The Summit

MountainViews newsletter for guestuser

Dec 2021

HILLWALKING
NEWS - INFORMATION - RECENT CONTRIBUTIONS - FEATURES - FORUMS

UPCOMING EVENTS for HILLWALKERS

Speckled sky, Misty slopes
A cool north breeze brought this sky and temperature inversion to Blackstairs Mountain.
For original comment, click here.

Moel Cae'r-defaid West Top
Area: Wales, Barmouth to Betws-y-Coed and Bala Area, The Arenigs. Some great views on this ascent despite the rain on the day
For original summit, click here.

Regions: MOUNTAIN COMMENTS - TRIP REPORTS - TRACKS - SUMMARIES
In short: Discovery

MOTLEY GATHERING

A Camino for Hill Walkers: The Primitive Way

The Camino Primitivo

There are many possibilities for pilgrims on the Iberian penisula. Marian Wallis describes a particularly mountainous trek in Northern Spain.

Embalse de Salime

Background

The first major pilgrimage to Santiago originated in Oviedo, in the Asturias north west of Spain and continues through the province of Galicia to its destination. Even today, it feels largely untouched. The walker can easily access Oviedo by flying into Bilbao and getting buses to Oviedo. We organised this trip ourselves using the guide book, The Camino Primitivo, and a website called Camino Forum to book places to stay and follow the route. While the route is waymarked, unlike the more popular French Camino it can be vague in places so we found the very detailed map in the Wise Pilgrim excellent to keep us going in the right direction. Later after finishing the walk I found we could download the route from Wise Pilgrim for free once we had the book. It is also possible to just download the route for a price. We used the Spanish postal luggage transport service to transfer our bigger rucksack from place to place. This cost between 5-8euro a day. There are several companies which offer this service. This route does require forward planning as places to eat and sleep can be quite a distance apart.

Escape

Every June we like to escape and rediscover the rhythm of life. So in June 2019 we sought serenity and silence in following the Camino Primitivo from Oviedo to Lugo. We were not disappointed as this way brings the pilgrim high, across rugged countryside and through small rural villages and towns. Tourists, except for a few pilgrims are few.

An ancient tree.

The Early Days

Leaving Oviedo at sunrise we soon climbed into the countryside, first on some quiet, country lanes which soon turned into gravel and dry mud paths through beech and oak forests. Birds sang, water glinted in the valley streams – a feast for the senses. Centuries old bridges reveals a rich history. The rectangular timber built granaries known as “horreros” are raised high on pillars to keep rodents out as the Asturias have done through the ages. Valsera was a welcome breakfast stop. Two hours later the Rio Nalon gave an opportunity to bathe tired and hot feet. A riverside track ascended to a pine scented forest before the final stretch to The busy market town of Grado. Here we saw the first of the manor houses built In the late 19th century by those who had made their fortune in Central and South America.

Day two brought us, on well-marked trails across the valleys through Vaquieros, named after the “vaquieros” or cattle drivers who came here in medieval times. Their legacy is the highland pasture “Branas”still visible in this rolling farmland. This landscape is the custodian of past, present and future.Tedious road sections were relieved by stunning views, joyful birdsong and the grazing cattle. Evidence of vegetable and fruit growing marked this as an agricultural area. Cornellana. Our breakfast stop, was home to the meeting of rivers Narcea and Nonaya. The town annually celebrated the capture of “El Campanula”, the first salmon of the season. A huge and once powerful monastery, with a Cathedral like church, is now semi-ruined. Another long, hot climb soon saw us on a mountain track through a forest where rustling testified to active wildlife. Passing over the summit was rewarded with a wide panoramic view, totally devoid of man-made constructions. Refreshing cool water from a fountain after Llamas gave us new vigour to complete the trail to Salas, an enchanting medieval town with its own palace now a hotel. The people here were friendly and welcoming. Our evening was enlivened by a child’s birthday party which seemed to give everyone an excuse to party.

Cows and Corn

A local hostelry.

Our early morning climb out of Salas led upwards on a riverside track through an old, oak forest before stopping at Espina for coffee. Today we had 1200m ascent along farm lanes, forest trails and quiet country roads to reach Pedregal for the final ascent to Tineo.

