Recently in Ireland Category

Dad in the boat, on the Slaney with Loki and Becky, originally uploaded by Dave Walsh Photography.

Dad in the boat, on the Slaney with Loki and Becky. Jim Walsh 23/05/2009.

Especially for fans of this photograph »

Feral Goat, Glenealo Valley, Glendalough, Co. Wicklow, originally uploaded by Dave Walsh Photography.

Feral Goat, Glenealo Valley, Glendalough, Co. Wicklow, near the ruined Miner's Village

Newgrange Passage Grave, Co. Meath, originally uploaded by Dave Walsh Photography.

Newgrange Passage Grave, Co. Meath. Newgrange is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, dating to 3200BC. On the shortest day of the year, at the winter solstice, a beam of sunlight illuminates the interior.

Christmas 2008
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The River Slaney estuary, around where I grew up in Co. Wexford. It's a beautiful part of the world here, and is a candidate for becoming a Special Area of Conservation, under the EU Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), Annexe 2.

Wikipedia: River Slaney
Slaney by Inland Waterways Association of Ireland

Moon in Conjunction with venus, originally uploaded by blather.

Moon in Conjunction with venus, over Dublin, Ireland, 31st December 2008. Alignment a bit off cos i was screwing around with the camera...

Brent Geese, Clontarf, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

Urban nature - Brent Light Bellied Brent Goose, branta bernicla, migrates to Ireland every winter from arctic Canada - many of them ending up on Dublin's Bull Island, or in surrounding parks and near busy roads, like these ones on the seafront in Clontarf.

Discarded Television remains, North Bull Island, Dublin, Ireland, originally uploaded by blather.

"There was fifty-seven channels and nothin' on" - Bruce Springsteen

Discarded TV, washed up on the shores of Bull Island.

Bull Island is a UNESCO protected biosphere reserve in the Northern suburbs of Dublin. It features two golf clubs, and Dollymount beach, used for kitesurfing and other outdoor activities. Wildlife includes seals and bird life.

Discarded bicycle wheel on Bull Island, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

Was it washed up like this, or did some enterprising soul put it there, instead of disposing of it properly?
Bull Island is a UNESCO protected biosphere reserve in the Northern suburbs of Dublin. It features two golf clubs, and Dollymount beach, used for kitesurfing and other outdoor activities. Wildlife includes seals and bird life.

Discarded door on Dollymount strand, Bull Island, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.
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Discarded door on Dollymount strand, Bull Island, Dublin. I knocked, but there was no on in, and someone had filled the letterbox with sand.

Bull Island is a UNESCO protected biosphere reserve in the Northern suburbs of Dublin. It features two golf clubs, and Dollymount beach, used for kitesurfing and other outdoor activities. Wildlife includes seals and bird life.

The Hellfire Club, Dublin, Ireland, originally uploaded by blather.

Ruined 18th-century hunting lodge on Montpellier Hill near Rathfarnham, Dublin, known as The Hellfire Club, where it is alleged that 18th century nobleman practiced satanism. This is one of photographs in my new book, Haunted Dublin.

Haunted Dublin can be ordered from www.blather.net/haunteddublin »

See below for Launch Party plans!

View the Haunted Dublin photograph collection on my main site »

Haunted Dublin: Chilling accounts of the supernatural in the cityOnly €14.99 + P&P!
AVAILABLE NOW!

By Dave Walsh
Introduction by Barry Kavanagh
Paperback: 93 pages, including 40 photographs by Dave Walsh
Published by Nonsuch Ireland
Published October 2008 

Haunted Dublin, by author and journalist Dave Walsh, gathers together in one succinct volume, well-known legends with rare and chilling accounts of the supernatural in the city. With poltergeists and apparitions, lore, myth and the downright scary, this fascinating work will delight and unsettle those brave enough to explore this hidden world.

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin - connected to various Dublin hauntings, such as that of John McNeill Boyd's faitful dog, and the ghost of Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver's Travels. This is one of photographs in my new book, Haunted Dublin.

Haunted Dublin can be ordered from www.blather.net/haunteddublin »

See below for Launch Party plans!

View the Haunted Dublin photograph collection on my main site »

Haunted Dublin: Chilling accounts of the supernatural in the cityOnly €14.99 + P&P!
AVAILABLE NOW!

