It takes two to Sligo
Malcolm Rogers travels to Sligo.
 By Malcolm Rogers
Towering mountains, glassy loughs, craggy coastlines — welcome
to Sligo, at the very edge of the Old World. Stretching from the windswept
beaches of the Atlantic coast to the quiet waters of Lough Gill, Sligo
begs you to dust down that very useful old cliché — it really
is one of Europe’s best-kept secrets.
Poets and painters have lived and died trying to capture the essence of
its ethereal, stone-wall stitched landscape, its misty rushes, brown bogs
and old statues time-worn by moody weather.
One of Mrs Yeats’ lads had a good try though. At Lough Gill you’ll
find Dooney Rock, celebrated in verse by WB: “For the good are always
the merry, save by an evil chance / And the merry love the fiddle and
the merry love to dance.”
Lissadell House, Glencar Waterfall and “bare Ben Bulben’s
Head” all have connections with the Nobel prize-winning poet, who
is buried in nearby Drumcliff Cemetery.
Surf and turf
It’s not all verse and water colours. The jagged coastline of Sligo
is now home to a thriving surf scene. Easky, where some of Europe’s
best waves roll in, provides exhilarating sport while the less experienced
can try the more moderate surf at Strandhill.
In the saddle
If an activity holiday is to your liking, then there is no better place.
Having tried a surf board you might be interested in going horseback.
Nestled between Knocknarea Mountain and Union Forest, 3km from Sligo city
on the Atlantic coast sits Carrowmore and one of Ireland’s foremost
equestrian facilities, Sligo Riding Centre. Excellent facilities, sympathetic
instructors, safe and well trained horses, friendly staff and of course
a beautiful and diverse riding terrain. From the endless Atlantic beaches
for galloping to the mountains and pine forests for gentle hacking, this
truly is the horseperson’s paradise. (www.irelandonhorseback.com)
Take a hike
The less travelled part of the county, the southern reaches of Sligo is
a paradise for walkers, climbers and general view-addicts and boasts an
array of prehistoric monuments as magnificent as any you’ll find
anywhere in Europe,
If it’s mountains you’re after, you’re spoilt for choice
here. The Dartry Mountains, the Curlew Mountains, the Ox Mountains and
the Bricklieve Mountains surround and bisect the county. The Bricklieves
are a walker’s paradise as good a starting off point as any. They
rise in the south of the county and are a small, but exciting range —
terrifyingly steep tracks take you up past grey limestone cliffs and onto
one of the most beautiful bogland sceneries in Ireland.
If you haven’t packed your crampons you can instead take the gentler
Historical Trail, a 5km route from Ballyfarnon through Highwood, Castlebaldwin,
Boyle, Knockvicar and Keadew. Only one difficult part presents itself
this way — a short and steep ascent beyond Boyle but take it slowly
and admire the surrounding meadows full of wildflowers and there’s
no problem.
Bog standard
In the valley of the Bricklieves the poorly-drained soils of the clay
have allowed the formation of a blanket bog many thousands of years old.
In the spring you’ll see some very peculiar plants, including the
Venus fly trap which is one of the few carnivorous plants in Ireland.
In a baroque departure from normal plant-like behaviour this specimen
traps insects. But to be honest it’s not a terribly exciting thing
to watch — far better to lie back in the heather and watch the larks
rising hundreds of feet in the air. Oh and look out for jacksnipe zig-zagging
through the air.
Ancient ancestors
This part of Sligo is also home to one of Ireland’s great complexes
of chambered cairns. The oldest site is found at Carrowmore and from here
a great chain of ancient sites stretches eastward gaining in size and
complexity. Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery boasts 45 standing stones all
arranged under the stern gaze of the mother of all megalithic standing
stones — Medb’s Cairn, on top of Knocknarea. Impressive, thought-provoking
— and more than a little spooky.
Recent mock-ups using the bone structure of skulls found in this area
have shown that these fledgling Europeans looked like members of Deep
Purple. Despite this 7,000 years ago they had at the very least, the beginnings
of a complex society.
Plus, these early Sligo people evidently enjoyed a good view as much as
we do, building their cairns, dolmens and sepulchral chambers on Sligo’s
dramatic Atlantic seaboard.
Sligo is an extraordinary county. It is Yeats’ country — much
of his poetry was inspired by the surrounding landscape and a short stay
here will probably have you reaching for pen and paper yourself to jot
down a few inspired words.
Hibernian house
Lissadell House was built in the 1830s for Sir Robert Gore-Booth MP by
London architect Frances Goodwin. In 1876, Sir Robert left the house and
surrounding estate to his son, Sir Henry Gore-Booth.
The house was the childhood home of Irish revolutionary Constance Gore-Booth
(Countess Markievicz), her sister the poet and suffragist, Eva Gore-Booth,
and their siblings, Mabel Gore-Booth, Mordaunt Gore-Booth and Josslyn
Gore-Booth. It was also the sometime holiday retreat of the world-renowned
poet William Butler Yeats.
In 2003 the house was bought by a private couple Edward Walsh and Constance
Cassidy.
Since then there have been several disputes between locals and the new
owners regarding access rights to the lands. Locals who had become accustomed
to almost unlimited freedom to move about the estate have seen restrictions
come into place because of the new owners’ family and small children.
The current owners have however sought to restore the house and open the
house and grounds to the public for part of the year.
www.lissadellhouse.com.
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