Our descent into the town was in the company of a prize cow adorned with ribbons. It was agricultural show day! After dining it was yet another ascent but the amazing views of green valleys, tree covered slopes and numerous mountain ridges made it all worthwhile. There were fields of corn waving in the light, cooling breeze. The scent of apples lingered in the air as we passed the many orchards which supplies the local cider businesses. The native, small horses, “Astrucon”grazed happily beside the path.On the last stretch to Campiello a dense fog suddenly whirled like a dervish. Our head torch saved us but the last three km was a nightmare. But our accommodation at Casa Hermenia was a revelation. The female Spanish version of the Healy-Rea. Whatever we needed she had it!

Ghosts of the Past

The fog persisted into the morning and for much of our climb over the higher route which passed the ruins of three pilgrim hospitals where sick pilgrims had rested unless claimed by death.The dampness was cold and waterproofs were a life saviour against the chill wind in the higher altitude. Occasionally, voices followed by ghostly figures appeared momentarily out of the mist only to dissolve into the gloom. It was eerie and surreal to imagine how pilgrims struggled up this mountain in pursuit of the spiritual. This desire to seek the sacred united the pilgrims of all generations. Navigation was made even more difficult as the markers were not as frequent but luckily La Paridiella hospital ruins appeared out of the mist. Continuing, we reached Fonfaron,a delapidated structure surrounded by a few wind-blown gnarled trees. The fog lightened to allow intermittent views of an isolated plateau in the midst of lofty mountains. Valparaiso hospital gave momentary sweeping views of the Cantabrian mountains. As we traversed along narrow ridge numerous valleys and extensive mountain ranges stretched into the distance. The remote summit at Alto de Palo overshadowed an almost vertically situated valley where unusual colourful bushes hugged the slope creating the most exquisite rockeries. There was little sign of life except for a very Spanish “Toro” whose field we had to cross. Now hungry with little prospect of food we trudged through Lago, uphill to stroll beneath a beech canopy before arriving in Berduceo just as the fog swarmed in from all sides.

Forest Destruction

Day five began with stunning views from the windmill- lined ridge above La Mesa to the quaint little chapel after Buspol. We had a steep 650m ascent at first shrouded in fog before the sun broke through to reveal a dramatic mountain valley. Many of the forests here had been burnt in 2017. It was hard to imagine these lifeless, skeletal remains were once straight and green. The scorched ground offered little hope of renewal. The reservoir, Embalse de Salime, a very natural looking lake drew us downwards like a magnet. The inevitable climb zigzagged beside tall trees with exotic leaves protecting us from a scorching sun.A detour away from the road to a quiet country track gave us an early arrival in Grandas de Salime where we relaxed with wine, food and a good book.

Final Days

The hospital ruins

The next three days brought us past a medieval centre for lepers, strange figures sculpted out of old pieces of machinery, the little chapel of St. Barbara who promises to “save stores of bread and wine and watches over all pilgrims”. We climbed high to cross into Galicia, passed the well-preserved ruins of Hospital de Montouto and stones from the Neolithic period. We traversed valleys with traditional round cattle sheds, very nearly stood on a snake, cooled down with ice-creams and still have cherished memories of spectacular scenery on the way to Fonsgrada, O Cadavo and Lugo. The sun rose and danced as we began our final day. As the landscape turned to amber and gold our path twisted through a deciduous forest of oak and beech. Clumps of wild rose and blackthorn wafted a sweet scent as birds chirped and warbled to welcome the day. A complementary route took us past the ruins of the village of Soutomerille, a magical detour through an ancient forest. This is a breathing museum of centuries old trees, whose twisted, bent trunks and branches testifies to old age. One gnarled chestnut, more than 350 years old belongs to the pages of a Tolkien novel.

Our gradient along forest paths and farm tracks was much gentler as there were signs of more affluence. The hum of incessant traffic told of our proximity to Lugo. Thankfully, dirt lanes led us over the autopiste to merge with a wall lined, secluded path into the outskirts of Lugo. At last there it was! The massive Roman walls gazed down from the hilltop. Elated but tired we entered the city of the Celtic god Lugh.

Buen Camino.

The route

Ireland’s Eye

A Day Trip to Ireland’s Eye

The rocky islet of Ireland's Eye lurks watchfully off the coast near Howth. Tom Barragry pays it a visit.

