Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
These bogs once covered almost 20percent ofIreland. As the climate got warmer at the
end of the last Ice Age, plants began growing along the sides of the many shallow lakes
and ponds. When the plants died in these waterlogged areas, there wasn't enough oxygen
for them to fully decompose. Over the centuries, the moss built up, layer after dead layer,
helping to slowly fill in the lakes. During World War I, this sphagnum moss was collected
to use in bandages to soak up blood (it absorbs many times its weight in fluids).
It's this wet, oxygen-starved ecosystem that has preserved ancient artifacts so well,
many of which can be seen in Dublin's National Museum. Even forgotten containers of
butter, churned centuries ago and buried to keep cool, have been discovered. But most
bizarre are the wrinkled bog mummies that are occasionally unearthed. These human re-
mains (some of them close to 2,000 years old) are so incredibly intact that their eyelashes,
hairstyles, and the last meal in their stomachs can be identified. They were likely sacrifi-
cial offerings to the pagan gods of Celtic times.
Sincetheseacidicbogscontainfewnutrients,uniquespeciesofcarnivorousplantshave
adapted to life here by trapping and digesting insects. The tiny pink sundew (less than an
inch tall) has delicate spikes glistening with insect-attracting fluid. Take a moment to find
a mossy area and look closely at the variety of tiny plants. In summer, you'll see white
tufts of bog cotton growing in marshy areas.
Ireland's Misunderstood Nomads
WhenyouseeasmallclusteroftrailersatthesideofanIrishroad,you'relookingat
adyingwayoflife.ThesearetheTravellers,anomadicthrowbacktothedayswhen
wandering craftsmen, musicians, and evicted unfortunates crowded rural Ireland.
Often mislabeled as Gypsies, they have no ethnic ties to those Eastern European
nomads, but rather have an Irish heritage going back centuries.