By Dave Walsh
Introduction by Barry Kavanagh
Paperback: 93 pages, including 40 photographs by Dave Walsh
Published by Nonsuch Ireland
Published October 2008 

Haunted Dublin, by author and journalist Dave Walsh, gathers together in one succinct volume, well-known legends with rare and chilling accounts of the supernatural in the city. With poltergeists and apparitions, lore, myth and the downright scary, this fascinating work will delight and unsettle those brave enough to explore this hidden world.

LAUNCH PARTY!
From 6pm on October 30th, Halloween  Launch Party at the Dice Bar, Queen St. Dublin 7.Booze, books, costumes and mayhem! Outlandish outfits recommended!

Blather Google Map showing location »

Haunted Dublin - the new book is out, originally uploaded by blather.

Got boxes of my new book delivered earlier - I'll be posting some photos from it up here in the next few days. Haunted can be ordered from www.blather.net/haunteddublin »

See below for Launch Party plans!

View the Haunted Dublin photograph collection on my main site »

Haunted Dublin: Chilling accounts of the supernatural in the cityOnly €14.99 + P&P!
AVAILABLE NOW!

By Dave Walsh
Introduction by Barry Kavanagh
Paperback: 93 pages, including 40 photographs by Dave Walsh
Published by Nonsuch Ireland
Published October 2008 

Haunted Dublin, by author and journalist Dave Walsh, gathers together in one succinct volume, well-known legends with rare and chilling accounts of the supernatural in the city. With poltergeists and apparitions, lore, myth and the downright scary, this fascinating work will delight and unsettle those brave enough to explore this hidden world.

LAUNCH PARTY!
From 6pm on October 30th, Halloween  Launch Party at the Dice Bar, Queen St. Dublin 7.Booze, books, costumes and mayhem! Outlandish outfits recommended!

Blather Google Map showing location »

Jess Curtis performing at the Fringe Festival Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

Award winning choreographer Jess Curtis performing Noustube, part of Equilibre, naked in a clear cylinder of water at Grand Canal Square during the Dublin Fringe Festival.

Mark Cavendish, Team Columbia at the Tour of Ireland cycle race, originally uploaded by blather.

Mark Cavendish from the Isle of Man, Team Columbia, winner of four stages in the 2008 Tour de France, at the Tour of Ireland cycle race Stage 1, Grand Canal Square, Dublin 2. On his left is Bernhard Eisel (Austria). Cavendish went onto win today's stage into Waterford.
More high resolution Tour of Ireland photographs here »

Summer sunlight streaming through the windows of St. Audoen's Church, originally uploaded by blather.

Was in St. Audoen's Church today; my friend Terry is a guide there, and it is, after all, the start of Heritage Week

One of the oldest existing churches in Dublin, St. Audoens is a Norman church to St Ouen, built in 1190 to replace an earlier church to St Colmcille. The three bells in the belltower are reported to date to 1423. The mysterious Lucky Stone, an early Christian grave marker, is in the porch, where it has been since 1309. The main porch also houses the Portleister Tomb, featuring two carved effigys of the church benefactor and his wife.

High water on the River Liffey, originally uploaded by blather.

High water on the River Liffey, following extensive rain that caused major flooding around the country during August 2008. The water here is less than a metre away from flooding the pedestrian boardwalk. O'Connell Bridge is in the distance.

Barbed wire shadow, originally uploaded by blather.

Barbed wire shadow on a gate, Croke Park, Dublin.

The River Tolka at Ballybough, with floodwater from a heavy rain, originally uploaded by blather.

3" of water fell in Dublin on Saturday afternoon, causing widespread flooding. This shows water flowing rapidly under the bridge at the Tolka River at Ballybough. Usuall the water is low enough for small wading birds to cross it.

Here's the Tolka River at a normal level »

Public drinking: bottles left on the steps of Dublin Landmark, the Custom House, originally uploaded by blather.

Binge drinking: bottles left on the steps of Dublin city centre landmark, the Customs House on a Saturday afternoon, August 2nd.