Looking across to Howth

A visit to Ireland’s Eye on a clear sunny day during the nesting season is an idyllic experience. The craggy 54 acres just a mile off Howth Harbour are a paradise for the ornithologist but also repay more general exploration. The island was the original site of Howth village church, forming an early part of the Howth estate when the Gaisford St Lawrence family took over the area and its extensive surrounding townlands centuries ago.

The small ferry from Howth’s West Pier (operating from May to October), drops you on a rocky inlet on the north west side of the island, and walkers, birdwatchers, and rock climbers are regular visitors over the summer season. The island contains a beach, a Martello tower, the ruins of an early monastic church, a large free-standing rock called “the stack” at the north east corner of the island (home to a very large colony of gannets, razorbills, kittiwakes and guillemots). Other avian inhabitants include puffins, shags, cormorants, fulmars, black backed gulls, herring gulls, terns, oystercatchers and shelduck. Numerous grey seals can be seen swimming in the waters close to the beach. And an inlet near the stack is called “The Long Hole” and is believed to be the location of a notorious murder in 1852.

History

The island was originally called “Eria’s Island”, and then “Erin’s Island”. Following the arrival of the Vikings, the word “island“ was replaced with the word “ey” (the Norse equivalent), and so it became known as “Erins Eye” and ultimately “Ireland ‘s Eye”. The only signs of previous human activity on the island are two structures: a Martello tower and the ruins of an old church. The church was built in the 7th century and was called Cill Mac Neasan, or “the church of the three sons of Nessan”. Nessan was a prince of the Royal House of Leinster, and his three sons were monks who founded a community there. The monks created a holy manuscript copy of the four Gospels (called the “Garland of Howth”) which is now preserved in Trinity College Dublin.

Vikings attacked the island in the late 9th Century and again in the 10th Century, destroying Cill Mac Neasáin. Only a small part of the structure now remains, surrounded by ferns and hogweed. It ceased to function as a church in the 13th century and all monastic activities were relocated to St. Mary’s Abbey in Howth. The monastery and chapel were finally abandoned in 1235, and the chapel was replaced by the one on Howth Head. The Martello tower on the north-west corner of the island was built in 1803 and was one of three constructed in Howth on the instructions of the Duke of York, in order to repel any possible invasion by Napoleon’s France.

The Long Hole

The Murder

William Burke Kirwan (1814-1880) and his wife Maria lived at number 11 Upper Merrion Street in Dublin’s city centre. He was a prosperous businessman and a successful artist. In September 1852, the couple were renting a room in Howth from where they would often take the short journey over to Ireland’s Eye. One day that autumn they were rowed out to the island by a local boatman, Patrick Nagle. William planned to do some painting, while Maria was going to swim, walk and explore the island. As the sun set the boatman arrived back to collect them and saw William Kirwan standing alone on the shore. William told Patrick he had not seen Maria for some hours and that he had been searching for her. The pair continued to search until it was almost dark.

It was Patrick who discovered Maria’s body lying on the rocks in a cove known as the Long Hole. It appeared to be a tragic drowning accident – or so everyone initially believed. However, suspicions grew as time went by, and eventually William was accused of her murder and was sent for trial.

William Kirwan pleaded his innocence and was very ably defended by his barrister and future politician, Isaac Butt. The prosecution made a great play on the fact that William had a mistress and a second family in Dublin, claiming that his wife had recently found out about this other woman, and that was why William had murdered his wife. However, during the trial witnesses for the defence claimed that Maria had known all along about her husband’s mistress, Miss Theresa Kenny. The overall evidence surrounding the event was largely inconclusive and circumstantial. Nonetheless, William Kirwan was eventually charged and convicted of Maria’s murder and was sentenced to death. His sentence was subsequently commuted to a life term and he served 27 years of hard labour on Spike Island, before being sent to America where he died in 1880. (See also the book “Murder at Ireland's Eye” by Michael Sheridan. Poolbeg Press 2012).

