Visitor centre opens at Doolin Cave

FIFTY-eight years after it was first discovered, the Great Stalactite of Doolin is now open to the public and accessible via a visitor centre.
Doolin Cave houses a 24-foot long free-hanging stalactite, the largest in the Northern Hemisphere, in one of Ireland’s largest natural caverns.
While the cave has been open to visitors for some time, Thursday marked the official opening of the Doolin Cave Visitor Centre, something the family behind the venture hope will help grow visitor numbers from 10,000 to 55,000 annually within three years.
It was an emotional day for John and Helen Browne and their daughters Jenny and Karen as the tape was cut across the centre’s entrance.
“We are very proud and happy for this day. It has been 20 years coming. It has been a long struggle and there have been many days when there was a very dark shadow over it all but these times are gone and we are looking forward to the future,” John began.
The visitor centre is dedicated to the memories of two people who were close to the project, Helen’s brother Fr Michael McNamara and family friend Nuala O’Faolain.
“They were our most ardent supporters and they kept supporting us all the time through thick and thin. We really appreciate and remember them for that. We are dedicating the building to their memory and from now on we are going to regard them as our guardian angels watching over us and the cave at every step,” Helen said.
“I don’t think this day would have come without their help. Talk about encouragement. They were just a helping hand all the way through for us,” Helen told The Clare Champion.
“Michael, my brother, he was a huge supporter. He helped us and stayed with us all the way along through it. He would have been so proud to have been here today as well. There were tears in my eyes today when I saw the plaques going up,” she continued.
Helen’s brother Clare County Councillor Tom McNamara was master of ceremonies at the opening. He too credited his brother Fr Michael with helping to nurture the visitor centre to fruition.
“All through the twists and turns of this project he never waivered in his steadfast belief that this building should be opened to the public to see this wonder of nature,” Councillor McNamara stated.
The centre was officially opened by radio personality Marian Finucane, a close friend of Nuala O’Faolain.
“Nuala would be so proud today and proud of the fact that that stalactite can be seen by everybody and anybody and listening to what would have been required for ordinary people to see it, it meant that ordinary people would never see it. Now it is accessible to all,” she added.
Marion spoke of Nuala’s love of the Burren and the Browne family and about her own impressions on the visitor centre.
“If I could imagine what Nuala would say it would be ‘if you have any more ideas, forget about them, you have done it now and just get on and enjoy it’,” she joked.
Work began on the Doolin Cave project in 1990 when John and Helen’s daughters were children. Having grown up with it, it is little wonder that the young women are now involved in the business.
Over the years, Jenny has watched the business blossom, while more recently she has been involved in its day-to-day running.
“The opening of the centre is so important. The determination of mum and dad is amazing. Some days you’d see them and they are so down hearted. The next day they get up and they are gone and they just do whatever has to be done. There is nothing stopping them. I don’t know whether it is that they have no sanity or what but this achievement is absolutely amazing,” she commented.
For Karen too this day couldn’t have come soon enough and she has found a way to put her own stamp on the project.
“I am excavating mud from the bottom chamber. There is loads of ice age mud down there. So I am digging that out and processing it and using it for pottery. I will then sell the pieces here,” she explained.
“It is exciting for me as well because I get to dig into maybe another chamber while I am excavating. I talked to the geologist and he said it is fine to do that. They have done tests on the clay so they are already using it for scientific purposes,” she concluded.