August 14, 2006

Caught by the bullocks


A few weeks ago, I was driving through Co. Roscommon andafter checking my map, noticed that I was near Emlagh High Cross. Now, there are plenty of crosses, cross-slabs and other features marked on Ordnance Survey maps that no longer exist, but I decided to have a look anyway. A few miles from Castlerea, along a country road, there was a sign pointing up a boreen. A couple of hundred yards up the road, across from a new bungalow under construction, was a steel pole, where presumably, a sign had once hung. And in the field, was a cross.


Well, it was more like bits of the cross. It looked like it had fallen over, smashed, and then the bits stuck into a stone plinth in the field. According to Peter Harbison's Guide, the pieces may well be bits of two crosses, dating from the 11th century. I dutifully took a few snaps, rueing the fact that the remnants were not railed off from cattle (in fact there was a feeder beside the plinth). As I've mentioned before, cattle have a habit of knocking things over - not good for ancient antiquities). A quick search of the Dáil record shows that Emlagh is the responsibility of the Office of Public Works but no money has been allocated to it for years.


While I was looking at the cross, the cattle in the next field noticed my presence and galloped over to the gap in the hedge and up the hill towards me. When cattle run towards you, the best thing to do is stand up to them [they were Charlaois which we raised on our own farm - they are usually playful and affectionate animals]. Which is what I did. The lead animal halted as he got closer. But one of the cattle following him just kept going, and he didn't look too affectionate at all.


I took a closer look at him. Uh-oh. It looked like a 'scrub' bull [a 'scrub' bull is an animal that has at least partially survived the castration process]. Standing tall and shouting 'Shoo' to an angry scrub bull is unlikely to have much effect since (a) it's already proved that it has balls of steel and (b) it bears an understandable grudge against humans. I glanced behind me at the gate - too far to run. For one moment, I thought I'd come unstuck.


And the irony of the situation ? I'd actually set off that morning to photograph Rath na dTarbh, the place where, according to An Táin Bó Cúailnge, the brown bull of Ulster (Donn Cúailnge)had fought and destroyed the white bull of Connacht (Finn Bennech). Because of the rain, I decided to divert to Emlagh instead. Luckily, I had a happier outcome than poor old Finn. I walked behind the plinth as the animal ran up to me, and that was enough to confuse him. He lost interest after a couple of minutes and I walked (backwards) to the gate. In fact, it may not have been a scrub bull at all, but just an over-enthusiastic bullock (since there was a trough in the field, the animals were probably used to being fed by the farmer, and mistook my appearance for mealtime). It had my adrenalin going for a while, all the same.


Camera = Canon 5D , lens = Canon 24-105mm@35mm, ISO=500, aperture=f8, speed=1/500 sec.


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Posted by Monasette at August 14, 2006 11:19 PM
Comments

Good photo, better story. Did you get any shots of your antagonist?

Posted by: jeff at August 15, 2006 03:24 AM

I'm told that if you're caught in a field with cows and a bull, never ever get between the bull and his cows. The best thing to do is lie down on the ground. You may get sniffed, but not really bothered. Cattle are very curious. Eventually you become part of the landscape and they'll walk away.

Posted by: Larry at August 15, 2006 07:52 PM

hehe great story, i would love to have been an onlooker...

Posted by: Michelle at August 16, 2006 08:59 AM

Hey John, your comment on my blog prompted me to recall that you've got the magic combo of a 5D and a 24-105L IS. I'm thinking of getting this combo as a second body (well, using it as a primary and keeping my soon to be repaired 20D as a second body). What do you make of the camera and I suppose what I'm asking is, is it worth the huge price tag? I don't want to put myself into debt unless it's going to be worthwhile :) Cheers.

Posted by: ryan at August 16, 2006 12:50 PM

Reminds me of the time I got chased into the ocean (in January) while beachwalking on the west coast of Scotland by a couple of bull Highland cattle. I had to slosh through the waves for quite a while until I could safely return to land, and my car was about five kilometers away so I was good and chilled by the time I got there.

Posted by: brad at August 16, 2006 09:22 PM

I saw a 2005 article about Tyrellspass and it brought back memories. 25 years ago, my wife and I were on our honeymoon and we were driving west out of Dublin and saw a sign "Castle For Sale!". Now, that's not something one usually sees, so we pulled over to inquire and met the old gentleman who owned the keep and the 18 acres of land that went with it. I had in mind to open a tourist attraction with National Park Service level historical accuracy, being a Ranger at Harpers Ferry Park in West Virginia at the time.

Too much money (180,000 pounds), not enough guts to try it, so we backed away. I've often wondered what happened to the old place. It was pretty rough even then. What has happened? Is it still there?

Paul Smith
n36973@hotmail.com

Posted by: Paul Smith at August 17, 2006 12:13 AM

Jeff: I did, and a more sullen looking beast you couldn't hope to find.
Larry: You're in more danger from walking between a cow and its calf (I know that from personal experience)

Paul: the old man that you met was an architect - he built on the extension at the base of the castle. He has passed on, and a local group of businessmen bought it and opened as a restaurant. The new Dublin-Galway motorway will pass about 500 metres from the castle, bypassing the village, so by next year, it will probably get less 'passing trade'. You idea sounded like a good one, and even more in demand now. Alas, property prices have skyrocketed in Ireland in the last 10 years so the chances of buying an old pile cheaply is well and truly ancient history. [If you had bought it, we'd have been neighbours - our farm is just a few miles outside Tyrellspass, though I don't live there now]

Posted by: John at August 18, 2006 05:36 PM

I am trying to find out what bone is in the picture of February 2005 titled "Scarry Monster". Just last week I found the same bone in Roque Island, Maine in the USA.

Sorry for posting my question here but I could not find the author's email.

Thanks,

Dan

Posted by: Dan at August 22, 2006 02:28 AM

Hi Dan,
I think it's the hip/pelvis of a small animal - could be either a lamb or fox.

Posted by: John at August 26, 2006 12:19 PM