Explore Mayo
Áine Ryan of Mayo Tourism writes that “over the millennia there have been Neolithic farmers, Celtic cattlemen, Christian cultivators, pirate queens, rebel leaders, social innovators, visionaries ....”
And somehow, as you are exploring this remote county in the far west of Ireland you can feel the history of the place, and the presence of such strong charismatic characters as Saint Patrick himself, the indominitable Grace O’Malley, Connaucht’s 16th century fiery pirate queen, Wolfe Tone of the United Irishmen and Michael Davitt: co-founder of the Land League. It has been said that Mayo is one of the last bastions of Irish culture - it is alive and well here.
To give you an introduction to rural life in Ireland, our first day is spent driving through the heart of Mayo. We stop for lunch at the Hungry Monk in Cong, just across the street from the 12th century Augustinian Abbey. Castlebar is on our itinerary also where we visit the award winning National Museum of Country Life. This is an opportunity to experience age old traditions of rural life throughout Ireland from 1850-1950.
Our home for the first three nights is on the shores of Lough Conn in the Courtyard Apartments of Enniscoe House. This listed heritage home has been passed through 12 generations to Susan Kellett who is our host for the first three days of Connemara’s Calling. This is an ideal and comfortable base for exploring Northern Mayo.
A local Belderrig school teacher was cutting his turf in the 1930’s and came upon some ancient stone walls metres under the blanket bog. His son, Seamas, went on to become an archaeologist and discovered the oldest Stone Age settlement in the world : the Céide Fields - older even than the Egyptian Pyramids. We are treated to a day with Seamas Caulfield, Professor Emeritas, who is passionate about his native area of Ballycastle and Belderrig here on the dramatic coast of Northern Mayo. You will be captivated by his generosity of spirit and incredible knowledge about the history - (natural, ancient and social)- of this locality.
We walk in the Nephin Range, inland from Enniscoe and also along the wild cliffs west of the Céide Fields. Historic Killala Bay where General Humbert and his French army landed to support an Irish rebellion, and a 12th century round tower looming over the heart of Killala village are must-visit evening outings for Connemara’s Calling walkers.
