The Connemara National park

 

I am a Brazilian exchange student currently living in Ireland. I instantly fell in love with the Irish Landscape from the first time I saw it. When I was asked to write an article about part of the country that I found particularly beautiful, I chose the Connemara National Park. 

Apart from a large amount of lovely sheep farms in the surrounding area, you can also see ponies and many cows. Once at the park itself you can enjoy 2,957 hectares of breath-taking views of the scenic mountains, as well as expanses of bogs, heaths, grasslands and woodlands. 

 In 2010 a biodiversity ‘Race Against Time’ was held over 24 hours on the 21st – 22nd of May at six wildlife sites across the country – Connemara National Park and Coole Park, both from Co. Galway; Fota Wildlife Park, Co. Cork; Glenveagh National Park, Co. Donegal; Newbridge Demesne, Co. Dublin; and Wicklow Mountains National Park - to see which site could record the most species. 

This unique event was organised by the National Biodiversity Data Centre to celebrate the International Year of Biodiversity. A total of 542 species were recorded at Connemara National Park over a 24-hour period and the Park was crowned the BioBlitz 2010 Champion.

 

 If you are interested in discovering this wonderful place one of the options for toursits is to travel with Hidden Connemara Walking Tours. Some say it’s a “hidden hiking treasure”. The tour departs from Galway Coach Station on Foster Street at 10am and the return is at 6pm. For lunch, a good idea is to pack a picnic to match with the wonderful natural ambiance, but there’s also a 30 minute break on the shop/café in the visitor centre at 1pm. The tour consists of two walks of around 2 hours each and it costs €20 for students or seniors. The tickets can be purchased on the main Tourist Office on Foster Street or Galway Tour Office on High Street (091566566).

   For more information, visit the website of the National Park and the website for Hidden Connemara Tour:  www.connemaranationalpark.ie/  and www.hiddenconnemara.com/ .

Luiza Aguiar Gondim