New laws under the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2008 concerning alcohol consumption came into force on Wednesday July 30th. The new regulations including giving gardai ( police ) more powers to seize alcohol consumed in public earlier off-licence and nightclub closing times and stiffer penalties for those who sell alcohol to under-18s

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This is picture I took nearly four years ago - but it wasn't on my blog! The Boyne River Bridge is the longest cable-stayed bridge in Ireland is regarded as something of an engeering feat. It's certainly impressive to drive over at night. Placed 3 kilometres west of Drogheda, Co. Louth , most of the bridge, including its central pylon and 56 cables are situated in County Meath, although the last few northern most cables partly stretch across the county boundary into County Louth. The bridge carries traffic from the M1, across the River Boyne, linking Dublin and Belfast. It was built as part of the M1 Drogheda bypass, diverting traffic from the old N1, now reclassified as the R132, around Drogheda and out of the town centre. The Bridge is widely admired and around 2005 became the main feature in the crest of Louth GAA, even though it is almost entirely situated in County Meath.

Lahinch, Co. Clare, originally uploaded by blather.

The seaside, golfing and surf town of Lahinch, Co. Clare, Ireland, reflection in the water at sunset.

Ok, well, it's Marian Keys, Irish novelist. I've never read anything by her, but the nice folks at Digital Railroad licensed my photograph of Lahinch, Co. Clare, to Cedar Publications, who publish British Airways Highlife magazine. A friend was on a BA flight and stumbled across my credit beside the photograph - and then another friend sent it to me in the post. Thanks guys!
See the page from the magazine »
Lahinch photo on davewalshphoto.com »

Christchurch Cathedral, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather. Get high resolution version »

Ingredients: Perfect sky, a wide-angle lens, a polarizing filter and a great building.

Christ Church Cathedral - the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity in Dublin, Ireland is the elder of the city's two mediæval cathedrals. It is officially claimed as the seat or cathedra of both the Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic archbishops of Dublin. In practice it has been the cathedral of only the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, since the Irish Reformation.

The cathedral was begun in 1038 by King Sitric Silkenbeard, the Danish Viking King of Dublin, for the first Bishop of Dublin. Henry II attended the Christmas service at the cathedral in 1171, and in the years thereafter, Strongbow and other Anglo-Norman magnates helped to fund a complete rebuilding of Christ Church, comprising the construction of a choir, choir aisles and transepts, the crypt, and chapels. Christ Church was extensively renovated in Victorian times, with the sponsorship of distiller Henry Roe, of Mount Anville.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, Christ Churchs crypt was used as a market, a meeting place for business, and at one stage even a pub as a letter of 1633 says "the vaults from one end of the minster to the other are made into tippling houses for beer, wine and tobacco".

Leopold Bloom considers a pork kidney for breakfast while Molly, originally uploaded by blather.

See more Bloomsday Dublin photographs »

Bloomsday June 16th 2008, Dublin. Actors from Balloonatics theatre company perform the "Calypso" chapter from James Joyce novel Ulysses around Eccles St. and Dorset Street. Paul O'Hanrahan plays Bloom.

Independent Senator David Norris explains why he voted "no" to the Lisbon Treaty, originally uploaded by blather.

Editorial Use Only: Irish Senator and human rights activist David Norris explains to Dutch TV Nederland 1 why he voted "no" to the Lisbon Treaty, outside the Polling Station on Marlborough Street, Dublin 1. He cited possible European military expansion following a "yes" vote as a key issue in his choice in voting "no".

David Norris was the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in Ireland. Senator Norris is also a prominent Joycean scholar, is the a big player in Dublin's annual Bloomsday celebrations. Senator Norris's razor-sharp wit and debating skills have made him a popular figure in Ireland.

More about David Norris here:
www.senatordavidnorris.ie/

To request use of this photograph, please visit davewalshphoto.com

Let's Make Europe Work Better - For the Rich, originally uploaded by blather.
Click for high resolution version of Lisbon Treaty photo »

Editorial Use Only:
"Let's Make Europe Work Better - For the Rich"
Defaced poster for the Yes campaign on Clonliffe Road, Dublin's north city, during Friday rush hour.

The vote takes places on 12 June 2008. As of June 6th, the no-vote was reportedly overtaking the yes campaign.

Red light for Lisbon Treaty at Ballybough, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

Editorial Use Only: Red light for Lisbon Treaty at Ballbough, Dublin. Poster calling for a no against "foreign rule". Former Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Bertie Ahern looks on from another poster, calling for a "yes". The vote takes places on 12 June 2008. As of June 6th, the no-vote was reportedly overtaking the yes campaign.

Christchurch Cathedral, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

Ingredients: Perfect sky, a wide-angle lens, a polarizing filter and a great building.