Gannets and Cormorants

Habitat & Wildlife

Ireland’s Eye is composed of Cambrian quartzite which forms the spectacular cliffs on the north-east side, with scattered exposures elsewhere on the island, especially in the higher northern half. A tall rocky stack, completely cut off from the main island at mid to high tide, occurs at the eastern side of the cliffs. A low-lying, sparsely vegetated islet (known as the Thulla Rocks) occurs a little to the south of the island. The widespread drift soils and quartzite on the island are essential to support the plant life, such as Bracken, Red Fescue Grass, Bluebells and Pennywort. Rare plants have also been recorded growing in the thinner soils of the island, such as Spring Squill and Knotted Clover. Along the spectacular cliffs of the island, Rock Samphire, Sea lavender, Rock Spurry and Tree Mallow also flourish. However, the main habitat is an overall mix of dry grassland with bracken.

One of the most important roles of Ireland’s Eye is as a sanctuary for sea birds. Ireland's fifth gannet colony became established on the free-standing stack in the 1980s, and there are now a few hundred pairs breeding there each year. There is also a large cormorant colony on the main island, and a few breeding pairs of puffins. Fulmars, cormorants, shags, gulls, guillemots and many more species occur regularly, as they breed on the spectacular stack. Peregrine Falcons have also a long history of breeding on Ireland’s Eye, but the number of puffins present has decreased in recent years. It is very easy to spot and (quietly!) observe all of these beautiful birds at fairly close quarters, especially the nesting cormorants. Puffins can sometimes be seen paddling in the blue waters, while the gannets, cormorants and guillemots wheel overhead.

A nesting Herring Gull

Walking the island

After the fifteen-minute journey from Howth’s West pier, the small ferry boat will drop you close to the Martello tower. There is no real harbour here, just a jumping off spot at a flat rocky inlet. From here you walk south east through the grass and bracken, before reaching a sandy shingle beach backed by low sand hills, facing directly towards Howth harbour. Grey seals can be seen bobbing in the waters beside the beach, as well as quite few shelducks and oystercatchers. Turning left at the end of the beach and up an incline, “the stack” comes into view. This is home to breeding pairs of gannets, auks, guillemots, razorbills and cormorants. The high rocky stack is well streaked by copious white dashes of guano from the huge colony of birds nesting there. Just before the stack is the inlet of the “Long Hole”.

As one climbs upwards along grassy tracks and through bracken, seagulls’ eggs are readily visible in very obvious grassy recesses underfoot. Usually these speckled eggs, two or three together, are from the large and somewhat aggressive black backed gulls who do not take kindly to visitors coming too close. As one gets near the stack (walking up carefully along a rocky incline) the noise from the wide variety of sea birds nesting there can be almost deafening. A high grassy plateau near the stack, facing east out to the sea, is a good place for a picnic. Just below this viewpoint, perched on the nearby rocky ledges, the nesting cormorants are in full view. Each nesting female is guarded by the male cormorant, who brings her fish to feed herself and her chicks. These birds are mostly monogamous and have the same mate for their entire life.

From the grassy picnic spot, gannets, fulmars and terns are easily spotted flying low along the coast and swooping into the water, while hordes of noisy sea birds wheel along the cliffs at the stack. The gannet is an interesting one to watch…and there are plenty of them. The gannets (brilliant white with black wing tips) have wing spans of up to two metres, and they catch fish by diving from spectacular heights into the sea at up to 100km per hour. They allegedly have incredible eyesight and can spot fish way below the surface of the water. As they dive into the water, they compress themselves with folded wings to enter torpedo–style, to grab their prey lying quite some distance below the surface. The enormous blow as they enter the water at high speed is absorbed by a strengthened skull and by a protective air cushion under the skin, akin to an airbag. The gannets nest in dense colonies on the cliff ledges of the stack. They brood just one single bluish, chalky egg for six or seven weeks in a nest of seaweed or mud. The young birds are fed by regurgitation and reach maturity in the third or fourth year.

Heading west along the island the highest point can be reached in twenty minutes or so. From there one is rewarded with a beautiful 360-degree panorama looking out over Lambay Island, Howth, the North Dublin coastline and the Irish Sea. From this vantage point on the small summit, one sees the Martello tower and the ruins of the old church below, and hundreds of penguin-like guillemots and razorbills along the rocky ledges on the eastern seaboard side. Although the island is home to many puffins, these tend to be more difficult to spot and they have their nests in deep grassy burrows. Coming down from the summit, one walks north past the old Martello tower and back to the waiting ferry at the rocky inlet to take you back to Howth.

