Lough Conn is a much bigger lake than Lough Gill, where I was on my previous trip. It’s not as appealing as Lough Gill either, as the lakeshore seemed uniformly less wild and lush, with no majorly distinguishing features to orient by or draw your interest. The setting is great though, with big vistas all around, especially down the length of the lake.
This trip was enjoyable and I met a couple of other new people who were really sound. It was a bit of a slog at times, when the wind picked up. We stopped at the Errew Abbey for lunch. It’s a roofless ruin on a slightly elevated site. The view is good and there’s quite a bit of the structure remaining, but I actually found the landing site more appealing – it had the remains of an old wall and that combined with the small trees standing in the water created a unique atmosphere.
After lunch we headed straight back. The wind was often strong across the gunwales. We tried to avoid it but sometimes the shallowness of the lake shore meant we had to head out of the lee.
One thing I noticed was that there were very few birds around, though we did see some, including a heron and a flock of whooper swans. The day, being grey and overcast, with the sameness of the shoreline, the open views, the wind and the lack of bird-life, felt quite desolate in a way; but as is often the case for me, choosing to go out into that gives it its own appeal. It has a kind of epic quality; a strangeness that I like.
Highlights Gallery
Setting off from Gortnor Abbey 
Nephin Near Gortnor Abbey Looking south-east Flock of whooper swans Looking south-east Arriving at Errew Abbey Looking east from the Errew Abbey landing site Cows at Errew Abbey Errew Abbey Landing site at Errew Abbey Journey’s end