Christ Church Cathedral - the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity in Dublin is the elder of the city's two mediæval cathedrals. It is officially claimed as the seat or cathedra of both the Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic archbishops of Dublin. In practice it has been the cathedral of only the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, since the Irish Reformation.

The cathedral was begun in 1038 by King Sitric Silkenbeard, the Danish Viking King of Dublin, for the first Bishop of Dublin. Henry II attended the Christmas service at the cathedral in 1171, and in the years thereafter, Strongbow and other Anglo-Norman magnates helped to fund a complete rebuilding of Christ Church, comprising the construction of a choir, choir aisles and transepts, the crypt, and chapels. Christ Church was extensively renovated in Victorian times, with the sponsorship of distiller Henry Roe, of Mount Anville.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, Christ Churchs crypt was used as a market, a meeting place for business, and at one stage even a pub as a letter of 1633 says "the vaults from one end of the minster to the other are made into tippling houses for beer, wine and tobacco".

Showing off a horse at Smithfield Horse Market, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.

The horse market at Smithfield, Dublin takes place on the first Sunday of every month. People come from all over Ireland to trade horses and equipment. It's absolute chaos, with young kids galloping across the cobbles on distressed looking ponies, horses whinnying, gardai chasing jaunting cars on their bicycles. A big part of the horse scene involves the keeping of animals, by Dublin urban youth, in gardens or public areas. The Dublin Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says that the market facilitates the sale of horses to under-16s, who are then unable - or unwilling to look after them. Amongst the dozens of horses visible, I did see a couple of examples of cruelty - the most obvious one of all was by an elderly man, kicking his pony in the stomach for no apparent reason.

There's talks by Dublin City Council of moving the market out of the city - as Smithfield becomes increasingly gentrified, the more urbane of the urban dwellers in the surrounding apartments are apparently unimpresssed with the smell of horse shit once a month!

Ha'penny Bridge, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.
Download high resolution photograph of the Ha'penny Bridge »

I took this as a long exposure on the railing of the boardwalk, praying the hordes of soccer louts beating seven shades of shite out of each other would fail to notice me. My prayers were answered.

The Ha'penny Bridge, known later for a time as the Penny Ha'penny Bridge, is a pedestrian bridge built in 1816 over the River Liffey in Dublin, Ireland. Originally called the Wellington Bridge (after the Duke of Wellington), the name of the bridge changed to Liffey Bridge, its official name to this day. It is still commonly known as the Ha'penny Bridge. The toll itself was dropped in 1919; before this there were turnstiles either end of it.
Irish Architecture »

Malahide Castle, Co. Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.
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Malahide Castle is a Norman structure in north county Dublin, Ireland. et on 250 acres of park land in the pretty seaside town of Malahide, was both a fortress and a private home for nearly eight hundred years. The Talbot family lived here from 1185 to 1973, when the last Lord Talbot died.

The house is furnished with beautiful period furniture together with an extensive collection of Irish portrait paintings, mainly from the National Gallery. The history of the Talbot family is recorded in the Great Hall, with portraits of generations of the family telling their own story of Ireland's stormy history. One of the more poignant legends concerns the morning of the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, when fourteen members of the family breakfasted together in this room, never to return, as all were dead by nightfall.

The castle is open to the public.Radiohead and Neil Young are playing there this summer!

Harpist Brenda Malloy busking outside Trinity College Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.
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Harpist Brenda Malloy busking outside Trinity College Dublin. I took this photograph for a magazine in Washington DC., but was rushing to another meeting plus a friendly german man approached me to talk cameras.. I didn't get a chance to talk to the harpist, so I didn't know her name. However, I realised later that I had a contact on flickr that is a harpist, so I emailed her, hoping she might know the College Green musician.

Typically, "Diogenes 24" on flickr.com turned out to be the very person I'd photographed - Brenda Malloy!

Terry, protestor at Rath Lugh camp, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

Terry, activist from Cork, standing beside a stream that now runs under the partly built M3 motorway that is controversially cutting through the national monument of Rath Lugh, an ancient promontory fort that was a defensive position for the Hill of Tara, the sea of the High Kings of Ireland. Behind Terry is a large mound of construction rubble. The trees in the photograph will be cleared by the motorway construction.

The woods at Rath Lugh, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

The Woods at Rath Lugh, near Skryne or Skreen Co. Meath. These woods on the the esker and beside the promontory fort of Rath Lugh that are currently being threatened by the construction of the M3 motorway between Dublin and Navan.

