By Brian McLaughlin

The tide rolled quietly in towards the shore on an afternoon and the salt water of Tralee Bay was about to merge with the fresh water Aughacasla river which flowed down from the Kerry Mountains.

All bird life seemed to be grounded as scattered flocks of seagulls gathered on the warm sandbanks before the tide eventually covered them. Some birds were pecking at the sand hunting for food while others just sat there seemingly listening to the gentle laps of the waters as bit by bit they edged shoreward.

A Heron sat still on a rock not far from the shore, the very rock that its ancestors have sat on down the years surveying all around them – continuity preserved.

A young man and what were probably his children walked along the seashore throwing a stick for their barking dog to catch where she never failed to do or bring it back for a repeat performance much to the delight of the children. A ‘nosey’ seagull hung around for a while and the little dog barked up at it and it then decided to glide away.

A single sailboat out of the small harbour of Fenit weaved its way across the Bay and then set its course towards a coaster sitting at anchor near the mouth of the Bay. The ship was waiting for the tide to turn to proceed up to Fenit where it would only dock at full tide.

Liebherr’s, Killarney crane-makers, had faithfully down the years used Fenit as a shipping point for their cranes to ports around the world.

Continue reading in this week’s Ireland’s Own