Donncha O'Ceileachair, originally from Dublin, now farming on the Blasket Islands
My wife's people are from the Blasket Islands and I have been going there since I was young . . .I think the Office of Public Works (OPW) is making a very honest attempt to make a tourist destination of the islands. The idea of total abandonment is not a good idea. We should be able to strike the right balance between keeping traditions alive. I am doing that in a small way through farming. For locals here, the Blasket Islands never became dead islands. The locals always went out to them in the summer, where they fished, or farmed or cut turf.
Land became very expensive to rent on the mainland . . .So when I wanted to start farming a few sheep, I decided to keep them on the islands. The islands are only accessible in good weather, but the sheep are kept on the island all the time. The season then runs from April to September. The bulk of the work in relation to the sheep would be done in those months and we stay on the islands during that period.
This type of farming is totally organic and that comes through in the taste of the lamb afterwards . . .The sheep are very healthy. We wouldn't have the problems you get with intensive farming. In a sense we went back to the type of farming done here for generations. The islands are unique in terms of the type of grazing they provide. It is a lot more trouble in terms of access, but there are good returns.
I'm not sure I could stay on the islands all winter long . . .It could be a bit long, and harrowing. We were marooned there for a time, and everything really was very basic, from planning your meals to sourcing firewood. I imagine the winter would be a long one in that sense. I have two children and they do help in the summer. My son, who is 15 years old, stays on the island with me. On the island at night it is easy to fall into a routine. We sit around the fire and we talk. With the shepherds, we talk about the work that day. It is open terrain and so a lot of planning goes into it.
I think there is definitely a difference in the taste from the lamb we produce . .. I'm always surprised at the feedback there is. Those used to eating bland lamb might find it a little gamier. It is free range and the sheep are grazing on land that was never ploughed, so there is a nice mixture of grassland and heather. We go over and back and we have our own boats. The fishermen give us a lot of help and we use the old meitheal system where we all give each other a hand. In return, I do work for others who help us, or else I'll supply them with meat.
I had a chat with a butcher, Jerry Kennedy, in Dingle, about 12 years ago . . .I was saying it was a shame that when the Blasket sheep came in and went off to the factory, there was no recognition it was different, and it was mixed in with all the other meat. He said he would imagine that people would be interested in it and so he took a few small quantities and began to take an interest. I now sell my lamb exclusively through his butchers and it ends up on plates all over the country, such as in The Castle Café in Blackrock in Cork. That is an extraordinary journey and there is great satisfaction in that for me. The meat went unrecognised for almost a generation, but now there is awareness again. When I was talking to older men here years ago, they told me they always looked out for mutton coming from Blasket Islands.
Good dogs are crucial for sheep farming in general but especially on the islands . . .You're going nowhere without a decent dog. It takes them a while to understand the terrain. They have to go up and around cliffs and you're dealing sometimes with very contrary sheep. I notice the dogs raise their game when they are dealing with wilder sheep. The peaceful dog won't work on the islands. It takes a few seasons for them to adapt. Even if the dog was a world champion, I don't think he would be able to adapt here without training. I always have a few dogs with me. You'd be using one, and breaking in others, so I have six dogs, from seven months to 10 years old on the go at the moment.
During the summer, if tourists are on the islands, they'll watch us farming and take a great interest . .. I wouldn't find it annoying at all. Generally they are very polite and will ask if they can take a photo. We attract quite a crowd during shearing. Tourists, like us all, know the story of the abandoned island and they like to see living work going on there again.
In conversation with Brian O'Connell
