Abandoned : Weekly Photo Challenge

Barrack Street, Cork

The old house above in the older part of Cork City, has fallen into disrepair and has lots of slates missing, so I would imagine that the owners have long since abandoned the house, especially in winter, when the wind is howling down through the roof.

Abandoned house, Curragh Woods, Midleton

The second picture is of the ruins of an old cottage in the middle of Curragh Woods,   This old cottage has a well nearby where the occupants would have had running water, but the only way in to the cottage would have been to climb up through the woods from the main road.    The people who lived there used to work on the neighbouring farms, but in the days before electricity it would have been a cold dreary place in winter, though there was no shortgage of firewood to keep them warm.

Look Up Look Down Challenge : Week 26

For this week’s challenge I am looking up at some of the trees in Curragh Woods, near Midleton, there are some magnificent trees there, with lots of moss and vegetation underneath.   The woods are very popular with walkers and runners, and are easily accessible from the city, if you want to get away for a few hours.  You can find several different types of trees in these woods, such as beech, chestnut, oak, larch and Douglas fir.   At the top of the woods is a ring fort, with a clearing in the middle, and when the bluebells are in bloom (April/May) there is a beautiful carpet of bluebells underfoot.

Tall trees

And my ‘looking down’ photo is one of Cork City, taken from the top of St Patrick’s Hill and looking down on the main street of the city, St. Patrick’s Street.

Check out this link to see some more entries in this challenge.

The Moss is Taking Over the World

It must be something to do with our climate, but there is so much moss on these trees, it looks very pretty to walk in the soft ground, with the contrast of the rotting leaves and the bright green moss.

These pictures were taken in Curragh Woods,  near Midleton,the wood has a lot of paths so there is plenty space for walkers and joggers, and off the main tracks the wood drops very steeply down to the river, which is flowing quite fast at the moment.   Hiking boots and poles came in handy for dragging my unfit body up the hills!

Mosses are small non-vascular plants that absorb water and nutrients through their leaves. They prefer damp or shady locations as they need high levels of moisture to survive. Hence, large old-growth trees in the coastal temperate rainforests offer the perfect environment for mosses.

Read more at http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/forests/news-how-does-bacteria-living-mosses-old-growth-tree-branches-may-help-forests-grow#scBegMyTSjz4kIWU.99

And that says it all…damp shady locations, like our forests in Ireland, and old trees go hand in hand.