IT’S IN OUR NATURE
MARGARET RODDY LOOKS AT THE HERITAGE WEEK ACTIVITIES TAKING PLACE IN LOUTH TO HELP US ENJOY OUR WONDERFUL NATURAL HERITAGE OF MOUNTAINS, COASTS AND URBAN LANDSCAPES
FUN, FREE AND EDUCATIONAL EVENTS FOR ALL THE FAMILY ACROSS THE COUNTY
IRELAND’S Heritage Week is inviting people to explore our wonderful natural heritage and here in Louth we have a rich natural landscape which has shaped our stories and history, from Maeve’s Gap in the Cooley mountains to the Boyne River where Fionn McCool caught the salmon of knowledge.
Appreciating our natural heritage goes hand in hand with protecting our landscape and encouraging biodiversity and sustainability, from protecting threatened habitats to growing wildlife-friendly plants in our gardens.
National Heritage Week 2017 gets underway on Saturday August 19 with the aim of helping more people learn about and enjoy Ireland’s nature.
From whale watching to tasting medieval ale and mead, there is something for everyone to enjoy in Louth this Heritage Week. And best of all, most of the events are free.
Dundalk’s Tourism Officer Sinead Roche is hugely enthusiastic about heritage week. ‘I am very passionate about Heritage Week; it’s an amazing event which happens every year, and nearly all the events are free.’
‘It’s a great event for families who can take their children to fun and educational events before the summer holidays end, without having to spend money at what is a very expensive time of year for most parents,’ she says.
Sinead adds that Heritage Week also gives local groups the opportunity to link up with national organisations such as Whale and Dolphin Watch Ireland and the Irish Geological Society.
She has, in fact, organised an urban geological field trip of Dundalk which will be led by Dr Siobhan Power on Thursday August 24, meeting at the Tourist Office at 11am.
Also on Thursday, The Old Dundalk Society are holding their summer walk and talk tour which looks at the history and architecture of Roden Place and Upper Seatown, and is led by archaelogist Paul Gosling. Walkers are invited to assemble outside St Patrick’s Cathedral at 6.30pm.
The Dundalk Railway Heritage Society is holding a Walking Tour on Tuesday August 22 at 6.30 pm. This walk will include a general history of areas around Dundalk port, along with buildings of railway interest.
Anyone interested in joining the walk, which will be led by Seamus Murphy, should assemble at the Redemptorist Church, St. Alphonsus Road, for 6.30 pm on Tuesday 22.
There’s a chance to climb on board a double decker bus and get a different view of Dundalk on Thursday August 24 at 7pm.
In the late 1800s Dundalk was one of Ireland’s most prosperous towns. The rich merchants and traders showed off their wealth by decorating their buildings in fancy plasterwork, that came to be known across Ireland as the ‘ Dundalk Style’.
Much of the gorgeous detail that has been removed at ground floor level survives on the upper floors. Join the heritage and conservation officers of Louth County Council for an enlightening tour of Dundalk’s upper floors from the top floor of a double-decker bus provided by Bus Éireann.
The tour, which takes around two hours, departs from the bus bay near the Kelly Monument, Roden Place, near Saint Patrick’s. Cost: €5 per person (no concessions, no bus passes)
The medieval town of Carlingford is the centre for several Heritage Week events, where the church bell of the old Holy Trinity Church will ring at 12 noon on Saturday August 19 to mark the beginning of the week. There will also be a guided walking tour of the village’s medieval buildings, meeting at the Heritage Centre, on both Saturday August 19 and 26 at 11am and 2pm.
Visitors and locals are invited to take part in Carlingford’s first Sound and Light event in the grounds of the Heritage Centre on Saturday August 19, beginning at 7.30pm.
Johanna Woods of the WildWood Cafe in Carlingford is hosting a Wilderness Fest and 10km Wild Run on Saturday August 19 from 11am to 7pm.
Louth Woodland Gatherings are inviting people to join then on a walk through the Gap of the North on Sat- urday 19 at 1.30pm. The two and a half hour walk will take in Ravensdale Forest and Dromad Woods.
A fun afternoon is promised for all ages when the Geological Survey of Ireland hosts an afternoon walk along Carlingford Lough on Thursday August 24. Geologist Siobhan Power will lead the walk starting from the lay-by, Omeath Road, Carlingford, at 2pm.
Still in Carlingford, the Co Louth Archealogical and Historical Society is hosting a walking tour with Dr Paul Gosling on Saturday August 26 from 11am, meeting at the main car park,
An opportunity join the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group for their annual free and guided land-based whale watch at a local headland takes place at Clogherhead on Saturday August 26 at 2pm.
Dundalk Library is hosting a workshop to exploring the town’s natural heritage and what can be done to protect our wildlife in the branch library at Roden Place on Wednesday August 23 at 11am.
The following day, the library is also the venue for those who would like to find out how to contribute to the preservation of Ireland’s cultural heritage by transcribing folklore from the 1930s and minor placenames at 3.45pm.
Mellifont Abbey is the venue for a fun day out for all the family on Sunday August 20. There’s a chance to paint a medieval tile, discover how the monks brewed ale and made mead, free guided tours of the old abbey, which is Ireland’s first Cistercain Abbey. The following week, on Sunday August 27 Ardee Concert Band give a recital at Old Mellifont Abbey at 2pm. There will also be a demonstration of archery by the Ardee Archers, from 12noon.
This is the first time that the beautiful Rathescar Lake, close to Dunleer, is a venue for Heritage Week with history and nature walks and a fun run on Sunday August 27.
The Dunleer and District Historical Society are delight to announce that they are hosting Éanna Ní Lamhna who will lead a heritage walk on Monday, August 21. Meet in St Bridget’s Hall, Upper Main Street at 6.30pm.
For full details of all events, check