The Garland of Howth

In conclusion

Ireland’s Eye, like other islands off the Dublin coast, is designated as a Special Protected Area under the European Commission’s Birds Directive. It makes for a delightful and enjoyable walk on a clear day, and the bird life is well worth the trip even for those who are not ornithologists. The best time for a visit is from April to July when the nesting birds are densely packed all around the rocky ledges and cliffs, sitting on their nests, guarding their young, while the gulls green speckled eggs are to be seen almost everywhere underfoot in grassy recesses.

It’s a short enough walk through the island, but it’s full of variety, beautiful views, memorable bird life, and is a very rewarding stroll on a sunny summer’s day.

CHALLENGE
A place for those interested in Challenge Walks

Céim na Conaire – A Step along the Way: Arbutus

November

The slow but amazing arbutus

Paul Tempan

“…the lake [Como] exceeds anything I ever held in beauty with the exception of the Arbutus islands of Killarney.”

Percy Bysshe Shelley, letter to Thomas Love Peacock from Milan, 1818

Photo: Arbutus flowering and fruiting simultaneously at Muckross, Co. Kerry (© Paul Tempan)

I started this blog in March with one of our earliest plants to blossom: blackthorn.  It is also among the last to bear fruit.  Just a couple of weeks ago I picked the fruit of the blackthorn to make some sloe vodka.  This month I’m looking at the arbutus, a plant which flowers much later than most and whose fruit mature even more slowly than sloes.  A case of sloe, slower, slowest?

Ireland was once a heavily forested country, and this was one of the key factors which made travel around the country a slow business (boggy terrain being another).  As late as the 1740s it took 2 days to reach Belfast by carriage from Dublin in summer, 3 days in winter.  The building of turnpike roads increased daily travelling distances from around 40 miles to 60 miles, but Dublin to Cork was still a two-day journey in 1792.  Travel further west than Cork and Limerick was far slower as these regions were as yet unconnected to the network of coach roads.  When Daniel O’Connell began his legal career in the 1790s, it took 6 days for him to travel from Derrynane to Dublin, a journey that can now be completed in under 6 hours by car.  Events of the past two years have turned back the clock a wee bit and helped us to appreciate the value of slow travel and staying local.

That there was once so much tree-cover is hard to imagine from a modern perspective, given that only 11% of the country is woodland nowadays (in Europe only the Netherlands has less), and most of this figure is made up of conifers planted in the 20th century.  The vast majority of Ireland's surface area is either farmland or urban development.  The relative absence of tree-cover is one of the most striking features of the Irish landscape to foreign visitors, especially walkers who explore mountain areas like Connemara or MacGillycuddy's Reeks.  Native woodlands, such as those found at Derrynane, Co. Kerry, and at Glendalough, Co. Wicklow, make up only 1% of Ireland's land area.  The trees in native Irish woodlands are almost all deciduous (i.e. they shed their leaves in winter), with a few notable exceptions, such as holly and yew.  The yew wood on the Muckross peninsula in Killarney National Park is the only substantial area of native coniferous woodland in Ireland.

Another exception is arbutus, which is a remarkable plant for several reasons.  Arbutus is not only a broad-leaved evergreen (most European broad-leaved trees are deciduous, shedding their leaves in winter) but is also a member of a very select club: that group of 15 or so plants known as the ‘Lusitanian flora’ which are indigenous to the Iberian Peninsula (Lusitania was a province of the Roman Empire roughly corresponding to Portugal) and to Ireland, but are not found in Britain (not in the wild at least, but it can certainly be cultivated: on a recent visit to my sister in Surrey, I was surprised and amused to find it growing in the neighbour’s garden, overhanging the drive).  Other Lusitanian plants familiar to Irish walkers include the insectivorous greater butterwort, St. Patrick's cabbage, a type of saxifrage widespread in the mountains of Cork and Kerry, and St. Dabeoc's heath, a variety of heather found in Connemara and West Mayo, which featured in September’s article.  Arbutus is ericaceous, meaning that it is related to heather, being one of the taller members of this family.

