In the shadow of Errigal

If you’ve read my previous blog post then you’ll know that the last time that I was in Donegal I found the weather conditions a tad challenging. I was a little disappointed as I drove north to not see any snow but at least it would mean I’d be able to drive around this time.

My first stop was to have a look at Bád Eddie, the famous wreck near Bunbeg. The tide was in so I couldn’t get close to the boat but I was able to take note of the lay of the land and the direction of sunrise should I decide to return the next morning.

From there I headed on to Altan Lough. I had seen on the map that there was a path leading from the main road towards the lough – and towards something called Altan farm – and I thought I might get a good view of Errigal Mountain from the path. As soon as I started along the path I realised that it was going to be a hard slog. The way was extremely boggy and twice, before I’d even lost sight of the car, a foot disappeared deep in to the mud. I tried walking alongside the path where the terrain was far more uneven but marginally dryer, but after my foot slipped out from underneath me and I flailingly tried to regain some traction but instead proceeded to do the splits, I decided that I may as well stick to the path.

Errigal receded from view surprisingly quickly for such a huge chunk of rock but soon I could see an old farm building that I took to be Altan Farm and continued along the path towards it. But when the path led me between two rising hillocks the view opened up before me (as can be seen below) and I saw for the first time a tower at the lough’s shore. Obvously this was Altan Farm.

However I was more interested in the farm building I’d originally spotted as I thought it would make for a nice image. The problem being that it was still quite a distance away. I squelched off with the understanding that I probably wouldn’t be able to get to it, but knowing that I had to give it a go. I trudged over difficult ground and even crossed a river but the farm stubbornly remained unreachable, and in fact wasn’t even visible any longer. Eventually I had to concede that I wasn’t going to get to it, so I had something to eat while I reflected on how I’d now doubled my walk back to the car for no gain.

Both of my feet were wet by the time I got back to the car and my shoulders were aching from the weight of my gear. I washed the mud off my boots as best as I could in a stream and drove off to Dunlewy and the church in the Poisoned Glen that I had photographed on my previous trip. I wanted to photograph it again but with a different approach. But the light was pretty flat and I had nothing much to work with, so I took a bit of a drive along some back roads and boreens to the other side of Altan Lough to which I’d been earlier.

I followed a path alongside the lough that led towards Errigal. I had wanted to arrive later in the day as the sun would be on the western side of the mountain. As it happens the angle of the light was all wrong and I knew that I wasn’t going to get anything but I decided to walk to the end of the path anyway to see what was there. A flock of sheep is what awaited me. Curious ones at that.

With only about an hour of light left in the day it was now time to find the guesthouse that I’d booked myself in to. I actually had the house to myself as the owner was away and I was thankful that I’d be able to dry my boots when I got there. But despite following the heating instructions the radiators remained stone cold. I had a tiny oil heater in my room which I immediately plugged in and didn’t unplug until I left the next morning, however it was inadequate to the task of either heating the room or even warming my boots. I went to the pub for dinner and warmth and slept that night with my clothes pulled in under the bedsheets with me so they wouldn’t be cold when I put them on in the morning. Considering how the last time I came to Donegal I’d planned on sleeping in the car and how it was far colder then, I was glad that that plan had not come to fruition.

The next day was going to be cold and clear so I decided to head back to Bád Eddie as I knew there would be a really strong light at sunrise. It was really chilly standing on that beach waiting for the sun. I have gloves on which you can reveal your thumbs and forefingers to operate the camera while keeping the rest of your hand covered and the exposed flesh was painfully cold. But it was worth the wait as the light was fantastic and I was having fun distorting the hull of the ship with a wide lens.