Garryland Woods (Frog Prelude)

We walked always in beauty, it seemed to me. 

We walked and looked about, or stood and looked. 

Sometimes, less often, we would sit down. 

We did not often speak. 

The place spoke for us and was a kind of speech. 

We spoke to each other in the things we saw. 

~Wendell Berry, Jayber Crow

Somewhere deep in Garryland

The last days of the trip were along the border between County Galway and County Clare. The weather turned rainy for a few days, but that could not stop us. On one wretchedly wet day we hiked in a place called Coole-Garryland Nature Reserve, part of a the national park system. 

You might wonder how we got there (WE wondered how we got there). On our first day on our own we hiked in Coole Park. This former estate of Lady Gregory,* provides amazing walks through woods and meadows and along a turlough** where there should be swans (resident Mute Swans and Whooper Swans in the winter). Because there had been little rain this summer, the water had receded and the swans were quite distant from the observation area at Coole. We thought we might be able to approach the turlough from Garryland Woods and get a better view.

So we were off.

The entrance to Garryland is the polar opposite of the Coole Park side. At Garryland there is a small, perhaps eight vehicle parking area and an entrance gate. Signs indicate the rules - "stay on the path" is the one I remember best. Of course, one should never harass the animals or pick the flowers. It is a nature preserve, after all.

Is this where I mention that we forgot our map? Okay. We forgot our map. But there were signs -  maps and mostly clear paths (although there were some less than clear paths that called to us). Every now and again we would come to a poorly marked fork in the path and we tried to "feel" the right way (only later did we discover there was no "right" way).

The weather forecast was dismal - rain all day. But one cannot be afraid of rain, not in Ireland. We had gear and we thought the multi-canopied woods would be protective. And it was, for a while. But as the rain continued it worked its way through the canopy and we were dependent on our gear. Eventually, the rain worked its way through the gear and we were soaked.***

We would have glimpses of water. Was it the back side of the turlough? We never got close enough to know (although maps disclosed that it was not). We saw no swans. But we made friends with a curious little robin and we saw what had become to us almost a mythological creature - the European Common Frog.

Just inside the gate we were embraced by the woods. Doesn't it seem this tree is welcoming us?

A path we did not take.

conifer

DH dressed for a warm wet day. I was in layers.

Sweet Woodruff

Another path we did not follow.

A pond can be seen through the trees, but it was not the turlough.

No clud what this berry is - don't eat anything you don't know

The tree.

Berries that haven't turned red.

We have to come back and investigate some of these side paths.

Holly

A tall stand of forest ferns - and a cheeky little bird.

All through this holiday we saw robins - the European Robin - everywhere. They are curious little birds and will often hop quite near, checking you out as you observe them. On this hike we saw a young robin in a stand of ferns. It came out to perch on a twig, crossed the road, flew to the road, and kept us amused for more than a few moments. I'm sharing most of the photos as they (sort of) catch the tiny tilt of its head as it looked at these two wet wanderers.

These little robins are very popular - perhaps because they are so common and easy to identify. They do have more red in other parts of the year. There is only a hint of it in late summer.

Finally, the robin flew away. And we walked on. Whenever there was a break in the canopy or a small meadow, the wildflowers took advantage of the sunlight. We found many familiar blooms and some we had not seen before.

Common Selfheal

One of the thistles

Quite a lovely insect - Syrphinae

It might be Bristly Oxtongue, or not.

Selfheal continues to bloom up and up making a long flower head.

Meadow Sweet

Creeping Thistle

Hemlock? Wild Carrot?  I think we decided this was Hedge Parsley. Taste and see! [Actually, whatever it is the insects love it.]

Red Clover, not shamrocks

Buttercups

Common Snowberry. I loved it for the raindrops.

St. John's Wort

Meadow Pea

A small oak growing from the forest floor

Tutsan - It is an odd thing, but I think it is so pretty.

A glacial erratic**** perhaps, covered in mosses.

Enchanter's Nightshade  [In my madness I still envision a post with only the wildflowers and the stories of their names]

Perhaps a Dock.

A wild mass of Selfheal, just beginning to bloom.

DH headed out to see where the path leads.

And he came back with nothing to report. By this time I'm sure we were wearing out.

Blackberries starting to bear. One was ready.

Did I eat it? You bet I did. I loved every sour minute. We were really a month or more too early for the big crop.

What were these strangling vines?

Overhead.

Fern lined path.

An orchid? Yes, it is the Common Spotted Orchid, I think. I may have identified it as a Marsh Orchid elsewhere. I suspect I have a good deal of orchid study ahead of me.

We almost missed this little treasure. It was almost bloomed out. Even sad orchids get fussed over.

Time to head back. I think it was about here we saw the frog.

Amber Snail on Common Valerian

Meadow Sweet with Tufted Vetch (a vetch is in the pea family - one can often tell by the shape of the flower and the seed pod)

There is something about the leaves as well.

Look at this vetch bloom among the Lady's Bedstraw.

I think this meadow floods.

We didn't even try to identify the grasses.

I think this may be a stand of Hawthown - the fairy tree.

Watermint

An old rock wall.

Cuckoo-pint still green

Detail of Cuckoo-pint. I did not know what it was until the next day when I saw it on a poster at Dromore Wood.

Plantain

A bumper sticker at the parking lot.

NOTES:

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augusta,_Lady_Gregory

**https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turlough_(lake)

*** Okay. I was soaked. DH remembers that he stayed dry. That's not what the photos show, but I will let him tell his story his way.

**** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glacial_erratic

The sign in the parking lot - map and explanation of turlough.