Slemish Mountain is in Co.Antrim, to the east of the town of Ballymena. Traditionally, it is said to be the first Irish home of St Patrick, who tended sheep as a slave boy on its slopes.Slemish (Slieve Mish) is around 1500 feet above the surrounding plain, and is visible for many miles around.
I lead a VERY exciting life. After a wet morning in the open air, doing some commercial photography, I got to stop for packed lunch at a favourite car-park! Oxford Island, just outside Lurgan, Co.Armagh is a nature reserve, perched on the southern shores of Lough Neagh, the largest fresh-water lake in the British Isles. My plan was to have lunch, then go for a stroll with a camera, but that came to nothing, for as soon as I’d finished eating the heavens opened and the rain poured down. Again. Continue reading Lough Neagh
The north coast of Ireland has a winding coastline with lots of quaint little harbours, many of which are picturesque and great for photography. On a recent visit to Portballentrae, I travelled along the coast to visit two of those harbours.
DUNSEVERICK.
Dunseverick is a Hamlet, just along the coast from the world famous tourist attraction that is the Giant’s Causeway. It’s little harbour lies down a long, narrow winding lane. Be careful – its just about wide enough for two vehicles to pass!
The best way to burn off one or two of those Christmas Day calories is by taking a good walk on Boxing Day, and on this Boxing Day, 2018, the sun was shining in Belfast, and I was visiting a family in Sydenham, and where better for a walk after my visit than Victoria Park, one of Belfast’s legendary green spaces in the industrial landscape.
Millisle Beach Park – Shot in Autumn sunshine, in early November using the Fujifilm X-T2, with 16mm focal length, f/16@1/60th sec on ISO 400.
Now winging its way to the other side of the world, where a little image of home will be feeding someone’s nostaligia!
Driving along the Portaferry Road, Newtownards this morning in nice clear Autumnal light, so I stopped for a few minutes (I couldn’t spend any more time) and pointed the Fujifiln X-T2 across the mud-flats (tide was out) towards Scrabo Tower.
A short visit to Portaferry today gave me the opportunity to walk around for a short time with the Fujifilm X-T2.
Last week we visited Portballintrae, a village right on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, and close to the world-famous Giant’s Causeway, and the even more famous Bushmills Distillery.
This image was added on 1 November 2018:
Portballintrae is very much a ‘dormitory’ village, now built up with modern apartments used a holiday home by people from elsewhere, which gives the visitor the impression that it is a soulless, sad place. There is a small harbour, and a boat-club with a small clubhouse, and a decent beach, topped by an archeological treasure, the Lissnahall Prehistoric Earthworks. A short drive leads to Bushmills, and I was intrigued by the bunting in the town square. Continue reading Portballintrae
Janette and me went for a wee drive up to Castlerock today, and out to visit the Mussenden Temple, Downhill Demesne and Beach. It was a bright sunny November morning, cold and with an invigorating wind! Great day for photography though.
Augher is a village on the road from Ballygawley to Fivemiletown, in Co.Tyrone. I’ve paseed through it on many, many ocassions, but with a little bit of spare time after an appointment at Clougher today, I paused in the village to explore. The main focus of my interest was the old Railway Station, once part of the Clogher Valley Railway. The 3ft narroe gauge railway operated between 1887 and 1942, linking the GNR mainline stations at Tynan and Maguiresbridge. It passed through Caledon, Aughnacloy, Augher, Clougher, Fivemiletown (where the trains ran along Main Street like a tram) Colebrooke, Brookeborough and Maguiresbridge. The old train station at Augher is still extant, used now as a coffee shop.
