A recent journey took me to north Tipperary and the town of Nenagh.

It's a fine, large town, though not the largest in Tipperary, that accolade goes to Clonmel in the south of the county.

Nenagh has a distinctive castle, or at least a tower - remains of the much larger original built around the year 1200 by the local Theobald FitzWalter, Baron Butler, whose descendents would become the Earls of Ormond and was constructed of limestone rubble.

It is tall, at around 25 metres, with additions built in the 1860s - the crenellations at the top.

Seen here on a bright spring day in this panorama with some of the walls of the original castle.

I discovered that Nenagh Castle is free to visit, and while visiting the town's tourist office I was informed that the local library, as well as the other libraries in Tipperary, also host free events and exhibitions throughout the year.

So I went for a coffee at the nearby Steeples cafe then headed to the library.

Irish jeweller and designer / maker Christina Keogh has an exhibition on in the library of beautiful silversmithing, gold and gemstones as well as traditional goldsmithing tools and will give a talk on Tuesday 18th of April in Nenagh Library.

The weather has been marvellous over the past week in Ireland, although some cold air has arrived to bring frost but at least no snow.

Here, on a journey through one of Ireland's most scenic counties - Tipperary, I drove along the scenic road to a famous viewpoint known as The Vee to photograph the view of the Galty or Galtee Mountains.

The Galty Mountains reach a height of 917.9m and are Ireland's highest inland mountain range, most of the country's highest peaks are much closer to the coast.

Panoramic Ireland is working on a project featuring the area, if you want to see more of this region of Ireland send me an email.

One of the finest and largest castles in Ireland, Cahir Castle was begun in 1142 and most of what is extant dates to the late 14th century. Situated on the River Suir, Cahir Castle is one of those fairytale castles that could be mistaken for a film set rather than a real castle. It was built by the O'Briens of Thomond.

Indeed it has featured in many films and TV series including Excalibur and The Tudors, now it is being turned into a medieval French chateau for the latest Matt Damon film The Last Duel. Based on a true story of the last official duel fought in France in 1386 between Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris it is directed by Ridley Scott and in addition to Matt Damon, it stars Adam Driver, Jodie Comer and Ben Affleck. It will film during September at the castle.

Cahir Castle is surrounded on three sides by water and for centuries controlled the crossing of the mighty River Suir, a strategic waterway leading into the interior of Ireland.

Nestled on the banks of the River Suir bordering Tipperary and Waterford lies a small graveyard, old and overgrown like so many in Ireland.

I visited this quiet and peaceful place in Spring 2020 just a few weeks before the lockdown.

Here at Churchtown the Sun was shining, the birds tweeting and spring flowers were growing.

The grave of Tipperary man, world record holding athlete and founder of Ireland's Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) Davin, is hard to miss with prominence over the River Suir.

On a recent roadtrip through the Irish countryside, I found a fine field of rapeseed, also known as canola - one of the most widely grown plants used for cooking oils derived from its seed.

With a fine blue spring sky overhead and a bright wide field of golden flowers the colours reminded of the traditional colours of County Tipperary, one of Ireland's most scenic counties; and how appropriate because I was in County Tipperary at the time. The county's sports teams often play with blue and gold striped jerseys, particularly the Tipperary GAA team.

It was also one of the first days that I have been exploring with my camera since starting chemotherapy.

Slievenamon, Sliabh na mBan or 'Mountain of the Women'

As I write this Storm Fionn is hitting Ireland and bringing with it snow, heavy winds and high seas.

It's rather fitting then that last week I climbed a mountain in County Tipperary called Slievenamon, whose Irish name means Mountain of the Women.

This 721m high mountain sits at the end of a long ridge stretching across the south east of Ireland.

It was an important mountain in Irish mythology having been the place chosen by an important mythological figure, often described as a giant, Finn or Fionn MacCumhaill as the site of a race - the winner would be the first woman to ascend Slievenamon who would win Fionn's hand in marriage.

Finn, as you might already know, is the hero/god/giant who created the Giant's Causeway, Lough Neagh and the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea according to legend. 

So check out the video of my short ascent of Slievenamon from the green Suir Valley to the white, icy wonderland on top with stunning views of the Munster Vales and the counties of this part of Ireland situated along the driving route known as Ireland's Ancient East, like the present Storm Fionn it was blowing a gale at 721m above sea level.

The video is hosted on YouTube but you can watch it here on this page by playing it.

Slievenamon - above the snow line in winter

Braving the elements on a cold winter's day we climbed up Slievenamon, a 720m-high mountain in Ireland's Ancient East and part of the scenic Munster Vales region.

Starting along the scenic lanes we walked through green fields past pine forest with views along the Suir Valley towards the Knockmealdown, Comeragh and Galtee Mountains.

At the top it was a white and blue sky winter wonderland with iced snow coating everything, it was cold and the strong north easterly wind made it feel even colder.

Here is an image from the top of the sun and that wintry scene.

More to come on this adventure, why not join me on my next outing to learn how to photograph Irish landscapes.

For more on photography tours and workshops in Ireland contact me.

On a rare quiet day taking a break from leading photography tours in Ireland I headed to one of Ireland's most famous landmarks - the Rock of Cashel in County Tipperary.

It was a cold and rainy March afternoon as rain spread across the plain obscuring the distant mountains before clearing long enough to enjoy the view again.

The River Suir is Ireland's third longest river at 184km and seventh largest in terms of flow.

It rises in north Tipperary and flows south then turning north and east towards Waterford Harbour where it meets the Celtic Sea after flowing through Clonmel, Carrick-on-Suir and Waterford City on its way.