Blath na mara

Michael Angelo.

Iv seen a ship at Galway docks quite a lot recently, the blath na mara. I done a bit of research and discovered it ships cargo to the arran islands. I stumbled upon some cool photos of it one id like to share with you. The whole thing really encompasses Galway in a traditional sense. Just thought i'd share it with ye..

dolphin city

if you think thats the "traditional sense" you should have been around in the time of the Naomh Einne - a cargo boat to the Aran Islands. Everything went on that boat - they had a massive crane and cage for cows and bulls taking them to the islands - the currachs would be waiting for them on the other side and they would dump the cows into the water and the currachs would drag them to land. Also if the crew were feeling lazy they would put the people in the cage and crane them onto the boat (it was a cargo AND passenger boat) instead of putting out the gangway. and locals kids from both the Islands and Galway always were taken out for free trips by the crew. It was a great playground.

Storm 10

Check out this website for pictures of ships in Galway www.galwayships.com

Click this link for Galway ships in the past pictures there of the Naomh Eanna and the Galway Bay on the Aran Islands run.

http://galwayships.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=9&page=1

?Cee?view

The Naomh Eanna was an old boat that used to service the Islands as well. It's still to be seen in Dublin.

dilallio

Did CIE once run one of the boats from the docks to the Islands?

?Cee?view

Yes, they ran the Dun Aengus, followed by the Naomh Eanna and then the Galway Bay. The latter two ran together for a few years.

Paddy Cantwell was the skipper of the Galway Bay. A great character who spent his last few working years as Skipper on one of the Rossaveel to Aran ferries.

dolphin city

cie ran the Naomh Einne (cargo and passenger) and the Galway Bay which was for Sundays and Wednesdays only and was a passenger mostly. Nice, but the Naomh Einne was so much better for adventures. It got marooned on the rocks one time I think it was in Inis Meain.

Storm 10

Great pictures of Capt Paddy Cantwell on the Galway Ships website

?Cee?view

Storm 10 wrote: »

Great pictures of Capt Paddy Cantwell on the Galway Ships website

Those pictures are great Storm 10. Many thanks, they sure bring back memories.

gaillimhabu

Thanks for the memories. I'm from the Aran Islands. How times have changed since those adventures

dolphin city

gailliamh,

yes how times have changed is right - I'd like to see them let a crowd of kids onboard now for a free trip to the islands, matchmaking with island kids, cooking them a roast chicken in the galley and eating it with the crew in front of all American passengers who thought they were on another planet, with the stench of the cows down in the hold. Then getting thrown into a currach to be brought onto the island with strict words that the islanders had to look after the kids or else......LOL the crew of the Naomh Einne were brilliant. They didn't give a sh**t.

gaillimhabu

Any pictures of the 'Dun Aengus' about or the 'Oilean Arann' which was before 'Blath na mara'?

Storm 10

gaillimhabu wrote: »

Any pictures of the 'Dun Aengus' about or the 'Oilean Arann' which was before 'Blath na mara'?

Found a picture of Oilean Arann on Galway Ships website

Link: http://www.galwayships.com/passenger_ships/oilean%20aran%2028-03-05.html

Picture of the SS Duras

http://www.galwayships.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=9&pos=0

Aerohead

Great pics on that Galway Ships website, I never knew so many big ships came into the port, it looks like its gone a bit quite at present there.