#21 Ireland Final

 

#21  Ireland

Final

Our wish is that you've enjoyed taking a trip through Ireland as much as we did.

          The locations were incredible and the people we met were always kind and in high spirits.  Special thanks go to those who took us around and showed us the REAL Ireland.

We hope STONE PUB will give you a glimpse of the real people and spirit of the Emerald Isle.

Thank you all for joining us on this quest.

#20 Dunamase, County Laois

 

Dunamase, County Laois

 We were on our way south-west to Milltown, County Kerry from Dublin when we came across the Dunamase Castle. After the 10-hour plane ride, and sitting in the car for 2 hours, we decided to stretch our legs.  A short hike up the rocky outcrop took us to the ruins of a castle. It was a defensive stronghold from the Hiberno-Norman period dating back to the late 12th century. Though, the first known settlement on the rock was Masc’s Fort, an early Christian settlement of the Viking from 842 AD.

          The weather was beautiful. One of the few clear days we experienced in Ireland, but windy and brutally cold. NO RAIN!

          As we walked among the ruins, and taking in the breathtaking view, immediately scenes of surveillance came to mind. We could see for miles from the rock and spying became an intricate part of Stone Pub.

#19 Kenmare Lace, Kenmare, County Kerry

 

Kenmare Lace

 

We visited the Emerald Isle in 2014 and fell in love with the country and its people. From these experiences, we developed a plot, a mystery, and some great characters for our novel.

Irish lace has been an important part of the Irish needlework tradition. Both needlepoint and Bobbin-Lace were made in Ireland before the middle of the eighteenth century. Kenmare Lace is sometimes called needle-lace to distinguish it from canvas needlepoint.

While we were in Kenmare, County Kerry (meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay) we heard about Kenmare Lace.     The story goes that the Poor Clare Sisters Convent1864 founded a lace-working industry.  They trained the local women to make the lace and soon Kenmare Lace became known worldwide.

In 1960 the factory was closed and the technique of making the lace was lost.  However, it was revived in 1989. This came about when a local woman approached the nuns to ask them to teach lace making to the locals and the co-op was born.

After hearing the story and visiting the town we had to include Kenmare Lace in our book.

# 18 Church of Mary, Star of the Sea

 

Church of Mary, Star of the Sea

          We were in Kilcorhane, County Cork Easter week.  We peeked into a church as parishioners were decorating for Easter Sunday, the next day.

          It began to rain so we stopped in Church of Mary, Star of the Sera to stay dry.

          Just before it rained we took a lovely walk along the rim of the forest and a few feet in. As we walked, I imagined Errol Flynn, as Robin Hood, in his stance on a tree branch and say, "Welcome to Sherwood Forest"... it was that dense and the trees that tall. On our way back from the forest we passed over a small footbridge above a wide, clear running stream. The bottom of the stream was lined by large stones. We stopped to enjoy the trickling sound of the water.

          As we waited in the church, marveling at the quaint altar and nave, we came up with a scene for the book, including the forest, stream, and church.

          We noticed the that the rain on the west coast always came with fierce winds, dark, heavy clouds and a fresh fragrance in the air.

#17 Ring of Kerry

Before we left for Ireland, EVERYONE told us to be sure to see the Ring of Kerry. Since we were visiting Will’s cousin in the southwest of Ireland, we decided to see what this was all about. We left the village of Milltown and took the 111-mile circular tour through the Ring in the Iveragh Peninsula. It's a winding road along the coast and through mountains, and around lakes. There were a lot of mysterious ancient rings, churches, and forts on the grassy hillsides.

 

          The best way we can describe this day-long trip is Magical!  And we have to say, it was the Ring of Kerry that pulled together the idea of a mystery, STONE PUB on the Emerald Isle. 

# 16 St. Finian's Bay, Glen Church and cemetery

 

St. Finian's Bay, Glen Church, and Cemetery

On our drive through The Ring of Kerry, in southwestern Ireland. we stopped at an interesting ruin of a church and cemetery with rolling mountains on one side and a beautiful bay on the other. Sheep were feeding on the pasture surrounding the medieval site.  It is called the Glen Church Ruin.

    The sky was gray. The wind and drizzling rain were freezing cold and could blow you over the cliff if you weren't sure-footed. Looking seaward from the cemetery, we could see a charming, small bay, St Finian's Bay. It was a shame we couldn't find out anything more about the history of this ruin site. We did learn that it was built during the medieval time...by hand! Those who toiled in this horrendous weather would have been very hearty, indeed, especially carrying the supplies up and down the rock-strewn hills.

We were told the howling winds and dampness apparently were pretty normal for this area. We talked about the eeriness of the church and cemetery during dinner that night. If only the rock walls could talk!

We came up with a fantastic way of using a church ruin site for a scene with our characters in Stone Pub.

#15 Dark Hedges

 

Dark Hedges

          We spent three days in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. This held special interest for us because this is where Janet’s father's family is from. It was an amazing place! We drove through Dark Hedges, an avenue of beech trees along Bregagh Road between Arnoy and Stanocum in County Antrim. The trees form a tunnel that has been featured in the television series Game of Thrones-The Kings Road.  Even on a sunny day, the dark tunnel formed by the trees sends chills through us. The pasture surrounding the path was vast, green, and hilly.

We found out that in 1775, one hundred and fifty years ago,  the Beech trees were planted for an entrance to an estate.

          Six years after our trip we referred back to this eerie road as the setting for a car chase in our book.