Walk of the Month

Walk of the month

Start/Finish Cleggan Pier - see ferry times on page 24

Terrain Road, track, cross country

Distance 8.5km approx. 3 hours

Grade Easy to moderate

Photo - ©Inishbofin Community Services Programme

From the pier, gain the vantage point of the High Road via Pound Road behind the small shop. As we track east, to our right we see the safe anchorage of the inner pond at the head of the harbour. The ruin on the small island opposite the old pier is what remains of a fish-curing station dating from the turn of the century. Our route passes along the spine of large glacial deposits that underlie the island’s meadows and pastureland.

Turn sharp-left where the road begins to descend towards East End Bay. On the right, we overlook the fertile slopes of Cloonamore – Cluain Mór, “the big meadow” – and the white crescent beach at this eastern shore. Away in the distance, the peaks of Mayo and Connemara provide a backdrop to this sublime seascape. To the north, meanwhile, the cone of Croagh Patrick can be seen rising beyond the Mayo mountains.

The track now winds its way out onto the commonage, a terrain of rough grazing and rocky outcrops. Our route soon requires us to pick a way across land to the eastern track, which is quite visible. Those that have time may wish to explore the cliffs around Dún na hIníne and the rocky coves where choughs, wheatears and seabirds can be spotted.

The track brings us onto the East End beach. At its far end, we take a right turn onto the Low Road back towards the harbour. Less than a mile on, a ruined 13th-century church stands in the grounds of the original 7th-century monastery founded by St Colman. Ancient graves lie alongside modern in this, the island’s cemetery. The adjacent Church Lough supports reed beds and other vegetation in this fertile valley, which in turn provide cover, food, and nest sites for a wide variety of birds. Field boundaries and sod walls grow rich with wildflowers here. During summer months, listen out for the rasping call of the Corncrake near nettle beds.

A detour left, down the short steep hill, puts you on course for a bowl of chowder and a pint in one of the island’s pubs. If you have a ferry to catch, however, the new pier from where we set off is straight ahead past the post office.

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