The Woods at Rath Lugh, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

The Woods at Rath Lugh, near Skryne or Skreen Co. Meath. These woods on the the esker and beside the promontory fort of Rath Lugh that are currently being threatened by the construction of the M3 motorway between Dublin and Navan.

Tara activist JP Fay in his hut at Tara, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

Tara activist JP Fay in his hut at Tara. Fay, from Trim has been one of the long-term activists in fighting the M3 motorway's path through the Tara area. He and other proposed an alternative route that was turned down, and was one of the "Tara Four" jailed for refysing to bail conditions to stay away from the construction site.

Poet and Tara protestor and poet Kieron Murray, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

Poet and Tara protestor Kieron Murray, also known as Kyrie Murray, reading poetry in a hut at the Hill of Tara.

The Lia Fail or Stone of Destiny at The Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, originally uploaded by blather.Get the high resolution version »

The Lia Fail or Stone of Destiny at The Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, ancient seat of the High Kings of Ireland until the 6th century AD. This standing stone is on the Inauguration Mound, and in legend it was the Coronation Stone for Irish High Kings into the 6th Century AD.

The Hill of Tara is located near Dunshaughlin and Navan, and the River Boyne.

Also in legend, the stone was supposed to have been brought to Ireland by the Tuatha Dé Danann - a magical race who once ruled Ireland. The Lia Fail itself was supposed to have magical properties - when a rightful king put his feet on it, it would roar for joy, and would rejuvenate a king to give him a long reign.

Cúchulainn split it with his sword when it failed to cry out under his protegé, Lugaid Riab nDerg, and from then on it never roared again, except under Conn of the Hundred Battles and Brian Boru.

You've got to admit though, it's a bit of a phallic symbol - author Michael Slavin suggests that the king had to wed the Goddess of Sovereignty. However, it appears she was wearing a strap on!

The Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

The Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, ancient seat of the High Kings of Ireland until the 6th century AD. It's located near Dunshaughling and Navan, and the River Boyne.

The Mound of the Hostages at the Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

The Mound of the Hostages at the Hill of Tara, Co. Meath Co. Meath, ancient seat of the High Kings of Ireland until the 6th century AD. The Mound is an ancient passage tomb, from between 2500 and 3000 BC, and has impressive spiral artwork inside. Facing directly east, the door is matched with sunrise on both equinoxes. Despite being quite small, some 250-500 bodies were buried inside, this continued right up to 1600-1700 BC.
Bizarrely, the mound was dug up in the early 20th century by the British Israelites, we thought that the Ark of the Covenant was buried inside!

The Mound of the Hostages at the Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

of Tara, Co. Meath

The Mound of the Hostages at the Hill of Tara, Co. Meath Co. Meath, ancient seat of the High Kings of Ireland until the 6th century AD. The Mound is an ancient passage tomb, from between 2500 and 3000 BC, and has impressive spiral artwork inside. Facing directly east, the door is matched with sunrise on both equinoxes. Despite being quite small, some 250-500 bodies were buried inside, this continued right up to 1600-1700 BC.
Bizarrely, the mound was dug up in the early 20th century by the British Israelites, we thought that the Ark of the Covenant was buried inside!

Security men on the slope of Rath Lugh, where the M3 Motorway cuts through it, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

Security men on the slope of Rath Lugh, where the M3 Motorway cuts through it. Rath Lugh is an ancient bronze age promontory fort currently tagged for considerable damage destruction by the construction of the M3 motorway between Dublin and Navan. Protestors are camped in the woods, in oposition to the construction work.

Ya gotta have faith, oh yeah, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

Irish Faith Centre, Phibsboro, highlighted on a sunny morning.

The Virgin Mary and offerings of recyclable waste, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

In March 2008, the Vatican announced that "environmental pollution" was a new deadly sin. I took this photograph last week, before this announcement - I realise now that the recycling bags have been left as offerings for the virgin mary

Croke Park: Finishing Touches, originally uploaded by blather. Get the high resolution version »

A worker at Dublin's croke park paints a gate to the Canal End stands before a match.

The home of gaelic sports in Ireland, the 80,000 seater Croke Park, controversially threw open its gates to soccer and rubgy while Dublin's Lansdown Road field was undergoing rebuilding.

