It's easy to lose oneself in the geographies and human histories of the Lee Valley. I sat recently at the source of the Lee in the Shehy Mountains, looking at the blurb of water protruding from the ground. At its breakthrough to the air, it begins carving a route for itself. By the base of the mountain, the river gathers momentum and fills Gougane Lake before breaking free on route east, a journey this column is still following.

On the same day as my climb, I paid my respects to the pilgrimage island. I was not alone. The same day, a wedding party cut across the well worn path on the island and there were other spectators inspecting, admiring and reflecting on this place - All with their cameras focussed on what they deemed interesting and all taking pictures of different things.

I sat in the middle of the pilgrimage centre with all its cells and stations of the cross and St. Finbarre's Cross marking the site of his alleged hut. From my own research, I was conscious that this site is 300 years old. The site has grown in status through time and through collective respect, maintenance and regular visits by Corkonians and tourists.

The notion of time is reflected in the masonry of the encircling stone walls that have been replaced and straightened over time. On that day, I was drawn to the architecture of the stone walls. Staring, there is a kind of poetry of contrasts in the stone. As material ruins, the different shapes and angles of the stones invoke a texture that is dirty and old but exciting and nostalgic at the same time. The cracks, scratches and indentations in the masonry reflect time like lines growing on an old hand. Those walls were aging and crumbling but you could feel they had an aura, an appeal and still had a place in modern society. There was wear and tear but also something else that invoked my own imagination that they added to the overall sense of place in Gougane.

To build the stone walls, emotion, effort and commitment had to be applied. Ruins can be talked about in terms of decay but also in terms of life. The walls in Gougane Barra are a celebration of life. As the walls are bound up in the sacredness and spiritual atmosphere of Gougane Barra, there is holiness in the stone. The walls showcase the past of golden ages, past crafts, traditional design. For pilgrims, they help to deny the passage of time and even freeze time. Ruins can invoke loss but can also help recover identity and a sense of this place. This summer and autumn, I wish to examine the sense of place in Gougane Barra. What makes Gougane important to people, Corkonians but also visitors? Why is this place sacred to all our personal and collective memories?

To begin these explorations, I have organised a public talk and workshop entitled:

Gougane Barra, History and Memory, by Kieran Mc, Monday 7 July, 7p.m., Lifetime Lab / Old Waterworks, Lee Road, admission free.

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