Islands of Ireland: Coast is Clare in Co Mayo

A return visit is often much more informative than an initial foray. And Clare Island in Co Mayo is a place that demands repeated visits. And to do so in the literary company of an expert sheds much more light than previously fell.

A heavy wooden door opens to allow in a shaft of light. The nave of the church is blackly dark and almost nothing is visible. Gradually your eyes become accustomed to the darkness and reveal the treasure within. It is a scene more appropriate to Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose than a day trip to an island.