Omey Island is a small island just off the West Coast of Ireland near a village called Claddaghduff where my dad is from. The island can be accessed by “road” when the tide is out and my family once had to abandon a car on the island and wade back to the mainland which was fun for my brothers and I but maybe not so much for my mum who was carrying my youngest brother on her shoulders; my dad was safely up at the house watching us on binoculars and laughing. I think I was about 7 at the time.
My brother asked me at the start of lockdown if I wanted to swim around Omey and I said yes (I say yes to everything) but he has since bailed to go and work in a very cool cafe in Bundoran. We planned to start the swim at 11:30am on Friday 14th August to try to hit the strand at high tide. The conditions were perfect; an easterly wind meant the sea was unusually calm and the warm temperature meant my parents were comfortable on their kayak with no wetsuits on.
The swim was pretty uneventful but very enjoyable. My pace was slow as I’ve done very little swimming since March and my main task was dodging these creatures:
We hit the strand bang on target but this high tide was not the same high tide that I remembered. It was about a foot high at the highest point. I tried to float and crawl along but at some point I did beach myself and decide to run the 200m – is that cheating?!
Once across the strand I had the pier in sight again and swam the last 2km with Omey Island on my left and Claddaghduff on my right. It was an amazing experience and I felt really connected to my surroundings, especially over that last 2km. Thanks to everyone who donated during and after the swim – it’s very much appreciated!
sineadconneely.com 