"Ahh, go on! - Go on, go on, go on, go on, go on, go on..."

The first Sunday means that it was the monthly walk organised by the BurrenBeo Trust with a starting point at Carran for a walk entitled “Myths and legends of Slievenaglasha” with local farmer and folklorist Patrick MacCormack. Since this is the August Bank Holiday weekend in Ireland, it has of course been cool and wet since Friday!
Despite the rain - which started as we gathered for the walk at 2.00pm and continued for the rest of the afternoon – there were 60-70 people (including a lady who was well into her 80’s and a number of small children) who took part and we all happily followed Patrick up the hill side and on towards the fort of Lon the Blacksmith “who had three arms and one leg”; on to Glas Gaibhneach hill and the legend of the Fairy Cow which “gave so much milk that there were never containers large enough or numerous enough that they could not be filled”; and past cairns, wedge tombs and many other stories, recitations and archaeological sites.
At this point Patrick offered the option of returning the way we had come – or following him along a more difficult path over the hill and down to his home where he would offer us all a cup of tea.
I didn’t see anyone take the option of returning by the easy path and we continued for another hour or so on a wet and windy hillside until we descended through a muddy hazel wood to open farmland and the short walk to Patrick’s family home – which many of you would recognise as “Father Ted’s House on Craggy Island”
Despite being confronted by a horde of wet, hungry and thirsty walkers, Cheryl - Patrick’s wife - laid on copious amounts of tea and an array of cakes, biscuits and scones which would have done Mrs Doyle proud.