lahinch

We stayed in a town called Lahinch, a destination for golfers and surfers. We are neither, of course. The beautiful beach was just a 5 minute walk from our rental cottage. After our day trips we spent a bit of each evening at the beach and in the village. The sun would set around 9:30 or so, and then there would be a lovely, long twilight.

newtown castle

When you are hiking and see a castle in the distance, walk toward it. You'll be surprised. The surprise might be that the castle is now a convenient fencepost for a farmer's cow pasture, or the surprise might be the carefully restored Newtown Castle at the Burren College of Art.

We hiked early one morning on the Burren Way in Ballyvaughan. The fog was climbing the limestone hills, as we were. We saw the tower in the distance and found our way there.

more about ennistymon

Ennistymon was one of my favorite villages. The name is also spelled Ennistimon, and in Irish it's Inis Díomáin. It is famous for its cascade, but because of a hot, dry spell, the cascade was but a trickle when we were there. We went walking along the river and came across a group of donkeys grazing in a field just below The Falls Hotel, a fancy place with a long history. (Every place in Ireland has a long history.)

Oh La La! is a French-style crêperie in Ennistymon. It's a cheerful place to eat, and the friendly people who work there gave us directions to Leamaneh Castle, Poulnabrone dolmen, (pictures in yesterday's post) and other ancient sites. Poulnabrone is close to 6000 years old. The castle, not so old. The original tower, the one on the right, was constructed about 1480.

There is a great art gallery in this tiny village. It's called the Courthouse Gallery. I have no pictures of it, but you can link to it here.

ireland

A friendly greeting in Ballyvaughan

Burren landscape near Fanore

"Ennistymon" in Irish

Stone walls on Inisheer Island

O'Brien Castle on Inisheer

Leamaneh Castle

Church ruin in Liscannor

Poulnabrone dolmen

Burren landscape, Poulnabrone

The Burren near Ballyvaughan

We spent a week in July in County Clare on the west coast of Ireland and fell in love with the limestone landscape of the Burren, the stone walls on Inisheer, and the ancient ruins everywhere.

memorial day in the studio

I noticed that my clothing matches Ann's watercolor paintings.

mothers day pictures

It was wonderful to see our kids yesterday, and I enjoyed time in my studio and at Fort Stark today. Happy Mothers Day!