Walk of the Week: Ringarogy, Co Cork

IN Ringarogy, the peace and quiet of another era still reigns. The houses may be modern or modernised but on the lanes one rarely sees a car. There are few human artefacts to distract us from nature. Once, almost 800 people lived here; now, there are about 70. I can think of few more pleasant walks.

We set off at the west side of the causeway known as the Lag Bridge. If the tide is out, the bird life is an immediate feature. Out on the mudflats between the small islets and rocks, a dozen species stalk or waddle about, identifiable with the naked eye.

The most striking birds here are the shelduck, big as small geese, with glorious black-green heads, chestnut collars, pure white breasts and red legs and beaks. Shelduck nest in rabbit burrows, sometimes many miles from the sea whither the ducklings have to walk only days after hatching.