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Ireland Photo of the Week: Every Tuesday, our friend Kevin Balanda is sharing a special photo from Ireland and telling its story here on Irlandnews. Kevin worked in Dublin for many years and now lives in West Cork. He enjoys taking his camera with him wherever he goes. This week we visit Co Clare:

An Branán Mór Sea Stack, O’Brien’s Tower and Ireland’s most famous seacliffs

The Cliffs of Moher in West Clare are the most famous seacliffs in Ireland. They are thought to have been formed over 300 million years ago during the Carboniferous Period when Ireland was located close to the Equator. On the cliff faces you can see individual horizontal layers of rock or strata; the lighter coloured layers are sandstone, the darker layers are softer siltstone and shale. The sandstone layers are slightly more resistant to erosion but they cannot support their own weight for long and eventually crash into the sea below. Consequently; the cliff’s edges are somewhat unstable.

The sea stack is called An Branán Mór, a 60 metre tall rock formation also known as O’Brien’s Stack. The sea stack was formed more recently than the cliffs. It was formed over millions of years by coastal erosion which wore away the surrounding rock, leaving An Branán Mór detached from the cliffs.

Overlooking An Branán Mór is O’Brien’s Tower. Standing on the highest point of the Cliffs of Moher, it offers magnificent views south towards Hag’s Head and north towards Doolin. The Tower was built in 1835 by local landlord and MP Cornelius O’Brien who is reputed to have been a descendant of Brian Boru, the first High King of Ireland. It was built as an observation tower for the tourists and is said to have initially served as a teahouse.

Below O’Brien’s Tower; fishing boats, tourist boats and recreational vessels share the beautifully wild Atlantic Ocean.

 

 

Photographic specifications: This photo was taken with a lens set at a 41 mm focal length. Exposure settings were ISO 200 , f/8 , 1/90 s. It was edited in Lightroom.

© Kevin Balanda

This story / page is available in: German