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THE waters and the wild of the recently selected ‘Best place to holiday in Ireland’ is calling all walkers. The Burren in North Clare is once again the setting for an 8km ramble on Sunday September 4. The annual event has been rambling the Burren for close on 40 years for the lifeboats and this year’s theme is ‘The Village of our Childhood’. The village of our childhood is Fanore which rests between the mountain and the sea with magnificent views of the Aran Islands and Galway Bay, Sliabh Elva and Blackhead mountains. The ramble will take people by the shore to places where the poitín makers from Conemara traded with the locals for turf and potatoes. A visit to the deserted village on the shore at Loch an Uisce in Fanore will be on part of the route. The site that has been dated as six thousand years old was where the sea hunters and locals gathered to eat …

ON A recent trip to New York, Tulla native Seán Fitzgerald recalled a piece of Tulla’s social history that was in danger of vanishing into the mists to time. The retired school principal from Knockjames, who now lives in Edenderry, County Offaly, was on a visit to his aunt, Eileen McNamara (née Dooley) when she recited a poem composed by the owners of ‘The New Shop’ in the middle of the last century. Now SuperValu, the New Shop operated on Main Street from the 1940s to the ‘60s.    “Like some local shops of that era, it served as a pub too and you do could then do your grocery shopping after having a few pints,” Seán said. The proprietors of the shop, who were forward thinking and modernised their shop  to the point of having a cold room installed for meat storage.   “By way of advertising the latest technology, the owners composed, displayed and promoted a little ditty,” …

GARDAI have confirmed that Donald Trump will not be coming to Clare next week, as had been expected. It is understood that preliminary preparations had been made for his visit, but it was confirmed this morning that it will now not be going ahead. While there had been few signs of any security activity in Doonbeg, Gardai had been on the brink of making more concrete preparations for Trump’s arrival. Trump had been expected to visit Doonbeg along with Greg Norman, who designed the course is now CEO of LIV Golf, ahead of a possible LIV tournament at Doonbeg. Mr Trump has not been to Doonbeg since he stayed there in 2019, during his Presidency. Indeed he has actually not left America since his time in the White House ended, and earlier this week he accused the FBI of taking passports belonging to him as its agents executed a search warrant at his Mar-a-Lago home recently.

Eoin Brennan was on hand to watch Inagh-Kilnamona power to a 7-11 to 2-5 defeat of Clarecastle in the U13A hurling final Goal hungry Inagh-Kilnamona powered to their third Under 13A crown in six seasons after hat-tricks for Sean Hehir and Fionn Daffy sunk Clarecastle in Cusack Park on Monday evening. A quickfire brace of majors in the tenth minute through Hehir and Padraig O’Looney helped settle Inagh-Kilnamona to a seven point half-time cushion. However, it was their clinical five goal blitzkrieg in just 17 minutes on the restart that put the result beyond any doubt as Joint-Captain Daffy, Hehir and the excellent O’Looney provided the firepower to cement the prestigious honours. In addition, Donnacha Kelly, midfielders Tom Hegarty and Tadhg Hassett and especially goalkeeper Rio McCoy also impressed as Clarecastle had just as many goal chances but found the Inagh-Kilnamona stopper in particular stubborn mood. That said, even without talisman Sean Meere, Clarecastle battled hard throughout, with spinal defenders …

A MESMERISING new album, meditating on live and love, will be launched by New Zealander Jyoshna La Trobe in Mountshannon later this month.  The acclaimed music researcher, singer and songwriter will launch Unity Hours IV, with a very special concert, on Saturday, August 27 at St Caimin’s Church of Ireland, which will feature her Clare Band.  As well as being a prolific composer and performer, Jyoshna is an accomplished ethnomusicologist, specialising in the Music of Rarh, India, and holding a PhD in Music, from SOAS, London on Marai Kirtan and the Performance of Ecstasy in West Bengal, India. She has authored over 30 albums of original and ethnographic material including Dharmacakra, ancient and modern songs in Sanskrit (2015). Unity Hours I (2006) was recorded in London, as was Unity Hours II (2010). Unity Hours III (2019) was recorded in New Zealand and the latest album was recorded in here in Clare.  “All the experiences here are written with the ink …

REVITALISING Shannon Airport to ensure it becomes a key economic driver for Clare and the Mid-West is one of the key objectives for the new Clare County Council chairman, Councillor Tony O’Brien. There have been calls for the election of a council representative to the Shannon Group, which the new first citizen believes should be seriously considered by the Department of Transport. Councillor O’Brien, who became the first public representative from Killaloe, to be elected as council chairman has called for due diligence to be undertaken to ensure the terms and conditions of workers in Shannon Heritage sites are fully protected before the council’s proposed takeover is fully completed. Stressing the need to improve co-operation with the University of Limerick, he said there is huge development potential on the 214 acres in South-East Clare if the new Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) can proceed as planned. “I am humble enough to know that one person can’t deliver on my own. I …

THE PLANNING appeals board has waded into the controversy surrounding the issue of ‘in-fill’ sites in rural Clare.  These are gap sites that are created where housing is built on either side. Under existing planning policy, those applying to build a house on an in-fill site can bypass certain restrictions including the requirement to prove a local housing need that applies to areas designated as being under strong urban pressure.  In a recent decision, An Bord Pleanála rejected a bid by a couple to build a house on a gap site around 1.5km from Lissycasey and 13km from Ennis. The board ruled the site, between two existing homes, was too large to be considered an in-fill. This meant that the applicants needed to demonstrate a local housing need, and their application had failed to do so. The decision copper-fastened the Council’s original refusal of planning permission.  Assessing the appeal, lodged on behalf of the couple by an agent based in …

SERIOUS concern has been expressed about speeding through the village of Clooney, despite recent measures to slow traffic there to 50kph. The matter was raised at the recent meeting of Killaloe district councillors, when Councillor Pat Hayes called for the speed limit reduction to be extended on the Ennis side of the village. After being told that limits are reviewed every five years by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), Councillor Hayes urged the Council to use an appeals mechanism to progress the issue. “Exceptional work has been done in Clooney and I’m only talking about the Ennis side of the village,” Councillor Hayes said. “We are all very proud of the work and a fine job has been done. If anyone is assessing the situation from the Ennis side, you’ll see that the speed signs are on the bend. You’re in the village before you see them. They are hidden to some degree.” The Caher man thanked the Council for a …