Landscape in Connemara

A setting piece I wrote for class on Connemara...

A dusty fog lingers over Connemara’s mountaintops, awaiting the nearby rainstorm. Rain or shine, this western district in Galway, Ireland, is a picture of untouched landscape. On a particularly cloudy day, the region abounds with unspoiled terrain, russet-colored heaths, streams that run into small lakes feeding into the Atlantic, and uneven gravel roads free of painted lines and barriers. Most houses are located along the coastline and in lower villages due to the unpredictable, and sometimes rough climate, as well as the numerous steep roads that climb endlessly into the mountains. These windy countryside roads were once cow trails, moving cattle along from one place to another. Cows are no longer prominent in this land; it is sheep that dominate.

Approaching the poorer region of Connemara, the roads become more remote, the land more sparse of homes and buildings, the soil more unproductive, the mountains more desolate, and the pastures more occupied by sheep. Hundreds of feet up the wild fern-covered mountains are tiny white specs. As far as the eye can go up the mountain, so can the viewing of the sheep. These sheep have miles upon miles of land to roam. Many stop in the middle of the road to nibble at the grass peering through the pebbles while others hike up to the highest points on the hills. To make sure they do not end up lost among the vastness of the countryside, each farmer places blue or pink dye onto a different spot of the sheep, whether it is the top of the head, on an ear, or near the back.

A rectangular, white cottage sits at the top of an isolated hill. Outside, a scrawny, tall, grey-haired farmer stands at the edge of his property, whistling for his dogs to return. While waiting, he waves hello to passersby on the road below him. Every farmer has two sheep dogs, trained by whistling to gather the sheep from the top of the hills and return them to the bottom. As this farmer whistles, a dark Border Collie and spotted Jack Russell Terrier dart down the hill, running frantically in circles and rounding the sheep in as they go. It’s fascinating to see two relatively small dogs herd a group of 20-30 sheep down the hill, through a gated area and around the front of the farmer’s cottage.

The Connemara roads are off the beaten track, tucked away from the county’s main streets. While occupied by the occasional tour bus or two, these roads are most often used by locals and farmers. Along the downward slope of one road is an unbound stone bridge. A farmer and his son sit and wait to cross the bridge in their large, green tractor while the tour bus barely makes its way across. Because the Connemara region is a “Gaeltacht” area, meaning Gaelic, is still in use and the way of life has remained as traditional as possible. While visitors to Connemara will change, the region’s pure, intact land and traditional Irish ways will remain.