An Port

When I arrived at An Port in County Donegal in June, it felt as though I had reached the end of the world. This was not my first visit, so I knew perfectly well what to expect, and yet the remoteness struck me deeply all over again. Since the mid-nineteenth century, when people left An Port to escape famine, nature has been setting the tone here. All along the road in, a succession of photogenic subjects had already been presenting themselves: ruined stone walls, a thatched shed and any number of sheep, giving the journey a sense of having taken far longer than it actually had.

At the centre of the bay stands a pier, as the name already suggests, and it is in surprisingly good condition and still in active use. From here, there are two possible routes. Which one you take should be based on the angle of the sun, to avoid shooting straight into the light. Scrambling up the hill to the right, you find yourself shooting westward, with dramatic rock pinnacles off the coast and a fine view back towards the pier. The other route follows a trail leading first along striking cliffs and then on through the hills towards Glencolumbkille. Here you are shooting towards the north to north-east, with a prime example of Donegal’s rugged coastline stretching out before you.

As I arrived in the afternoon, I decided to follow the trail for a while before heading cross-country along the clifftops. That stretch of coastline offered no shortage of compelling subjects, and a few sheep made sure to push their way into the frame as well. By the end of the day I had a fine collection of classic Irish images: green fields, a rugged coastline and the deep blue of the Atlantic. An Port leaves you with lasting impressions, and a feeling that it hasn’t quite finished with you yet.