I have unsuccessfully tried to find St Erc’s Well on two previous occasion and written about my first experience here. It has played on my mind however, and another trip to North Kerry in the company of Himself and Finola from Roaringwater Journal, provided an opportunity for a third, and hopefully, fruitful exploration. St Erc’s […]
Charles Smith
An Turas: in the footsteps of St Crohane
Tobar an Bhile, St Crohane’s Well near Castle Cove on the Ring of Kerry was the well that originally sparked my interest in Irish holy wells. Way back on the 30th July 1998 (I remember the date exactly as it was my son’s 18th birthday) I left our holiday home in the lashing rain to […]
Holy Fish, Faction Fighting & some Meandering
Who knew an innocent paragraph could lead down so many different paths and involve so much detective work and strange stories! Browsing through Sacred Waters, I came across an intriguing reference to a holy lake in County Cork that I had not yet come across: … the sacred lake of Loughadrine (Cork) which cured all […]
Cork City Wells Revisited
Cork city originally had six wells in its vicinity: Lady’s Well, Leitrim Street; St Francis Well, Franciscan Well Pub; Sunday’s Well, Sunday’s Well Road; Toibar Bhrionach, Wise’s Hill; St Finbarr’s Well, Kilbarry and St Bartholomew’s Well, Doughcloyne. The first four were investigated on an atrocious day way back in February 2016 and are due for […]
North Kerry Escapade Part 2
The second part of our day trip around the tip of North Kerry and refreshed with a bowl of soup in a supermarket somewhere rural, we paid a quick visit to Lislaughtin Abbey. It has seen better days but even in a derelict state it was apparent how fine it must once have been. The […]
St Macadaw’s Well, Kerry Head: yet to be discovered
Kerry Head is a tiny peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic, the very limit of North Kerry. It is incredibly scenic and remote but home to several interesting holy wells. Today’s destination was St Macadaw’s church and holy well in the townland of Glenderry, a place of much folklore and tradition connected with one particular […]