West Cork

Now for something completely different but very relevant to my love of nature and my country.This morning it was actually summer....well the sun was playing peekaboo with the clouds but it was warm and the countryside looked green and beautifull. I had to go to west Cork on business and traversed a triangle from Clonakily to Macroom. I had never taken this particular route before and I must say the scenery is wild and breathtaking. The heather is in bloom covering the rocks and hillsides, my camera does not do justice to the purple haze on both sides of the road. This is on the R578 from Dunmanway to Macroom. So if you ever see that sign ...take it!!!

This is another view of the heather covering the crevices in the rocks

Natures bounty growing freely along the ditches.Sadly the terrible weather we have been having may affect them. I remember as a child spending late summer days picking 'blackas'. Groups of us would be gone for hours and no body had to wonder where we were or if we were safe, the general consensus was we would come home when we got too hungry!

Our mothers made jam that was devoured almost as soon as it was made. When my own children were growing up they hated Sundays spent picking blackberries but loved the finished product as they still do!

A beergarden to die for! This is a country pub on the side of the road just a little further along the road, between Dunmanway and Macroom. This is the back view of it , the front is also covered in flowers. The photo does not give the sound of rushing water as I think there is a wier under or near the bridge.At this side the water is so still the pub is reflected perfectly in the water and fish were jumping!

Macroom is a very busy country town which we usually drive through on the way to somewhere west.I normally try to park on the main street if I have to stop,but this morning the town was busy and I had to look for parking elsewhere and saw the town from a completely different angle.

I knew the castle was there and this narrow bridge that is usually choked with traffic,and never gets a second glance as I pass over it.

It is actually a ten arch stone bridge with a weir nearby.The photo shows the back of the castle with as many arches as I could fit in the photo.

So the moral for today is, dont always take the motorway or the most direct route, stop and enjoy the colours and beauty that is Ireland. As someone aptly remarked it would be a great little country if we could put a roof on it!