Dove Hill Norman Tower

We continue from Dove Hill Norman Tower, and I hope we make it to Poulakerry Tower House. The season is spring.

We see a glimpse of several ruins as we walk. River Suir was the main access route, and has been used by the early Christians, the Vikings, the Normans and everyone else over the centuries. The four-storey Dove Hill tower house has been changing keepers since it was erected in the 14th century. The Earl of Ormond is listed as the proprietor in 1640 when the tower was described as “a small castle wanting repaire“.

This is a closer look. The ivy-clad ruin stands right across the road from the Dove Hill Irish Design Centre.

Suir Blueway was officially launched in May 2019 and the path was paved in 2018. Before that the path looked like in the pictures below, and I loved it much more than its paved version. In fact, it makes me sad when I see all that paving, drainage or tree cutting in the wildlife habitats intended to accommodate our selfish wants. There are very little habitats left in Ireland, and very little wildlife.

Now and then we see an angler. River Suir is still rich in salmon and has the distinction of producing Ireland’s record rod-caught salmon that weighed 57 lb ( 25.9 kg) and was taken on a fly by Michael Maher in 1874. .

We walk some 2-3 kilometers and there is no other sound than the buzzing of bees and chirping of birds.

Then suddenly we hear a ‘white noise’ that grows louder as we walk – it is the sound of the rapids.

Nothing dramatic here, just the shallow water and the rocks, but the sound is impressive.

I take a slow shutter picture of the water.

River Suir is not deep along the Blueway. All the navigation takes place to the south of Carrick-on-Suir.

We walk another kilometre in solitude. There is MSD biotechnology company site somewhere at this stretch of the riverwalk, but they make themselves invisible, and they are a good employer anyway…

We pass so-called Glyn Castle – the house with a rich history built on the site of an ancient castle.

Waterford- Clonmel railway comes close to the river at this point.

More walking.

There are birds – robins, wrens, green finches.

Heron makes a comical takeoff.

The beautiful vistas of the green Irish countryside provide a lovely ending to our 6 km long walk.

Some more birds as we approach the outskirts of my favorite village.

We made it to the Poulakerry tower house!

In my next blog we are going to stay in the village of Kilsheelan and walk between the Poulakerry tower house and Gurteen Castle.

Have a happy week!

Recently I took some fog pictures and added a few more from my archives to put up a blog. The reason for this blog was a dream. In the dream, I woke up after driving through the thick fog. I knew that the road might be flooded and I could perish. From time to time I came across other cars with the blinking lights – the drivers pulled over to the side of the road, but I didn’t give up until I finally knew where I was. It felt like a victory.

This is Dove Hill Castle, or De La Poer Castle, a fortified tower house that was built in the 14th century. In my dream, I was driving this road 🙂

This is Kilsheelan Wood in the foggy morning, a background image taken for my film sandwich project two years ago.

Kilsheelan bridge. This place was completely under the water during the last flood.

When I think of water, my thoughts immediately shift to mosquitoes and Zika virus, the subject that has been all over the news these days. I come across this wonderful blog – The Hartley Hooligans. Please, have a look. You might find answers to the questions you have never asked yourself before.

I had a chat with my daughter, we talked about Zika and the babies with microcephaly. Perfect people, she said, and I knew what she meant. Perfect people who are here on Earth only to bless and teach others. It is how we should think of them instead of trying to come up with a politically correct word.

Reading news is bad for you, some people say. I don’t think so. It is like driving through the fog – if you are careful and don’t get distracted, you will be all right.

Waterford in the end of January, with the Christmas lights still on 🙂

The rising sun is rolling the mist from Johns Hill.

I took a picture of two Mormon missionaries in the narrow street still filled with mist. The media let the Mormons be until Mr. Romney decided to run for president. Since then, I have seen many hateful articles in their address.

I think that I can end this post with a Mormon quote. Google has a good assortment of them, and I loved this one for it’s optimism, good humor, and confidence in the future. I am a huge believer in the future.