May 2021
1. COVID 19 Update
With further easing of restrictions by the Government from 10th May 2021 see Covid 19 Update from Mountaineering Ireland in the following link:
https://www.mountaineering.ie/covid19/
2. Sharing Information and Link
The Irish Examiner newspaper in association with Sport Ireland Outdoors ( Ireland’s Trails | Sport Ireland ) have produced 3 booklets featuring a series of way marked walking trails ( 100 ) taken from the National Trails Register which have been developed by local communities and organisations in Ireland. The first booklet was free with Irish Examiner on Saturday the 1st May with the 2nd out on the 8th May and 3rd on the 15th May. I am sharing pages from the first booklet :
Clonbur Co. Galway
Ballyvaughan Co. Galway
3. BurrenBeo Trust – May 2021 Snapshot
| Burrenbeo May 2021 Snapshot Irish orchid or dense flowered orchid (image above) which appears in May is hard to spot due to its compact size and its muted colouring but is a Burren speciality, keenly sought-out by orchid-lovers. Its normal range is almost exclusively the Mediterranean region – remarkable then that it is found in Burren fields sporting a range of Arctic and Alpine flowers. As the grasslands, meadows and limestone pavements of the Burren emerge into their full seasonal glory of wildflowers at this time of the year, we hope you will join us in our annual celebration of ‘Burren in Bloom’ to be held online this year between 18th and 22nd May. Find more details below on the range of inspiring and thought-provoking talks planned for it. Thank you as ever for your continued interest in and support of our work. For those who don’t yet, we invite you to Support Us by becoming a member or donating. |
| ‘The discovery of a native population of Scots pine in the Burren’ by Jenni Roche A Members-only Wonderful Wednesday Webinar 8pm, Wed, 12th May Registration link to be sent to members In this second webinar in our Wonderful Wednesday Webinar series, we will hear from Woodland Ecologist, Jenni Roche about her research that confirmed the native status of an isolated stand of Scots Pine Pinus Sylvestris in the Burren, negating the widely held belief that the native pine tree was completely lost to Ireland 1500 years ago. Next month, on the 9th of June, we will be joined by archaeologist Michelle Comber for her talk on ‘Ten years a diggin’ – the story of 600 years of high-class living at Caherconnell Cashel, Co. Clare’. Registration links will be emailed to members. You can sign up to be a Burrenbeo member here. Recordings of most of the talks will be uploaded to our YouTube channel afterwards.Burren in Bloom Online 8pm – 9:15pm Tues 18th May – Sat 22nd May www.burreninbloom.com For Burren in Bloom this year we are delighted to be partnering once again with the National Biodiversity Data Centre’s All Ireland Pollinator Plan to bring you some inspiring and thought-provoking talks on biodiversity in the Burren and beyond. There is a particular focus on community stewardship during the first two evenings; on the 18th of May we will celebrate the launch of six new biodiversity plans by community groups in Co.Galway who have recently completed their biodiversity training with Burrenbeo Trust. On the 19th of May we will hear the stories of two inspirational communities; Ennis Tidy Towns and the Monnaghan Dispered Orchard Project both of whom have done outstanding work for biodiversity in their places. Other events include ‘An insight into the wild orchids of the Burren’ with orchid expert Brendan Sayers, a talk on ‘Farming Vs Rewilding’ with Pádraic Fogarty of the Irish Wildlife Trust and a talk with David Cabot on ‘Writing about the Burren’. All events are free to attend but registration is essential through www.burreninbloom.com |
| Galway Biodiversity Training and Awareness Programme. Our six communities (Gort, Ardrahan, Kinvara, Claregalway, Oranmore and Woodford) have now completed their skills training sessions in a wide variety of areas including grassland management for meadows, creating a community garden, planting for pollinators and community engagement. Well done to all who have been dedicating their personal time to upskill and enable implementation of their local biodiversity plans. We are really excited about the launch of the 6 plans which will take place virtually on the 18th of May as part of this year’s Burren in Bloom Online events. All are welcome to attend by registering through www.burreninbloom.com |
April 2021
With the easing of some of the Level 5 lockdown restrictions by the Government and one of which gives us the ability to move within our county from the 12th April 2021, we all need to be mindful of where we walk / hike.
The following is the link to the Mountaineering Ireland guidance:
https://www.mountaineering.ie/covid19/
Remember:
Be Safe – Be Responsible – Be Considerate
Also the book “Irish Peaks – A Celebration of Ireland’s Highest Mountains “ is back in stock with Mountaineering Ireland.
Documentary on RTE 1 – The Burren: Heart of Stone
I hope many of you got to see the beautiful documentary with the superb photography on RTE 1 on the 11th April 2021 – The Burren: Heart of Stone by the film- maker Katrina Costello. She also made the documentary The Silver Branch released back in 2018 and this was her debut film. She is a self-taught film-maker.
Patrick McCormack a poet and farmer from the Mullaghmore area of the Burren who played a major part in The Silver Branch also appeared in Heart of Stone.
If you missed Part 1 of Heart of Stone you will get it on the RTE Player. The second part airs on Sunday 18th April at 6.30pm on RTE 1 with the actor Brendan Gleeson narrating.
Part 1 I am sure awakened our interest in the Burren and we saw things that a lot of us had not known existed such as the underground caves and the feats of cave divers and their discoveries. Also the Cuckoo and how the female lays her eggs in the Meadow Pippets nest who then rear the young !
Having seen such a truly breathtaking view of the beauty of the deeper depths of the Burren in this documentary it is so important that it is preserved for generations to come. Organisations such as the Burren Beo Trust ensure that this will happen.
Burren Beo Trust – Connecting people and place
The Burren Beo Trust is a landscape charity dedicated to connecting all of us to our places and our role in caring for them.
You can subscribe to their free monthly newsletter. Additionally, you can become a member with an annual subscription:
Adult €40 / year
Couple €50/ year
Extract from what Burren Beo Trust is all about
‘Every place is special, with its own unique natural, built and cultural heritage. Most of our places benefit from having an engaged local community to look after them. By becoming a member of the Burrenbeo Trust you are joining an organisation that is focused on education, inspiring and connecting people to both the Burren and beyond, helping people identify their role in safeguarding their own place, and influencing researchers and policy makers dealing with heritage and landscape.
As a member of the Burrenbeo Trust you will be part of an active community working together for the future of our heritage and landscapes.
In return you will receive access to high quality information about the Burren and access to a number of members-only benefits and experiences.
Your membership will help us:
- conserve one of the world’s most unique and significant landscapes, the Burren;
- ensure that the Burren’s community old and young are informed and engaged about this unique landscape and it’s care;
- ensure that landscape is utilized sustainably for communities local and visiting;
- spread the model of place-based learning and community stewardship to inform pride amongst communities throughout Ireland as a means of encouraging sustainable conservation;
- actively work together for the best future for heritage and landscape nationally.
Burrenbeo Snapshot April 2021 – Burrenbeo Trust Stay safe and hopefully we will all get to meet for walking and hiking in the not too distant future.
Galway Walking Club 