RHH's photos with the keyword: slemish

Before going to France last summer we were in Northern Ireland and England. While in Northern Ireland we visited friends whose house is near Slemish. Slemish is an ancient volcanic cone, supposed to be the place where St. Patrick herded pigs as a slave after being captured by pirates and sold to an Irish chieftain.

In Explore September 23, 2009, #407. "Slemish (Irish, Sliabh Mis) is the remains of the plug of an extinct volcano near Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland Its distinctive appearance—its upper reaches are very steep and rugged, in contrast to the tidy fields on its lower westward-facing slopes and the relatively flat bogland to the east—causes it to dominate the landscape for miles in all directions. Tradition holds that Saint Patrick, enslaved as a youth, was brought to this area and tended herds on Slemish, and that during this time he found God. (However, another theory contends that he spent this period in the west of Ireland...) In later times, it was the site of a United Irish camp during the 1798 rebellion in County Antrim." - Wikipedia

The volcanic plug where Saint Patrick is reputed to have herded sheep when a slave-boy in Ireland, Slemish stands above the surrounding countryside and is a landmark visible for many miles.

Slemish is an old volcanic cone in County Antrim where Patrick is said to have herded sheep while a slave-boy in Ireland. It is also a landmark that is visible for many miles and, if climbed, a wonderful viewpoint. This picture was taken on our last visit to Ireland and was taken either by my wife or my daughter-in-law. I am not sure which one of them took it. The day has special meaning for us, since it was on a March 17th that we moved with our family to Northern Ireland and were there for nearly 10 years. While there we lived in County Antrim within view of Slemish.