Shrule Castle, County Mayo

September 27, 2017

“To safety, to the bridge, you will find your refuge there. But instead I found a sword, stuck right into my back, and found instead my refuge in the sound of my last breath.”

— Claire Loader

There is an eeriness about Shrule Castle when you learn of the massacre that took place there in 1642 – a group of English settlers seeking safety in Galway, killed by their escort. The towering De Burgo walls, with their four great bartizans, look on towards the Black River still, watching as the waters speed by and the memory of her lands with it.

Seek out this and the many other ruins I have visited here. Come explore with me…

Portumna Priory, County Galway

September 15, 2017

“Quietly now
on the lush green grass,
lest you wake those that sleep there.
That rest under trees,
lie under stone.
Quietly now, and let us go.”

— Claire Loader

It’s easy to overlook Portumna Priory, hidden as it is in the shadow of the castle, tucked quietly into the trees. A verdant hideaway that lends a certain softness to the old stone – a quiet beauty on the edge of Lough Derg.

Find this gorgeous ruin and many more of my favourite places here. Come explore with me…

Emlaghfad Old Church, County Sligo

September 3, 2017

“Speak not of the dead as if they never sinned, as if all were grace and good. Let not death create a saint, where merely a man once stood.”

— Claire Loader

Sitting on the steeps of a lonely rise just outside of Ballymote, the old Emlaghfad Church is not for the faint of heart. Weeds rise out of the long grass like hands, grasping and clinging, seeking to pull you down like the gravestones and tombs that have already succumbed to her depths.

Seek the thick leaves of Emlaghfad their sad stones here. Come explore with me…