The beach at Enniscrone.

 

We had a chance to go for a few days camping earlier in the summer, and decided to head for the village of Easky in Co. Sligo – not too far to drive, but far enough to be an area we hadn’t been to much.  We had been to nearby Enniscrone for a wedding back in 2009, but hadn’t really seen much of the area due to the celebrations and resulting hangovers!  I did manage a quick walk down to beach and cliff baths the next morning on that occasion, and the first few shots are from that older visit to Enniscrone.

 

A look across the beach, with the mountain of Nephin prominent on the horizon.

 

A similar view, but overlooking the cliff baths too.

 

 

The cliff baths were built in 1850 and are now sadly a bit neglected and worn looking, but they make a great subject for photography.  After getting the tent set up in Easky, we took the short trip to Enniscrone, and they were one of the first places I made for.  We didn’t get great weather on this trip, but the stormy skies did provide some dramatic light.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also grabbed a few shots of the beach and its rocky borders.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The overcast weather led me to look for the smaller details.

 

 

 

The legendary crab graveyard!  Not so well known as the elephant graveyard, but a nice find.

 

 

 

 

 

A little sunshine just as we were preparing to leave Enniscrone.

 

We paid a visit to a monument to the Black Pig.  Legend has it that a huge wild pig was possessed by an evil spirit in Co. Donegal, and arrived in Co. Sligo killing all before it.  The locals eventually drove it into the sea at Easky, and killed it when it swam ashore in Enniscrone.  It was so big, it couldn’t be moved, and mound still stands where its body fell.

 

The Black Pig.

 

One of the main landmarks in Easky, is O’Dowd Castle, (also known as Roslee Castle), built in 1207.

 

 

 

 

As well as these two local towns, we spent a lot of our time visiting the north coast of nearby Co. Mayo, and I’ll show some of the places we saw in another post, although the weather was less than ideal then too.  In fact, on our last night, a real storm blew in, and eventually, at about 4.30am, our tent succumbed to the high wind, and partially collapsed.  We had to retreat to the car and sleep there until morning.

 

 

The evening before our tent collapsed, and I innocently saw the rain as just an opportunity to capture some patterns on the tent roof.  Little did I know what lay in store for us!

 

Somehow, despite the bad weather, and the uncomfortable last night in the car, we did have a great time in Sligo and north Mayo, and the trip was definitely worth it.