6. DHS - The Croaghs
Aug 12, 2021, 05:31 PM
Shrine Six: all things bright and beautiful.
Location: 54.787225, -8.088684
Speaker: Michael Gallagher in conversation with John Ward.
Theme: gathering to survive and thrive against the odds.
One of the great ambassadors of the county was affable postman, Michael Gallagher, renowned for his canny ability to forecast the weather by a careful observation of wildlife and the elements, a skill he attributes to the people of Na Cruacha Gorma in the deepest part of the Finn valley. At the extreme end of his daily itinerary lies 'Na Cruacha Gorma' or in English the Croaghs (pronounced 'crows'). A sparsely populated area, it is one of the most inaccessible parts of Ireland, where electricity only arrived in 1975, but it is here that Michael met people whose vast repertoire of folklore seemed to be unending.
A hardy people said to originate from Tyrone after being cast out around the time of the Penal Laws, they ended up in this valley where no one else was to be found and here they used their wits to eke out a living and survive. Against the odds they prospered and formed their own community, their own dialect and their own way of doing things without modern conveniences. A rich musical culture developed and a night spent resting in these parts on the way to a fair was filled with good fiddle music and poitín.
Much of the folklore has been recorded by folklorists not only from our own country, but from as far afield as Switzerland, Germany, Iceland and North America.' It was from conversing in their native language with the people of this area that he first became interested in weather forecasting all those years ago. As Michael says himself: -'Most of the people from na Cruacha could forecast the weather accurately for a month or a season in advance and even a year ahead at times. They had such a knowledge of nature, learned from their daily struggle with the elements that they believed each feature of God's Creation was linked by them with climatic conditions.
The knowledge of what we call 'book learning' was sparse but they had a rare wealth of lore and wisdom that was a source of amazement to all who came in contact with them. These, coupled with their natural vitality, enabled them to eke out a fairly comfortable living for themselves on their mountain farms in a remote area without the benefits of modern equipment. In the course of my travels, I discovered - among other things - that clocks and watches were almost unknown in that area until after World War One.
Thus, the sun was their guideline. Incidentally, I never learned how they managed on the countless days when the Sun refused to shine!' Observing the animals around them, the folk of the Croaghs would tell you that a dog eating grass was a sign of a change in the weather, that a fox crying on a Winter's evening is a sure sign of heavy snow coming, that the crex crex cry of the curlew is a sign of rain as are crickets singing behind an open hearth fire. Folk here were able to ascertain accurate forecasts from the stars, the Sun, clouds, damp, echos, mist, pains, thunder and trees. Curious terms such as 'the peck' and stacked jam jars in windows were other unorthodox methods of forecasting.
In our interview from November 2012, we covered a range of topics as Michael looked back at a now deserted valley which had once been vibrant and utterly unique in the art of survival.
Audio taken from Donegal's Hallowed Sites on the Racontour Archive.
Spotify URL: Donegal's Hallowed Sites playlist on Spotify
Location: 54.787225, -8.088684
Speaker: Michael Gallagher in conversation with John Ward.
Theme: gathering to survive and thrive against the odds.
One of the great ambassadors of the county was affable postman, Michael Gallagher, renowned for his canny ability to forecast the weather by a careful observation of wildlife and the elements, a skill he attributes to the people of Na Cruacha Gorma in the deepest part of the Finn valley. At the extreme end of his daily itinerary lies 'Na Cruacha Gorma' or in English the Croaghs (pronounced 'crows'). A sparsely populated area, it is one of the most inaccessible parts of Ireland, where electricity only arrived in 1975, but it is here that Michael met people whose vast repertoire of folklore seemed to be unending.
A hardy people said to originate from Tyrone after being cast out around the time of the Penal Laws, they ended up in this valley where no one else was to be found and here they used their wits to eke out a living and survive. Against the odds they prospered and formed their own community, their own dialect and their own way of doing things without modern conveniences. A rich musical culture developed and a night spent resting in these parts on the way to a fair was filled with good fiddle music and poitín.
Much of the folklore has been recorded by folklorists not only from our own country, but from as far afield as Switzerland, Germany, Iceland and North America.' It was from conversing in their native language with the people of this area that he first became interested in weather forecasting all those years ago. As Michael says himself: -'Most of the people from na Cruacha could forecast the weather accurately for a month or a season in advance and even a year ahead at times. They had such a knowledge of nature, learned from their daily struggle with the elements that they believed each feature of God's Creation was linked by them with climatic conditions.
The knowledge of what we call 'book learning' was sparse but they had a rare wealth of lore and wisdom that was a source of amazement to all who came in contact with them. These, coupled with their natural vitality, enabled them to eke out a fairly comfortable living for themselves on their mountain farms in a remote area without the benefits of modern equipment. In the course of my travels, I discovered - among other things - that clocks and watches were almost unknown in that area until after World War One.
Thus, the sun was their guideline. Incidentally, I never learned how they managed on the countless days when the Sun refused to shine!' Observing the animals around them, the folk of the Croaghs would tell you that a dog eating grass was a sign of a change in the weather, that a fox crying on a Winter's evening is a sure sign of heavy snow coming, that the crex crex cry of the curlew is a sign of rain as are crickets singing behind an open hearth fire. Folk here were able to ascertain accurate forecasts from the stars, the Sun, clouds, damp, echos, mist, pains, thunder and trees. Curious terms such as 'the peck' and stacked jam jars in windows were other unorthodox methods of forecasting.
In our interview from November 2012, we covered a range of topics as Michael looked back at a now deserted valley which had once been vibrant and utterly unique in the art of survival.
Audio taken from Donegal's Hallowed Sites on the Racontour Archive.
Spotify URL: Donegal's Hallowed Sites playlist on Spotify