The Canary Island Dragon Trees, Dracaena draco, are native to the islands as well parts of Africa and the Azores. They are strange and beautiful things. The biggest and oldest living “drago” as the locals call them, is about 300 years old and can be found in northwest Tenerife. SEE The dragon trees grow slowly and often stand […]
hiking
Coumduala Loop, Nire Valley
In the Nire Valley, Waterford, there are four different hikes you can do through valleys, over mountains and to lakes. We thought it would be a good idea to do the Coumduala Loop in the rainy season. It was cold, and there was a lot of bogginess to get through, but the scenery was rewarding and it […]
Glengarriff Reserve in winter
This indigenous forest and ancient woodland is named after the town’s located close to. The Glengarriff Reserve is just west of Bantry Bay (the bay can be seen from Lady Bantry’s Lookout, pictured below) and has a few different paths and walking trails that lead through different areas, moorland, meadow, bog and forest. Look out for […]
Courtmacsherry
The reason we ended up at Courtmacsherry was to get some exercise. The weather however could not have been more unpleasant (hence only a few photos). We started the hike with a view over the bay in the opposite direction of the beautiful ruins of Timoleague Abbey. As we walked through the forest (which is […]
The Burren
“Of this barony it is said that it is a country where there is not water enough to drown a man, wood enough to hang one, nor earth enough to bury them.” – Officer Ludlow The Irish Gaelic word for this unusual landscape in County Clare is Boireann, “great rock”. It’s about 250 square kilometres of limestone […]
Glanagear Woods
If you’re heading in the direction of Killuvullen, from the south (Cork), you’ll drive past a parking area with a sign marking the Glanagear Woods at the foot of the Nagel Mountains. The trail is part of a bigger network and can be followed all the way to Ballyhooly! It could take up to five hours […]
Hiking at Gougane Barra Forest Park
We trusted the weather report for sunny weather, but when we arrived at Gougane Barra National Park, it was pouring. With a bit of patience, the rain cleared and the rest of the day saw a light drizzle at most. Walking at a decent pace, we soon warmed up (it was 4 degrees Celsius) and […]