Yesterday we were deep in copper coast country and today we’re driving through Heather covered hills through the Wicklow Gap and national park to Mullaghcleevaun.
The copper coast was interesting or should I say the history of copper in the area was interesting. Did you know - ‘they’ say that copper was first mined in Mesopotamia over 8000 years ago but wasn’t mined in Britain or Ireland until 4000 years later at the beginning of the Bronze Age. At least as far as they can gather!
We checked out an old mining site near Bunmahon on the SE coast when they estimate the copper may have formed about 350 million years ago.
We all have a pretty good idea of many of the uses for copper but something I didn’t know is that it was used as a fungicide to prevent potato blight - successfully or not I don’t know.
Talking of mining, mining and quarrying are among the oldest industries in Ireland (and I dare say Scotland also) darling back 9000 years to the Mesolithic era when evidence suggests people quarrying flint to fashion axes and other tools. We saw some of that on St Kilda and other islands where archaeologists have explored Neolithic villages.
But today! A gentle time driving through hills, lush pale green woods and wee villages and then up into the hills of the Wicklow National Park. Deep purple hillsides as far as the eye could see the heather was a joy to behold, suspended loughs and pockets of wooded streams. Quite idyllic if you like that sort of thing - and I do!
The Copper Coast on the southern coast of Ireland
Herons shaft (an abandoned copper mine near Bunmahon) which descended over 250m. Not something I’d choose to do!
The same copper mine. Incidentally the copper coast is a UNESCO Global Geopark.
The rock strata of the coastline is awesome. It’s as if the whole thing has been upended
We drove slowly behind this ‘gypsy’ caravan for miles. The horses were being led through the hills. Further on we saw a sign saying ‘road unsuitable for horse-drawn vehicles’ so sounds like this is not an uncommon sight in the area.
A rock wall watershed. Broad and impressive
The hills were alive .......
Across the hills you could see where peat had been dug. Fascinating thing peat.
I’d love to know what this plant is. It was everywhere growing beside the heather. We think its a local blue berry
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