Working, Living & Travelling In Ireland

Tag: Coole Park

  • The last of the Indian Summer – part two!

    The last of the Indian Summer – part two!

     

    Hello all,

    So I thought that the we had had the last of our our Indian Summer last weekend, but I am glad to tell you we had another beautiful weekend. It’s been a busy weekend, as I had the usual Rugby training, then I started to plant the bulbs for my #Bumbleance fundraiser, took Rueben to #Coderdojo in Loughrea and as I really enjoyed our walk to the Coole Park, I decided to go back today with the whole family!

     

    Enclosing some of the pictures I took!

    Gort Rugby Team getting ready for training

     

    Getting ready to plant the hyacinth bulbs

    Alexander helping with #Bumbleance Fundraiser from Katleen Bell-Bonjean on Vimeo.

    To keep up to date of my fundraiser, check out my new blog here.

    Rueben at Coder Dojo Loughrea

    To finish off , we went to Coole Park. I really enjoyed our walk from last weekend, so I convinced Alex and David to join. The horses were no longer there, which I think is to do with the fact that we had some rain recently and the place will flood shortly. The pictures below are probably of a better quality than the previous once, as I lost my phone at the airport in Eindhoven on the return of one of my recent trips but thankfully got the phone back..

     

     

    Last week the water wasn’t as high as it was today

     

    Last week we were able to cross over here, but due to recent rain fall, it’s getting flooded

     

    view across the riverside at Coole Park

     

     

    The horses that were here last week , are gone.

     

    David and the boys
    Me and my two wonderboys:)

    So that’s it for this weekend! Thank you for reading my blog!
    Katleen

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  • The last of the Indian Summer

    The last of the Indian Summer

    Hi all,

    We have been enjoying a beautiful September, lot’s of sun and very little rain, in fact it’s been one of the driest September ever, more about that here.
    My youngest son Alex plays Rugby in the local Rugby club on a Saturday, and they have been incredibly lucky with the weather. The last few weeks, the friday before it’s lashing with rain, and I am having visions of holding an umbrella at the sideline. However, as faith would have it, by the time it’s saturday, the weather is glorious!I was out on Saturday at their match, playing Barna at the Dangan Sports grounds. As you can see the weather was gorgeous!! ( unlike today, as there is a weather warning for floods, storm and fallen trees)

    To finish off the weekend, I went for a walk with Rueben in nearby Coole Park. We decided to walk to the water this time, and I was taken by the colours around the water, it was overwhelming. I know they have horses in Coole Park from time to time, but it was the first time I saw them across from the water. Usually they are on the park side, but this time they were across from the water. I am not so sure they’ll be there for very long, as it does flood their in winter time, so maybe they move them. I took some pictures, I hope you enjoy.

    Have a great week!
    Katleen

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  • Garryland Wood Trail to Coole Park Co. Galway

    Garryland Wood Trail to Coole Park Co. Galway

    Hello Readers,

    Today was another beautiful day! We had some sunny days last week, which I thought was the end of our Indian summer, however today was certainly another of those beautiful days. It’s on these days that you drop everything and venture out and let your eyes catch the beautiful colours in nature around us.

    We regularly go to a nearby park called Coole Park, it’s a big park , with many trails, but from time to time I get a little bit bored, so today I thought we’d venture to Garryland. Garryland is to the side of Coole Park, but is not as well known, but definitely a trail to keep in mind.

    Check out the below map, as there are no signposts to Garryland Woods. It’s pity as it’s a lovely walk.

    Coming from Galway, get off the motorway at Ardrahan and continue driving to Labane and take a right. You’ll pass the national school on the left, the community hall and Bradley’s bar on the right.. It’s a long drive but eventually, you’ll see the car park on the left-hand side.

     
    The trail is 4.6 Kms long, and that will bring you to the carpark in Coole Park. We didn’t do the whole walk, as didn’t want to have to walk all the way back, so  we walked from the car park at Garryland to the fence where Garryland meets Coole Park and then turned back. All by all it took us 1 hour and 20 minutes.
     
    The house you see below in Garryland isn’t a cake shop ( if only), it’s  a bathouse, ie it houses bats. Check out this link to find out more details about the bats! 

    The trail is very well signposted, so you won’t get lost! I am enclosing some pictures I took whilst I did the walk! The surface of the trail is excellent for cycling, but the trail is a bit hilly at times, so if you are pushing a buggy, you’ll definately feel it in your legs!

     

    So if you are looking for a change of scenery, check out the Garryland Woods Trail in Co. Galway.

    Till the next time!
    Katleen

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  • Paddy’s Day and Mother’s Day in Ireland

    Paddy’s Day and Mother’s Day in Ireland

    Hello all,

    So today is Mother’s day in Ireland, so happy mother’s day to all the mums in the world!
    Mother’s day is celebrated around the world, but not necessarily on this day, as I found out here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother’s_Day  and from my experience, in Belgium(specifically in Antwerp) there are two days that it is celebrated on .The Second sunday in May and or the 15th of August. Risk  is then it never gets celebrated as one always says, oh no, that’s not when we celebrate it!
    So to avoid that all together, I’d celebrate my own mother’s day three times, I gave her a call today to wish her a happy mother’s day and I”ll be doing the same again in May and in August! She deserves it!
    So, to get back to today, it was a most beautiful day to day, blue skies, sunny, but  not the warmest.
    We loaded up the boy’s go carts and drove to Coole Park. Coole Park was once the home of Lady Augusta Gregory, dramatist, folklorist and co-founder of the Abbey Theatre with Edward Martyn of Tullira Castle and Nobel prize-winning poet William Butler Yeats. Coole Park, in the early 20th century, was the centre of the Irish Literary Revival. Yeats, George Bernard Shaw, John Millington Synge and Sean O’ Casey all came to experience its magic. They and many others carved their initials on the Autograph Tree, an old beech still standing today. Although the house no longer stands, one can still appreciate the surroundings that originally drew so many here.

     

     
    Yesterday was St Patrick’s day, which is the celebration of the patron Saint St Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. Watching the news, it seems it’s celebrated around the world, great to see all the various monuments around the world turning green! We live very near Gort, and not too far away from Kinvara either, so I thought I’d catch two parades( that should keep us going for another year!)
    This is a clip of a part of the parade in Gort
    And below are some images in and around Kinvara.
    As we are all off tomorrow, we are either heading to Portumna or maybe to the Clare Coast.. Time will tell:)
    Katleen

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