As always, the three-days long festival culminates in a spectacular creative parade Sunday night. Every parade has a theme. Source To Sea is the theme for this year’s 25th anniversary Parade. It is all about River Suir.
I have written about River Suir on many occasions, and I know I will write again :).
River Suir is 185 km ( 115 mi) long with the average flow rate of 76.9 cubic metres per second – and we love every drop of it! River Suir begins on the slopes of Devil’s Bit Mountain in County Tipperary and flows south to Waterford Harbour where she enters the Atlantic Ocean.
River Suir flows past many castles, and she has witnessed many bloody battles.
Snaking through the countryside, River Suir grows in size and beauty. She is a home to many creatures, real and mystical, and her secrets are well kept, some of them hidden in the thick of her islands.
Here is everything you need to know about River Suir – animals, fowl, fairies and humans living here since the world began.
It is literally raining on our parade, but the rain is not going to bring our spirit down.
Heron is one of my Suir favorites. These birds are perfect for slow shutter speed shots since they can stay motionless for hours. This one has caught a rainbow trout and now is trying to swallow it whole.
Some walking exercises after a great lunch.
They have a heron here too. No fish eating demonstrations though.
They even have an otter! I don’t have any picture of a live otter…
Many floats represent fishing.
And of course there is a fish. A gigantic Rainbow trout.
This mechanical swan looks very real.
An army of dragonflies and their Queen.
And of course nothing of this would have happened without 200 artists and volunteers.
The Parade ended at a quarter to 11 pm concluded with firework finale which I never take pictures of. Fireworks are for watching.
Thank you for visiting SPRAOI and River Suir!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Making memories 
joyfully expresses
connections
deep & wide 🙂
Thank you so much! xx
Thank you for letting us share your magical evening – as ever, your photos are a joy:)
Thank you so much! I hope my photos will help those who plan a trip to Ireland 🙂
I’m sure they will!
Really enjoyed the blog! What a fabulous place to live! It looks like so much fun to see all the festivities. BTW, our Herons look something like yours, but are a lot bigger. I also love herons.
Oh that is cool. I would love to see a bigger heron 🙂 This picture was taken from across the river. They won’t let you come too close.
Love this! In maintaining such traditions, we remain connected to Mother Earth.
Thank you Rosaliene!
Wonderful parade and it looks like a lot of planning and work went into it. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Thank you for stopping by!
I love that the Irish have kept The Fairy Folk and Magic as an integral part of their heritage all through these years.
Thank you for stopping by! I believe in fairies 🙂
Just stunning! What an awesome finale! I love the colorful costumes and the floats! Everything looks so beautifully and hand-crafted! And kudos to all those who helped to make it happen! Thanks so much for sharing this, Inese! xxxxxxxxxxx ❤
Thank you for joining SPRAOI 🙂
Thank YOU!!! 😄😘
You take us there, Inese
Thank you Derrick!
A wonderful end to the bank holiday weekend! Our bank holiday is this weekend but there’s nothing like that going on 😦
Now you know where to go on your August bank holiday 🙂
You have bestowed depths, feelings, mysteries and a persona to the river. I stood transcended by the proceedings of the river and it’s celebration. Those are sparkling images.
Thank you so much! This parade is a hallmark of our summer, and I am glad that this year it was dedicated to Suir.
This looks like a wonderful time. Loved the pics and specially the replicas of nature within the parade. The river pictures are stunning. Thanks for sharing
Thank you so much Geetha! We love our river 🙂
Welcome Inese 🙂 You are well guided to do so.
A festival in praise of nature is always the finest thing. This one locks as if it has raised the bar. Super photos.
Thank you Mike! The costumes and floats were brilliant.
They certainly were, as were those crystal photographs.
Thank you!
I really like those cute animals hung from the trees. I think they make the place looks lively and a bit less intimidating. The festival look great and you are right the mechanical animals look quite real. I like to see them in actions.
I saw the toy animals on a tiny island. I don’t know the meaning, but it might be an offering to fairies. There were also many ribbons and handmade toys. It looks sort of like a Wish Tree. I have never seen such thing in any other place.
Ah, that sounds like a very good idea.
What a magnificent parade and post. Thank you my dear.
(I take it you are getting – a tad – better?)
🙂
Thank you Brian! It is our annual festival. Hope all is well.
Working on it. 🙂
Do. Sending you good wishes.
😉 Likewise.
Thank you!
Beautiful images!
Thank you!
After your last post, I added Spraoi to my bucket list. This just makes highlights the wisdom of that decision. Beautiful photos, Inese. It looks magical!
You won’t be disappointed 🙂
I may never leave!
You never take a bad photograph.I wish I could say that about my songwriting.
George, songwriting is a different league completely. I wouldn’t even compare. Photography is a set of skills, and your talent is, well, a talent.
Such wonderful artistry in the parade floats! I’m sure all had a wonderful time,
despite the raindrops.
Thank you! Yes, amazing artistry and imagination. The rain never scares us 🙂
The River Suir looks magical and mysterious Inese 🙂
Thank you Andrea! When I get better I will drive to the Source in the Devil’s bit mountain and write a blog 🙂
Ooh I’ll look forward to that 🙂
Not too far from where I live, but the hike will be a challenge.
What a wonderland, Inese. It had to be amazing to see the parade, especially with the big puppets. I enjoyed the green — faeries, I imagine they were. Yes, I love herons too. Hugs on the wing.
Thank you so much, Teagan! The costumes are amazing. Unfortunately there was no time to admire them as the parade moved along fast. Many hugs.