Ireland day 1421. Tuesday 19 August 2025- Jellyfish

Today’s summary	Caught up on odd jobs in the morning then took Val to the airport for a flight to Bristol. Spent the whole of the rest of the afternoon doing Spanish homework. Went on a walk through Robswall in the evening then walked back along the beach dodging the hundreds of stranded jellyfish, blown ashore by the strong north easterly wind. Leftover chicken for dinner
Today’s weather	Overcast and grey but dry. Strong north easterly wind. Appx 17c

Today’s overview location (The blue mark shows the location of my route)		Close-up location (The blue line shows where I walked) (Click button below to download GPX of today’s walk as recorded, or see interactive map at bottom with elevations corrected): Jellyfish

Commentary

Today felt different. I realised that, while it was dry outside and by no means cold, it felt quite autumnal. A chilly north easterly wind was blowing, and it felt like rain wasn’t far away (even though it never came). Autumn is definitely in the air. It won’t be long before the heliotropes are blooming! I’ll be sorry to see this summer go, as it’s been nice and warm. But maybe there’s still time for an Indian Summer.

Anyway, turning to more prosaic matters. There were a number of admin jobs that needed sorting out this morning, so we got those knocked off and I made us some porridge and coffee for breakfast. Then by the time all that was done, it was early afternoon and time to take Val to the airport. She’s going to Bristol, UK, for a few days to stay with friends. I’ll be catching up with her on Saturday.

Once I got back from dropping off Val at Terminal 1, I set about my Spanish homework. I am still finding it quite hard, but even so I hadn’t anticipated it taking me all afternoon. Which is what indeed happened. Finally I got it all finished, but it was 5pm by then and already getting gloomy outside. Surely the nights can’t be drawing in already?

I felt in serious need of some fresh air by then, so I headed out for a short walk up to the Robswall estate via Seamount Road. On the way back I dropped down to the beach and walked back along the shore. I had to tread carefully to avoid stepping on the – literally hundreds of – jellyfish washed up on the tideline. Presumably the strong north easterly wind had driven them onto the sand where they were slowly drying out and decaying away. Strangely no seabirds were feasting on them – mind you I don’t think if I were a seabird I’d be feasting on them either.

I returned to the flat via SuperValu, heated up some leftover chicken from a Kerrigans meal last week, then drew the blinds to shut out the grey, and turned on the TV. As I finish off the chicken I think I’m going to see if I can find some interesting travel videos to watch. I’m having a bit of an islands phase at the moment. St Helena, anyone?

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)


I’ve always quite liked this wood-clad property at the top of Seamount Road. According to the estate agent’s website, it’s called The Gate Lodge and it’s on the market for €750,000. That might seem like a snip for a 3 bed detached house in a (fairly) desirable location but it may not be quite the bargain it seems as the woodwork is in shocking condition and it probably needs almost as much again spending on it to bring it back up to scratch	The gap and unofficial path cutting through from Seamount to Robswall

Bright semi-wild roses are still bringing vivid splashes of colour to the hedgerows	Treading carefully on the strand

A couple of gigs scurrying around in the estuary – not sure if they were supposed to be racing – but if they were, they were going in opposite directions	The steps in the footpath up from our flats leading to the Dublin Road are being replaced. Hooray, as they were in dreadful condition and actually becoming hazardous

One of the hundreds of slightly repellent jellyfish decorating the high tide line. There were all sorts of colours and sizes. I think this one is a Lion’s Mane (Cyanea capillata). The one in the banner image is the same species, though probably an older specimen. They can grow over 2m (7ft) in diameter and with tentacles up to 35m (120ft) long. As such, they are thought to be the world’s longest animal