near Blarney, County Cork
Continued…..yesterday, we saw the second floor bay window of our bedroom of our luxury B&B base for our Cork City, Cobh and Kinsale explorations. Here is a peak into our bedroom and the house furnishings. The last photo is another bedroom. Marantha House is a secluded site on “Hydro Hill” also known as “Saint Ann’s Hill” close to Blarney, County Cork.
Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
near Blarney, County Cork
Richard Barter, an Irish physician who used hydropathy for treatment, opened the first such hydrotreatment facility in Ireland at this location, near Blarney, in the 19th century. Today it is the luxury bed and breakfast we enjoyed during out days exploring Cork and Cobh. Here is a slide show of the entry and our first introduction to the home.
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Happy Saint Patrick’s Day 2021 “No Snakes”
Number six of six from the Kerry County side on the descent Healy Pass, R574. Here we move away from, say goodbye (hopefully, for now) to these marvelous views, our first sight of County Kerry.
Two more strange, conical hills come into view, repeating those in the distance. These have a long story.
Beara Peninsula, Coolcreen townland, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland.
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Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Coolcreen Townland
Number three of six from the Kerry County side on the descent Healy Pass, R574. I enhanced view three to level the horizon. A side by side comparison is provided, below.
It is possible to just make out several lake houses. Click me for more information about who live here during the early twentieth century.
Click me to learn more about the name of the lake.
Beara Peninsula, Coolcreen townland, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland.
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Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
on the jug path
Under a crystal blue September sky, my wife and I climbed into the gorge of Bear Swamp Creek to the foot of this waterfall past the site of a distillery where, years ago, locals used to frequent using a “jug path.”
The creek is strictly protected as part of the water source for Syracuse, flowing from the Skaneateles Highlands past historical villages such as “New Hope.” Before merging with Skaneateles Lake, the creek traverses this 90 foot fall, call Carpenter Falls.
You need to climb the steep slopes of the gorge for this unobstructed view.
It is even possible to climb to the ledge behind the water. Standing on the ledge, the stream passes 50 feet overhead. It is a lovely view down the gorge in all seasons.
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This site is protected by the Finger Lakes Land Trust.
Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills
horizontal
Number five of six from the Kerry County side on the descent Healy Pass, R574. Less sky and more land in this horizontal aspect.
Lavender hedgerows drawn the eye to that conical distant hill. In the lower left the new rhododendron leaves are flower-like.
Beara Peninsula, Coolcreen townland, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland.
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Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day
Number four of six from the Kerry County side on the descent Healy Pass, R574. Here I turn the camera on the Manfrotto studio tripod with hydrostatic ball head to the original view, a little less lit with a better leveling of the horizon.
A first glance, the rhododendrons in bloom are beautiful along the hedgerows and the foreground. Click me for our first encounter with this flowering plant. Later, during out stay at Ashford Castle, County Mayo, during kayaking on Lough Corrib, I remembered this scene and described it to my guide. He filled me in the rhododendron is a notorious invasive species. Click me for an interesting article with all the details.
Here is story of visitors LOST in a rhododendron forest.
Beara Peninsula, Coolcreen townland, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland.
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Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
A statue of Annie Moore and her brothers quayside, Cóbh, County Cork, The Republic of Ireland
On May 29, 2014, Pam and I had the emotionally moving experience of visiting the Cóbh Heritage Centre. This statue stands outside the centre, on the quay from which thousands of Irish emigrated from what was then Queenstown. My father’s mother, Elizabeth Wills née Duffy, departed from here on April 28, 1898.
These are the words on the plaque:
‘Annie Moore and her brothers, Anthony and Phillip, embarked from this town on December 20, 1891, on the S.S. Nevada. Annie was the first person to be admitted to the United States of America through the new immigration center at Ellis Island, New York, on January 1, 1892. This sculpture was unveiled by the President of Ireland, Mary Robinson, on February 9, 1993. It was erected by Cóbh Heritage Trust Ltd. and is dedicated to all who emigrated from Ireland.
This sculpture won the Zeneca Ireland Ltd. Commemorative Sculpture Award. A statue of Annie Moore was also erected at Ellis Island, New York. The commemoration of Annie Moore at New York and at Cóbh was initiated by the Irish American Cultural Institute. This sculpture is the work of Jeanne Rynhart of Bantry.'”
Click to visit the previous post in this series, “The Old Aghameen School.”
Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Coolcreen Townland
Number three of six from the Kerry County side on the descent Healy Pass, R574. I turned the camera a few more degrees into the gathering darkness, under the cloud, for an almost complete view of Glanmore Lake.
It is possible to just make out several lake houses. Click me for more information about who live here during the early twentieth century.
Click me to learn more about the name of the lake.
Beara Peninsula, Coolcreen townland, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland.
You can easily view a higher resolution versions by clicking on the photograph to open a browser tab.
Click photograph for a larger version.
Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Coolcreen Townland
Number two of six from the Kerry County side on the descent Healy Pass, R574. The dynamic range is a photographic challenge: the scene darkens as a cloud covers the westering sun, I turn the camera toward Glanmore Lake. The large, distant water is a bay on the North Atlantic named for the city at the foot, Kenmare.
Beara Peninsula, Coolcreen townland, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland.
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Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Michael Stephen Wills Photography 