North Clare

Monreel’s Gerry Mullins was presented with a silver medal in Portlaoise at the weekend, after coming second in the National Loy Digging Competition, held at The National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska, County Laois last month. Tom Kennedy from Ennistymon also took part in the competition, securing fourth place overall. Gerry’s performance had earned him enough points in his national debut to win the competition but he was penalised for breaking a rule. Loy Association of Ireland special advisor, Tom Egan explained. “Gerry would have come first but for he was penalised. He received a 10-point penalty because he broke rule number two. When you are digging, you put down lines to nick the soil, then when you are finished, you lift the line and roll it up but Gerry must have forgotten that and left it down,” he said. It is not something Gerry will forget again. “I won it, sure I had the highest score,” Gerry said. “I had …

ONE-third of all visitors to the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience in the past year stayed at least one night in the county, according to new figures. More than 1,660 people completed online surveys for the attraction in the 12 months from August 2014 to August 2015 and these figures show that 33.2% of visitors indicated they had spent either the night before their Cliffs visit, the night after or both nights, in County Clare. “This indicates a minimum of 536,174 overnights in the county, not taking into account those staying longer than two nights. In 2014, incentive pricing for group tours arriving before 11am or after 4pm was introduced, which further encourages an overnight stay locally,” Ger Dollard, director of services, Clare County Council, stated. The local authority, which owns the centre, reledased the new figures. Mr Dollard stated that while the average spend in the county per visitor to the Cliffs is not known, “by any measure the …

A new RTÉ medical series is making its final call for people to book free doctors’ appointments in North Clare this weekend. You Should Really See a Doctor has travelled around the country with its mobile clinic over the summer and the final show in the series will be filmed in Lisdoonvarna on Saturday (September 19). Dr Pixie McKenna and Dr Phil Kieran will be at the Matchmaking Festival, offering on-the-spot consultations and health checks. “We are particularly interested in hearing from people who have researched their symptoms online and would like a real doctor’s advice. “Most of us have been there; you feel a mild pain in the head and next thing you’re reading an internet article about a rare tropical disease that you think you might have. From stomach problems to sleep issues to skin problems – the real doctors want to hear from you,” a spokesperson for the show stated. The doctors are happy to hear from …

The Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience recorded its one-millionth visitor of 2015 on Monday (September14). 2014 was the first year  in which the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience saw more than one million visitors and last year the millionth visitor arrived on October 20.  The one-millionth visitor was recorded 36 days earlier this year. This year marks the fifth successive year of increased visitor numbers to the Clare County Council owned visitor attraction with figures for the year so far up 14.7% or almost 130,000 visitors on the same period (January 1 to September 14) in 2014. FITs (Fully Independent Travellers), including walkers, cyclists and those travelling by car or public transport, made up 55% of the total. Groups, mainly travelling by coach, accounted for 45% of the total. Visitors from the USA are the strongest visitor market, accounting for more than quarter of total visits with strong performances also noted in the French, German and Australian visitor markets. Domestic …

The Burren and Cliffs of Moher has successfully retained its Geopark designation for a further period following a reassessment and revalidation by the UNESCO supported Global Geopark Network. The designation is subject to review every four years and an assessment was  conducted by Dr. Klaus George from Germany and Dr. Margaret Wood from Wales in June. The announcement was made at the 13th European Geoparks Conference 2015 in Rokua Geopark, Finland. 18 Geoparks were up for revalidation with 16 receiving green cards, including the Burren and Cliffs of Moher. Global Geopark status was first awarded to the Burren together with the Cliffs of Moher in 2011 for their outstanding geological and cultural heritage and has resulted in the region joining a global network of over 100 Geoparks worldwide. The Geopark is managed by Clare County Council and receives support and funding from the Geological Survey of Ireland and Failte Ireland. “Clare County Council has been working in the Burren since …

Gardai in North Clare are investigating a series of burglaries in Bellharbour, Ballyvaughan, Tubber and Crusheen during the past week. Between 12.15amand 7am last Saturday a shed was broken into in Turlough, Bellharbour by breaking the lock. A garden strimmer was stolen but was subsequently recovered dumped in a nearby ditch. The car that was parked nearby had its rear window smashed and a chainsaw stolen from the boot. Last weekend also, a shed in Muckinish, Ballyvaughan was also entered by breaking the lock. Stolen were a Netlfix Alto power washer, an MS 180 chainsaw, a pole saw and a pick axe. Earlier in the week a shed was broken into in Turloghmore in Boston, Tubber. Stolen in this burglary were a variety of wrenches and a Stihl orange-colured chainsaw. A double axle trailer was stolen from Clare County Council’s storage yard at Crusheen over the weekend. Between 4pm last Friday and 8am on Monday, the council yard in Clonmoney …

SEVEN full-time jobs will be created in Lisdoonvarna, along with 10 seasonal ones, it has been announced. The Burren Smokehouse has signed a contract with global logistics company UPS, as part of plans to broaden its overseas footprint. The deal coincides with an announcement by the producer of Burren smoked salmon, trout and mackerel products to invest €150,000 in its existing operations and to create new jobs at its production facility in Lisdoonvarna. The collaboration with UPS will mean The Burren Smokehouse products sold online can be delivered around the world. As well as restructuring its e-commerce activity, The Burren Smokehouse is also expanding operations at its production facility and will be launching a new brand inspired by the Wild Atlantic Way later this year. Owner Birgitta Hedin-Curtin said, “We are investing in our integrated systems, allowing for greater e-commerce activity and higher efficiencies in terms of customer care and our global customer footprint. At our production facility in County …

THE steps at Blake’s Corner in Ennistymon will not be back-filled, it emerged this week, after Clare County Council withdrew its Part 8 application to carry out the works at the contentious junction. The reason for the withdrawal, according to the county’s senior engineer, is that it would probably have been refused “as such a development would contravene the council’s own Development Plan”. Local Councillor Bill Slattery is livid at what he sees as a council u-turn on the issue. “After getting confirmation from Clare County Council that the Part 8 planning application would not proceed because it would contravene the County Development Plan, I was very annoyed and disappointed,” he said. “I am in the council four and a half years and after being selected to replace Senator Martin Conway, I immediately asked for the steps to be back-filled for the safety of pedestrians and motorists. I felt this request would have been adhered to due to the severe …