North Channel water is Rathlin Island.

Click photograph for a larger view. To do this from WordPress Reader, you need to first click the title of this post to open a new page.

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Roadside Shrine and Island Landscape, Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland

Island Shrine

part of the Irish landscape

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A roadside shrine on Cottage Road, Inishmore. The faith brought by the saints has deep roots here.

A large crucifix set with wet stone walls with cut flowers. The walls are the native limestone.

It is a spring (early June) afternoon and there are fern and wildflowers. The white flowers are Greater Burnet saxifrage (Scientific Name: Pimpinella major).

Click Me for Getty IStock photography of the Aran Islands

The existing dry stone wall was interrupted by the shrine. In the distance are dry stone walls around fields, a stone shed, feeding horses and the sea, being Galway Bay, storm clouds with distant rain.

Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland.

Roadside Shrine and Island Landscape, Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland
Roadside Shrine and Island Landscape, Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland

Click me for the first post of this series, “Horse Trap on Inishmore.”

References: search google “Wet Stone”

Copyright 2022 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved

Cliff Edge II

Flowers on the edge

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From the commanding location of Dun Aonghasa, looking northeast across Inishmore island, we can understand why the ancient builders chose this location.

We also see the transition from exposed limestone to the fields built literally from the ground up (see my post “The How of Soil”).  For a closer view of island houses see my posts “Settled In” and “Cottage Road Cottage.”

The field walls are described in my posts, “What is a rock, what is a stone?” and “Stone on Stone.”

Click the photograph for a larger view.  Enjoy!!

Click the link for my Getty IStock photography of the Aran Islands

Breaking waves, turquoise sea below the dramatic cliffs of the ancient fort Dun Aonghasa (Dun Aengus),

in the distance the karst landscape of Inishmore with clouds of an approaching storm over Galway Bay.

Sea Campion (scientific name: Silene uniflora) (irish name: Coireán mara) clings to the edge.

Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland.

View east, southeast from the Cliff Edge of the Ancient fort wal

Click me for the first post of this series, “Horse Trap on Inishmore.”

Copyright 2022 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved

Cliff Edge I

Beware of falling rock

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From the commanding location of Dun Aonghasa, looking northeast across Inishmore island, we can understand why the ancient builders chose this location.

We also see the transition from exposed limestone to the fields built literally from the ground up (see my post “The How of Soil”).  For a closer view of island houses see my posts “Settled In” and “Cottage Road Cottage.”

The field walls are described in my posts, “What is a rock, what is a stone?” and “Stone on Stone.”

Click the photograph for a larger view.  Enjoy!!

Click the link for my Getty IStock photography of the Aran Islands

Breaking waves below the dramatic cliffs of the ancient fort Dun Aonghasa (Dun Aengus),

in the distance the karst landscape of Inishmore with clouds of an approaching storm over Galway Bay.

A crack in the limestone foretells the next cliff erosion, “don’t step there!!.”

Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland.

View east, southeast from the Cliff Edge of the Ancient fort wal

Click me for the first post of this series, “Horse Trap on Inishmore.”

Copyright 2022 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved

Inner Ring, entrance

a storm threatens

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In a previous post, “Inner Ring, at last” we passed over the entrance to the inner enclosure.

A long path through fields, karst landscapes and outer walls leads to this entrance to the inner ring of Dun Aonghasa (Dun Aengus) of Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland. The image composition is as a dramatic landscape with the surrounding walls and the cloudscape of an approaching storm.

Ancient Fort Entrance, Dun Aonghasa (Dun Aengus)

Click me for the first post of this series, “Horse Trap on Inishmore.”

Reference: wikipedia Dún Aonghasa

Copyright 2022 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Detail of Dun Aonghasa Dry Stone Wall with White Flowers of Sea

Inner Ring, look down

A time of wildflowers

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My previous post, “Inner Ring, at last”, lowered the horizon. Here, we study the base of the inner wall.

A detail of the interior wall of Dun Aonghasa (Dun Aengus) in springtime. White flowers of Sea Campion (Scientific Name: Silene uniflora) (Irish Name: Coireán mara) set against the ancient dry stone wall. Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland.

We found Sea Campion throughout the west Ireland coast.

Detail of Dun Aonghasa Dry Stone Wall with White Flowers of Sea
Detail of Dun Aonghasa Dry Stone Wall with White Flowers of Sea

Wishing a blessed All Saints Day (November 1st) for all my readers.

Click me for the first post of this series, “Horse Trap on Inishmore.”

Reference: wikipedia Dún Aonghasa, Sea Campion

Copyright 2022 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Karst Landscape with Interior Walls of Dun Aonghasa

Inner Ring, at last

Site of earliest construction, 1,100 BC

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A view to the northwest from within Dun Aonghasa in springtime. The interior a karst formation (see my post, ” Galway Bay View from Dún Aonghasa”), the grikes filled with grass and a sprinkling of white and yellow flowers, a cloudscape rising over the walls. Inishmore, Aran Islands, County Galway, Ireland.

Karst Landscape with Interior Walls of Dun Aonghasa
Karst Landscape with Interior Walls of Dun Aonghasa

Click me for the FIRST post of this series, “Horse Trap on Inishmore.”

Reference: wikipedia Dún Aonghasa

Copyright 2019 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved