A beautiful sun pillar over a small fishing boat resting on Carlingford Lough with the silhouette of the Cooley Mountains providing a lovely backdrop. Taken from Greenore, Co. Louth at 21:50 last night.

📸 by @ann.bruen

Clough Mór and Fionn mac Cumhaill

Fionn mac Cumhaill threw most of the big stones that are littered across the north of Ireland. He was also responsible for creating the Giants Causeway, the Isle of Man and Lough Neagh and gives his name to the Cooley mountains across the Lough. Fionn mac Cumhaill pursued a wild boar across Slieve Foy mountain in Carlingford and slew it. He cooked it on top of the smouldering Volcano that had…

Clough Mór and Fionn mac Cumhaill

Fionn mac Cumhaill threw most of the big stones that are littered across the north of Ireland. He was also responsible for creating the Giants Causeway, the Isle of Man and Lough Neagh and gives his name to the Cooley mountains across the Lough.

Fionn mac Cumhaill pursued a wild boar across Slieve Foy mountain in Carlingford and slew it. He cooked it on top of the smouldering Volcano that had…

Sunset over a small fishing boat on Carlingford Lough last night as the sun started to slide down the Cooley mountains. Taken from Greenore, Co. Louth at 21.35 as the days slowly get shorter. 🌅

📸 by @ann.bruen

Fionn mac Cumhaill threw most of the big stones that are littered across the north of Ireland. He was also responsible for creating the Giants Causeway, the Isle of Man and Lough Neagh and gives his name to the Cooley mountains across the Lough. Fionn mac Cumhaill pursued a wild boar across Slieve Foy mountain in Carlingford and slew it. He cooked it on top of the smouldering Volcano that had…

Clough Mór and Fionn mac Cumhaill

Fionn mac Cumhaill threw most of the big stones that are littered across the north of Ireland. He was also responsible for creating the Giants Causeway, the Isle of Man and Lough Neagh and gives his name to the Cooley mountains across the Lough. Fionn mac Cumhaill pursued a wild boar across Slieve Foy mountain in Carlingford and slew it. He cooked it on top of the smouldering Volcano that had…

Cloughmore Stone and Carlingford Lough

There are many trails around this area, but we just went up straight to ‘The Big Stone’, An Cloch Mhór in Irish. According to legend, the giant Finn Mc Cool was chasing a wild boar in the Cooley Mountains on the other side of the water, when he spotted another giant in the distance, named Ruscaire. For three days and three nights the two giants fought over who was the strongest. Eventually, Finn picked up a big rock and threw it at Ruscaire, who was crushed by it and died. This is the Cloughmore Stone. Finn Mc Cool was so tired after this, that he fell asleep and you can see the giant’s outline in the hills. If you prefer a scientific explanation, the stone, weighing 50 tonnes, was likely transported by a glacier from Scotland during the Ice Age roughly 10,000 years ago. Interestingly, Carlingford Lough marks the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, so the Cooley Mountains you see on the other side of the water are part of the Republic of Ireland.

Poc Fada na hÉireann

The Poc Fada na hÉireann is the All-Ireland final for the ancient sport of the poc fada. This involves hitting a ball (slíotar) around a mountain course in the fewest strikes (poc) possible. There are qualifiers held around the country throughout the year to select the best athletes. On the big day, men, women and children all take part in their separate competitions. The course runs around part…