Rediscovering Ireland: Coney Island, Sligo.

From Eagles Flying to a quaint little island; the next stop on my trip brought me to the lovely Coney Island.  While it may not be as famous as the Coney Island in the USA, it certainly has a lot to offer. Well, at least in my eyes anyway! At approximately 400 acres, the island is quite small to say the least but, as they say, size isn´t everything. The island is located just off the coast of Sligo, between Strandhill and Rosses Point. It´s a curious little island as, if you´re feeling adventurous, you can walk or drive there from Strandhill. Make sure to check the tide times before you go though, the last thing you want is your car to be swallowed by water! However, don´t worry, if you´re not up to the drive then you can always get a boat taxi from Rosses Point. That ruins all the fun though, if you ask me!

Coney Island, which got its name from the vast quantity of rabbits which can be spotted on the island, is an island packed with rugged beauty. Not only is it visually pleasing but, to add to its charm, it is packed full of legends which tell of faeries, mermaids and spirits.  If this is something that appeals to you then this is the island for you. While there, you can indulge in its folklore and visitors can even visit St Patrick´s wishing chair, St Patrick´s well, the remains of a washed up whale and some fairy forts: just to name but a few of the special attractions on this island.

Nowadays, the island is only inhabited by one family. Which, for me anyway, adds to the charm of this little retreat. As you wander around the island, apart from rabbits, you are hard pushed to bump into anyone on the single lane track that boarders the island. Such a fantastic place to go if you want to completely disconnect! Be careful though, as we learned, it is not advisable to drive round the island. Its track is not exactly what I would can roadworthy. We had the rather challenging task of doing a two point turn on a cliff edge, as we could not drive any further on the track. My advice: park up at the pub and explore the island on foot!

So; if you´re looking for an experience that´s a little different,  I´d certainly recommend a trip to the island. I have to say though, as much as I enjoyed the island, the highlight for me was most certainly the drive over. It´s more than a little memorable. At points in the journey you feel as though you´re actually driving on water. My friend and I were so taken by the drive over, it´s all we could talk about when asked about our trip there. It´s not everyday you get the experience of driving through the sea!

There you have it, a short and sweet post on a small and sweet Island. It´s a little later than I had anticipated, life gets in the way sometimes. I hope you enjoyed reading about my trip there.  I most certainly would recommend visiting the island. While I´m not sure if it would be everyone´s cup of tea; I do know that it was an experience I´ll never forget.

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Hope you all are having a great day.

Thank you for reading and I will talk to you in my next post.

Giana xoxo