We're back to that time of year again, summer has ended and winter is on its way. For now it's colourful autumn.

Here in a gently sloping woodland, a small stream cuts a narrow path soon becoming a river but for now it's all gentle and pretty.

And of course it's colourful.

The Irish hare Lepus timidus hibernicus is a distinct subspecies of the mountain hares found all over the northern latitudes of the northern hemisphere. All Lepus timidus except hibernicus change their coats of fur to white in winter to match with typical winter conditions of snow at such northerly latitudes. But due to Ireland's mild climate and lack of white snow covering the landscape, the local hares keep a brown coat all winter long - an evolutionary change that makes the Irish hare unique.

I have written about green roads and rural lanes here on Panoramic Ireland before. Here is one from a walk in the Irish countryside earlier this year, 2019: https://panoramicireland.com/blog-ireland-guide/irish-summer-green-rural-lane-trees-exploring

Here, stopping along the back roads of the Irish countryside - in the west we went exploring and photographed one of the most scenic lanes in the country.

Dublin's Samuel Beckett Bridge was installed in 2009, it celebrates 10 years this year of spanning the River Liffey and is dedicated to the Nobel Prize for Literature winning writer and playwright, Samuel Beckett.

Interestingly the architect of the Samuel Beckett Bridge Santiago Calatrava has already designed a bridge for Dublin dedicated to another of the city's famous writers, James Joyce.

They liken Killiney Bay to the Bay of Naples. The coastal area south of Dublin is a very scenic place but I can't see the resemblance, I've been to Naples and climbed Vesuvius.

Yet Killiney Bay is a beauty, accessible by DART (commuter train) from Dublin and with fine walks and views it offers the visitor a flavour of the real Ireland without travelling too far.

Sometimes the Irish weather is not pleasant for photography but with patience and local knowledge it is possible to get fine images of the rugged, green Island in the Atlantic.

We went to Dingle in search of bright colourful scenes of mountains and the Atlantic coast like from this occasion a few weeks ago: https://panoramicireland.com/photo-tours-blog/coumeenole-beach-dingle-kerry-slea-head

What we got, however, were the remnants of Hurricane Dorian blowing across Ireland's most westerly peninsula.

Ireland''s west coast, the Wild Atlantic Way conjures up images of stormy ocean waves and barren rocky headlands.

And for much of its 2,500 or so kilometres it is that way, but it isn't barren and not always rocky; it is visually scenic.

Panoramic Ireland returned to Dingle recently for a photography workshop in one of Ireland's most beautiful places.

Here is the famous Coumeenole beach, complete with gull and those gentle waves that the Atlantic sometimes gives us. To the right is the rocky headland of Dunmore Head and the Blasket Islands beyond.

Despite assurances from all of the self-proclaimed experts on long range weather forecasting in Ireland, summer 2019 has not been as good as 2018 and is on par with 2017 as having been grey, windy, rainy, grey, windy, rainy...

It has at least been warm, but for photography it has been challenging. The winds, while not hurricane strength have nonetheless been constant in their presence and changeable in their direction and speed.

In other words, tripod-toppling weather.

Here is one from a tour in the west of Ireland, as the sun's rays shone through the thick, fast-moving cloud onto the choppy harbour waters of the Atlantic. The greens of the fields aglow with stormy light.

The Irish countryside in summer is a fine place, with green in abundance.

Many sights are full, overcrowded with tourists who come to see the famous places such as the Cliffs of Moher and the Giant's Causeway.

Exploring in the Irish countryside can be a fine and rewarding experience.

Here, I found an old stone bridge dating from the 1840s over a small river surrounded by green trees, its stony riverbed shallow with long grasses sculpted by the low summer flow.

We stood in the water here, no need for wellies, to photograph this scene.

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