'I just knew I had to do it': Daragh Morgan's epic swim around Ireland was six years in the making

Battling the elements and the limits of human endurance, Daragh Morgan is swimming the 1,600km around the Irish coast for charity. 

Daragh Morgan is accompanied on his journey by the 43-foot Galway Hooker Naomh Cronán. Pic: Daragh Morgan

One of the first swims in his 1,600km test of endurance stands out for Daragh Morgan. He was heading from the Aran Islands to Lettermullan on the Connemara coast.

"It was beautiful," he says, "because I was in really deep water and there were dolphins underneath me. Then I swam into this passage and the water got a lot shallower. I could see all the seagrass, and different things, it was almost like I was snorkeling. I turned my head up and there was gorse burning in a field. It was just a huge, sensory, immersive experience, and it was the first step of the whole journey."