Photo: A fairly tall specimen of arbutus beside Muckross
Lake, Co. Kerry (© Rory Hodd)

World-wide there are numerous varieties of this genus of trees.  Arbutus menziesii, distinctive with its peeling red bark, is native to the Pacific coast of North America, but Arbutus unedo is the only species indigenous to large areas of Western Europe and is the variety that you are likely to come across on walks in the West of Ireland.  The trunk is reddish brown.  Arbutus brings forth creamy white bell-shaped flowers and produces berries which, when ripe, resemble strawberries in colour, size and texture.  This has led to the alternative name ‘strawberry tree’.  But there the resemblance ends: the fruit are perfectly round, unlike strawberries, and have a bland, slightly sour taste.  It is said that the unappealing taste is behind the Latin botanical name of the variety indigenous to Ireland: Arbutus unedo.  Pliny the Elder, the Ancient Roman naturalist who died during the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, reputedly said “unum tantum edo”, “I only eat one”, because having tasted one he had no desire to try any more.  The raw berry, whilst not particularly tempting, is perfectly edible and it is used to make jam and other preserves.  In Spain it is used to make a fruity liqueur called madroño (which is also the common Spanish name of the tree) and in Portugal to make a brandy called medronho.  The citizens of Madrid have a particularly strong attachment to the tree, since the city's coat of arms features a bear standing on its hind legs to eat the fruit of an arbutus.  This commemorates the fact that King Alfonso VIII of Castile gave possession of the surrounding forest and its resources to the city council rather than to the clergy in the 13th century. The sculpture of the bear and arbutus at Puerta del Sol in the city centre is a well-known Madrid landmark.

The plant’s life-cycle is curious and very rare.  It does not follow a simple annual pattern.  It flowers in October, when little else is blooming, so that bees will take an interest in it if the weather is still warm enough for them.  Bitter arbutus honey is a speciality of Portugal and Sardinia.  The fruits then start developing through the winter, but only ripening a whole year later.  This makes it something of a wonder of the natural world, since in autumn it is possible to see the new season's flowers on the tree at the same time as the ripening fruit which started growing the previous year (see photos, top and bottom). 

Photo: El oso y el madroño, sculpture of the bear and the arbutus, Madrid, by Antonio Navarro Santafé (photo by Carlos Delgado; CC-BY-SA, unmodified, and licensed for reuse under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported licence. 

In Ireland arbutus is found predominantly in the south-west, especially around Killarney and Bantry Bay (hence the proliferation in this region of guest houses and restaurants with ‘arbutus’ or ‘strawberry tree’ in their name).  Good places to see the tree in its natural environment are Muckross on the shores of Lough Leane, the more open parts of Glengarriff Wood and the shores of Lough Currane near Waterville.  Arbutus also grows around Lough Gill in Co. Sligo, its most northerly habitat.  You’ll have noticed that several large lakes have been mentioned, so lake-side locations seem to be a favoured type of habitat.  Another one is Lough Guitane, NE of Mangerton, where the late Toby Hodd told me that he had found a single arbutus, the easternmost location in Munster.  You can see a distribution map here (note that most of the occurrences in Britain are cultivated specimens, not wild ones). We can be sure that arbutus has been present and used by man in Ireland for many centuries due to its inclusion of caithne as one of 28 native trees and shrubs mentioned in an 8th century Irish law tract.  According to this text it was used for making charcoal and small pieces of decorative inlay.  It seems to have been the intensive use of arbutus for charcoal production in the late Middle Ages and early modern period which was the principal cause of its range shrinking quite dramatically.  Charcoal was particularly in demand for metalwork.

What, then, is the explanation for the disconnected distribution of Arbutus unedo in south-west Ireland, on the Iberian peninsula and around the Mediterranean, but not in Britain?  This question is one which has been asked by scientists ever since the Lusitanian group of plants was first identified in the mid-19th century.  A definitive answer has not been found, and different plants in the group may each require their own particular explanation.  It is likely, however, that arbutus was once widespread along the Atlantic coast of Europe in prehistoric times when sea levels were considerably lower and Ireland was connected to Britain and the continent by a land-bridge. It may always have been present in Ireland, or it may have been introduced, or re-introduced in prehistoric times.  Whilst arbutus is more prolific in Western France and on the Iberian Peninsula, the long, dry summers typical of Southern Europe limit its size in these regions to that of a large bush, between 3 and 5 metres high.  It seems to thrive in the damper, more temperate conditions in Ireland where it develops into a splendid tree, reaching heights of 10 to 12 metres.  The arbutus is truly one of the gems of Irish wildlife. 

