Friday, June 26th: Poulnabrone and Cliffs of Moher

PART 1: Poulnabrone Portal Tomb, by Sophia Crane (Photos by William Shetley)

Poulnabrone, I learned, roughly means “Hollow of the Millstone.” The main sight here is the “portal tomb.” Two massive vertical stone slabs with an even larger stone slab laid horizontally across them. According to informational signs around the area, “at least 33 individuals were buried in the chamber” referring to an area underneath the rock structure on the surface. It also states that it appears that the bodies were moved to this location after having died and mildly decomposed elsewhere in around 3000BC. Based on when these individuals died (listed to be across 4200-2900BC), this structure as well as signs of human activity around it are older than Stonehenge or other ancient structures. The grey stone on the ground forms into strange shapes with winding cracks and holes throughout what is effectively a field of stone in the surrounding area. A strong wind blew through the area when we visited, rustling the grass and bushes around us and (thankfully) making a hot trip a little cooler.

PART 2: Cliffs of Moher, by Sparrow Rosenbaum (Photos by Tom Jensen)

There’s a small group of things on this great Earth – a “club” if you will – called the Seven Wonders of the World. Seven great locations, including the Great Wall of China and the Pyramids of Giza, that leave humans breathless when they gaze upon them. Me personally, if I were to add an eighth, I would add the Cliffs of Moher. Located on the coast of Clare in the west of Ireland, the Cliffs of Moher make for an absolutely majestic sight, perfect for a day of sightseeing in early summer. I count myself lucky to have visited it as a young adult, while my knees still work and I still have energy to climb up the concrete paths on the grassy hills. Despite not being a photographer in any way, I’d be proud to put any of the pictures I took in a magazine.