Shadowplay - shadows on Dublin's O'Connell Street, originally uploaded by blather.
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Shadowplay - shadows on Dublin's O'Connell Street

This images are more than two years old, but I just found them again when rummaging around. I'd posted an earlier picture here, so here's two more!

The Casino at Marino, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.
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The Casino at Marino was designed by Scottish architect Sir William Chambers for James Caulfield, the 1st Earl of Charlemont. It was started in the late 1750s and finished around 1775. It is a small but perfect example of Neo-Classical architecture in the gardens of the now demolished Marino House. Chambers was prouod of his work, never completed building due to work commitments in England.

The rather odd (by Irish standards) name 'Casino Marino' is derived from Italian which literally translates to 'The small house by the small sea'. Sightly pretentious, yes, but that was the taste of the time. Regarded by many as the most important Neo-Classical building in Ireland, the Casino is only fifty feet square to the outer columns, taking the form of a Greek Cross with a pair of columns framing each projecting elevation. Seen from the outside, the building has the appearance of a single-roomed structure, with a large panelled door on the north elevation and a single large window on each of the other elevations. It's all an illusion, however - the Casino actually has 16 rooms on three floors. Only two of the panels in the front door open, and the panes of glass in the windows are subtly curved, disguising the partitioning which allows what looks like a single window to serve several separate rooms. The curves also serve to act as one-way-mirrors - you can see out of the front window looking towards Dublin and the mountains, but if you try to look in, you just see reflections of the sky and garden. Inside is full of mouldings based on Roman and Greek mythology, with lots of other architectural tricks.

A lone discarded oildrum on the wicklow Way, above Powerscourt W, originally uploaded by blather.

A lone castrol oil drum, discarded by loggers the Wicklow Way, a 132 km hiking trail through the Wicklow mountains. Many sections go through managed plantation forests - this path used to lead through an attractive woodland area, which has now been clearcut by Coillte, the Irish national forestry company.

Many of these forests were planted in otherwise treeless upland areas - and in some cases up to 40 times the recommended amount of fertiliser was used to make the trees grow. This is causing some problems now in areas where forests have been clearcut, with nitrates leaching into the watertable.

Street Preacher, Temple Bar's Crown Alley, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.
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Street Preachers, Temple Bar's Crown Alley, Dublin, originally uploaded by blather.Get high resolution photograph of the Temple Bar Preacher »

Saturday afternoon, Temple Bar, Dublin. Who would have thought it necessary to turn the Irish towards god? In 2007, these rather shouty born again christians find it necessary to take the streets of Ireland's capital city to convert the heathen Irish to the word of god. Not many listened, some took photos, as souvenirs. But god, did they talk a load of muck.

Dad, RIP, originally uploaded by blather.

Tattoo seen on a girl's arm in Dun Laoghaire, Dublin

Billy Goat - Wild goats at the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare, originally uploaded by blather.

We came upon these characters one cold evening at Hag's Head. The Billy Goats manage to look goofy AND intimidating at the same time...

Wild goats at the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare. These goat herds became wild between medieval times and the early 20th century - the species are not native to Ireland.

Wild goats at the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare, originally uploaded by blather.

Wild goats at the Hag's Head, the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare. These goat herds became wild between medieval times and the early 20th century - the species are not native to Ireland.

Wild goats at the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare, originally uploaded by blather.

We came upon these characters one cold evening at Hag's Head. The Billy Goats manage to look goofy AND intimidating at the same time...

Wild goats at the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare. These goat herds became wild between medieval times and the early 20th century - the species are not native to Ireland.

Grey Seal, Kilmore Quay, Wexford, originally uploaded by blather.
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This grey seal is one of several "tame" animals that hang around the harbour of Kilmore Quay, scavenging fish scraps from anglers and trawler crew. The seal probably lives on the Saltee Islands.

I photographed them two years ago, too

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Young Buskers at the Willy Clancy Festival, Miltown Malbay, originally uploaded by blather.

Festival, Miltown Malbay

A quick break from the Alaska pictures. Here's one from Saturday last....Young buskers at the Willy Clancy Festival, Miltown Malbay, County Clare, in the west of Ireland. It's one of a load of traditional irish music festivals that happen ever summer here.
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Driftwood, originally uploaded by blather.

Driftwood on Lahinch Beach, Clare, Ireland

Early Purple Orchid, originally uploaded by blather.

Early Purple Orchid, Orchis mascula, with a waterdrop on a petal. Taken near Cahercommaun Stone Fort, The Burren, Co. Clare

Spirals and tangents, originally uploaded by blather. Get this photograph »

Cepaea hortensis) - Brown (or white) lipped snail photographed beside Cahercommaun stone fort, the Burren, Co. Clare, Ireland

Hag's Head, at the Cliffs of Moher, Clare, Ireland, originally uploaded by blather.
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Hag's Head, at the Cliffs of Moher, Clare, Ireland, 200m high cliffs on the Atlantic coast. This photograph was taken below the cliff top, from the sea looking in, towards land. The only manipulation in this image is to separate the exposure of the sky from that of the rocks. Which makes it a helluva lot scarier.

Me on the Cliffs of Moher this morning, originally uploaded by blather.

Me on the Cliffs of Moher this morning.Photo by Damien

Raven (corvus corax) at Hag's Head on the Cliffs of Moher, originally uploaded by blather.

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Raven (corvus corax) at Hag's Head on the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare, Ireland. We had just seen ravens fighting with four choughs (a red-bill coastal crow, like a small raven) in a fantastically acrobatic dogfight.

Damien at the Cliffs of Moher, this morning, originally uploaded by blather.

Ye have to be up early to catch the like of us.

Cahercommaun Stone Cliff Fort, The Burren, originally uploaded by blather.

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Perched on a high cliff inland in the Burren, Co. Clare, this early medieval stone fort has an atmosphere all of its own...

Dawn Raid: Raven diving from the Cliffs of Moher, this morning, originally uploaded by blather. Get high resolution version »

Raven (corvus corax) diving from the Cliffs of Moher, near Hag's Head, Co. Clare, Ireland. Ravens are possibly my favourite bird.

At the Bridges of Ross, Loop Head, Co. Clare, originally uploaded by blather. Get high resolution version »

2nd January 2006 - the brooding sky and sea, at the Bridges of Ross

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Irish Mountain Hare, near Hag's Head, Cliffs of Moher, originally uploaded by blather.

Irish Mountain Hare, Lepus Timidis Hibernicus. The Mountain Hare is largely adapted to polar and mountainous habitats. It is distributed from Fennoscandia to eastern Siberia; in addition there are isolated populations in the Alps, Ireland, Poland, United Kingdom and Hokkaido. some scientists believe that the Irish Hare should be regarded as a separate species.

Hell River, originally uploaded by blather.

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Sign for Hell River, on the R352, Tulla, Co. Clare, Ireland. Weird on this - I've yet been able to find out why it's called "Hell River"! Is this Chronos driving a cattle truck full of dead folk?
Abhainn Ifrinn does literally translate as "river hell", so there's no mistakes of anglicisation - I shall enquire further.

Duck, abandoned, originally uploaded by blather.

Toy duck hanging upside down in a tree beside the river Slaney, Wexford

No trespassing, originally uploaded by blather.

Warning, no trespassers, private property, no dogs - Sign near Hags Head at the Cliffs of Moher. Visitors are instead syphoned through an expensive car parking system to see a less interesting part of the cliffs

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Our limbs intertwined, originally uploaded by blather.

Iris stalk, not yet in flower. I shot it at 400mm telephoto, with the light behind it - hence the halo around each leaf....

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Reaching skywards, originally uploaded by blather.

Iris stalk, not yet in flower. I shot it at 400mm telephoto, with the light behind it - hence the halo around each leaf....

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Ok, now you've gotten me mad..., originally uploaded by blather.

Erithacus rubecula - European Robin. Photographed in my parent's garden near Wexford town, in Ireland. He's got his crest up - despite their size and cute reputation, they're fiercly territorial, and will even try and kill each other!



I shot this from a hide I made in my car, and used a 30D and 100-400 Canon L Series Lens (USM) with my 30D. It's not cropped.

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Fisherstreet, Doolin, Co. Clare, Ireland.

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Liscannor in the background, ghostly surfers in foreground.

Lahinch, this evening, as stormy weather suddenly calmed

From Today's Clare People - a collection of my photographs , from St. Brigid's Well, near the Cliffs of Moher in Co. Clare, Ireland.

Lahinch, this afternoon

It is time...?
It is time for...?
It is time for stormy weather!
- The Pixies

So there's a beetle right, and it's sitting on a toadstool...

Read on...

The inner circle of Cahercommaun Stone Fort contains a wealth of wildlife - I've even seen a frog in there. This was a common green grasshpper that allowed me to get right up close. Bear in mind, this guy was less than 20mm long...

The title of the post comes from The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick.

Continuing the snail obession, here's three images that I had on exhibition during the recent Family Festival in Ennistymon, Co. Clare. All three are of snails - or abandonded shells, within metres of Poulnabrone Dolmen.

As usual, prints of all my work is available on request....

I was sitting on the Cliffs of Moher a few weeks ago, watching the sunset from Hag's Head. A raven streaked by, swooping and croaking. My camera was set up for a slow shutter speed, but I fired anyway... and got this impressionistic shot.

I spotted this snail having a munch while cycling around Inishmore a couple of weeks ago. I've been obsessed with snails since I got my new Macro lens...

Field, house, Lahinch, Co. Clare »
© 2006 Dave Walsh

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Dry Stone Wall, The Burren, West of Ireland

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The Burren: An overview »
Wikipedia: The Burren »

Coming back from Connemara last weekend, we stopped off in Cong, Co. Mayo. Late in the afternoon, we were walking out of the grounds of Ashford Castle, towards Cong. On the avenue between the Church of Ireland church and the Roman Catholic Church, was a tubby bird about the length of a blackbird pecking away on the ground.

We got closer, for a look. It wasn't so much tame as completely unconcerned by us. It looked at us, cocked its head, and then going back to digging for worms. It made no attempt to fly, and we stayed with 1-2m of it for about 15 minutes before it wandered off into the undergrowth.

It had a pale breast, speckled with brown, a short, slightly hooked beak, and a brown head and back. Some of its wing feathers seemed to be tipped with gold, or yellow. Its head seemed to be stuffed into its body, as if its shoulders were hunch up,and it's feathers seemed 'fluffed out'.

We reckoned it was a juvenile thrush - but after comparing it to loads of images in books and online, we couldn't figure out if it's a song thrush, a mistle thrush, or something else.

So, I contacted the RTE radio programme Mooney Goes Wild, and Birdwatch Ireland. Derek Mooney referred my email over to Birdwatch Ireland's Niall Hatch, who sent me this email this morning:

"Thank you for your e-mail, which Derek Mooney passed on to us here in BirdWatch Ireland.

The bird in your photographs is indeed a young thrush: specifically, a Song Thrush that has only just left the nest. It would just be starting to find food for itself, but its parents would most likely still be looking after it. It would just be beginning to fly, but would not be very good at it yet, hence its reluctance to fly away from you. You can see in the photos that the flight feathers have not yet fully grown, and the pale tips that you mentioned are characteristic of new feathers that are still growing; these tips will soon wear off, giving the wings and back a more uniform appearance. The bird is also too young yet to have developed the healthy fear of humans that most birds have, and wouldn't really have been sure of how to react to you."

Read on for more photos...

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"Sean O'Casey Bridge is a pedestrian bridge spanning the River Liffey in Dublin, joining Sir John Rogerson's Quay in the Grand Canal Docks area, to North Wall Quay and the IFSC.

The bridge was built in 2005, as part of a large-scale urban renewal scheme under the Dublin Docklands Development Authority to link the north and south quays and rejuvenate both. The swing bridge spans ~100 metres and has two balanced cantilever arms that swing open to allow boats pass up river.

The bridge was opened by An Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in July 2005, and is named for the playwright Sean O'Casey (1880-1964) who lived in the North Wall area of the city."
Wikipedia: Sean O'Casey Bridge
Archiseek: Sean O'Casey Bridge
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O'Connell Street Dublin, this morning.

Lough Gur is one of the most subtley impressive and important archaeological sites in Ireland. With the largest stone circle and other megalithic sites, castles, entrances to the Land of Youth, lake dwellings, and layer upon layer of myth, it's one of my favourites places.

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Ringsend, Poolbeg ESB Power station, Dublin - Dublin's source of electricity, seen from the Bull Wall, Bull Island, across Dublin Bay. Get high quality version »

Becky out boating

These photographs were taken in September 2005...

As well as taking pictures of the Hellfire Club on Halloween, we also went running around the woods in the low November sunlight - perfect for photography streaks of light playing over moss, mushrooms, ferns, trees and toadstools. Here's some of the photographs.



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