Logainmneacha / Place-Names

Place-names indicate that arbutus was probably far more widespread in the past.  In Irish it is usually called caithne, and an anglicised form of this is most likely the origin of the alternative name ‘cain apples’ for the fruit, rather than any connection with the biblical Cain. 

Photo: A cultivated Arbutus (in England), showing the fruit
in closeup, November

Eisc na gCaithne, ‘ravine of the arbutus trees’ (Isknagahiny), is a fissure on the SW side of An Bheann Mhór, a 674m peak situated east and inland from Waterville.  It runs down to Lough Currane and Isknagahiny Lough is also in this vicinity.  One of the islands on Lough Currane is Oileán na Caithne / Arbutus Island.  Daniel O’Connell would have been familiar with the arbutus, no doubt encountering it as he rode around the Derrynane estate.

Cahnicaun Wood is at the southern foot of Eagles Nest / Nead an Iolair  and adjacent to the stretch of water known as the Long Range.  P.W. Joyce suggests that this is a diminutive of caithne denoting an arbutus wood.  Not far from here, on the Upper Lake of Killarney is another island named Arbutus Island, perhaps one of those eulogised by the poet Shelley.

Derrycunihy is a townland which extends from Galway’s Bridge down to the Upper Lake.  You can walk from here on the Kerry Way to Lord Brandon’s Cottage in the Black Valley or connect with the Old Kenmare Road.  The Irish form of the name is Doire Coinche.  The second element of the name is uncertain, but it seems quite possible to me that we have a variant word for arbutus here, rather like Cuinche, the Irish form of Quin, Co. Clare, a name which is accepted as referring to the tree.  Arbutus does indeed grow under the canopy of taller oaks in Derrycunihy, so a name meaning ‘(oak-)grove of arbutus’ would be apt.

Over the county bounds in Cork we find the Owenacahina Stream, which flows from Barley Lake down to Glengarriff.  Joyce interprets this as Abhainn na Caithne, ‘river of the arbutus’.  Arbutus still grows today in this locality, along with all the above-mentioned spots.  By contrast, the following places are outside the current range, so these place-names provide evidence that arbutus once grew there.

Smerwick near the tip of Dingle Peninsula is called Ard na Caithne in Irish, 'height of the arbutus', though there is little woodland of any kind there nowadays and arbutus is no longer found on the Dingle Peninsula.  It seems likely the height in question is the slope which leads up to the cliffs known as An Triúr Deirfear / The Three Sisters.

Ardcanny between Limerick and Foynes on the Shannon estuary is from Ard Caithne, a similar name with the same meaning.  

Quin, near Ennis, Co. Clare, already mentioned above, is from Ir. Cuinche, a variant form of caithne.

Many thanks to Anne-Marie Moran at Derrynane House and to Rory Hodd and Dylan Hodd for their assistance with the November blog on arbutus.

The MountainViews ANNUAL, brought out in 2021.

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SUMMITEERS and PLACE-VISITORS CORNER
A place for those interested in Summiteering, Bagging, Highpointing, visiting islands and coastal places.

Adventure of the mathematical sort.

MountainViews Surveying and Changes to Lists.

Here are measurements made in October and November 2021.

SITE NEWS

This month.
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• If you hear of a problem area or route, write it up in MountainViews which does everyone a service.
  Report rubbish tipping in the Republic - ring EPA hotline 1850 365 121
  Report recreational quads in national park area (in which they are banned). They are also banned in the Mournes. For Wicklow please phone the Duty Ranger: 087-9803899 or the office during office hours Telephone: +353-404-45800. For the Mournes ring the PSNI (as above) or contact Mournes Heritage Trust. Put these numbers in your phone, take regs etc. Let MV know of contact numbers for other areas.
• If you have visited some of the less well known places, we would appreciate a place rating and also "Improve Grid Ref" for summits and other places.
• If you find errors in the basic information about places such as in their names, their heights, county name etc please use the "Propose Places Database Change" option.
• If we can, let's make MV have more than one route up a summit or to a place so as to reduce the tendency for paths to appear. Your grid refs in comments for different starting points show up on MountainViews maps as well as shared GPS tracks.
• Visit the MountainViews Facebook page.
• Visit the Challenge Walks Ireland page (jointly managed by MountainViews)

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