GALWAY HOOKERS:SALT WET, sea wet, wind wet, rain wet - on a weekend when it seemed as if the entire island was sinking under the weight of precipitation, the deck of a boat was the only place to be.
And so it came to pass that, even as communities experienced the worst of the elements in many counties, the turf was still delivered by traditional wooden craft across Galway Bay.
The fleet of Galway hookers even opted to leave south Connemara a day early to ensure that one of the highlights of Kinvara's annual Cruinniú na mBád took place ahead of a series of low pressure bands on the meteorological charts.
It may have been among the soggiest peat carried for many a year, but the driest, cheeriest wit ensured the unloading was carried out in good spirits.
"We knew the weather was coming in on us, and we are delighted to see the stalwarts returning," Dr Michael Brogan, a festival organiser, told The Irish Times. He himself was well satisfied with a weekend launching of his Mac Duach, which he has converted to a ketch or bád dhá bhata (boats with two sticks), as the two-masted vessels are called as Gaeilge.
Among the stalwarts were the Capall, owned by generations of the Bailey family since it was built by Michael Reaney in Lettermore in the 1860s, and the Truelight, named after the Claddagh fishing hooker which survived the Cleggan disaster of 1927.
Joining them were An Tonaí, The Star of the West, Blath na hÓige and other vessels with their distinctive tumblehome hulls in the bad mór (35 to 44ft) and leath-bhád (32ft) hooker class, along with a number of the smaller gleoiteogs.
Also participating was Morning Star, which is synonymous with the Galway hooker revival more than 30 years ago. Restored in Dublin by Johnny Healion, it was the first hooker to return to Connemara after an absence of many years when it sailed in the Macdara festival at Carna in 1976.
The Morning Star had caused something of an evening's angst at last year's cruinniú when it broached in a squall and the crew had to be rescued from the water. This year, all on board were said to be well kitted out with lifejackets in full working order.
In the event, the jackets weren't needed, as racing had to be cancelled on both Saturday and Sunday evening due to a stiff southeasterly which transformed the bay into froth. Referee Séamus Breathnach, the organising committee and skippers agreed that conditions were too challenging, and racing would be deferred to Tuesday evening.
The programme was rescheduled on water only, however, as a number of lively sessions took place onshore with musicians from Manchester and Clare. Those of a more resilient nature were invited out into the town square where a stage had been rigged with its own "lighthouse". During the chat, tributes aplenty were also paid to kindred spirits departed, such as the late Galway hooker historian Richard J Scott and Dubliner Ronnie Drew.
This year's event marked the 30th anniversary of the first turf boat "revival voyage" across the bay from Connemara, and the festival poster carries an image of festival founder Tony Moylan.
"Some of the older people cried on the shore, on seeing the 'brown boats stealing through the misty haze' once again," Dr Brogan recalled.
Tomorrow the extended Cruinniú na mBád race programme will start with gleoiteogs at 5pm, and the hookers at 6pm in Kinvara. It is hoped that sponsors CityJet will be able to consult with the weather gods.
