Keel beach Achill Island
Introduced industry has never really taken off in Achill and like the rest of Ireland, it owes a lot to its preserved troubled past. It is pretty much untouched by the destructive hand of humanity and has a wild and dramatic natural beauty.
Sweeping up an incline we found ourselves looking down on Keel village, its stunning beach set against a backdrop of neck-breakingly high sea cliffs. With its whitewashed cottages strewn around the far side of a broad Atlantic inlet and clustered below us, it was eerily quiet. The only inhabitants to be seen were the obligatory sheep grazing on the road side, and as we rolled down into the village, munching on front lawns.
“It reminds me of the set of a Stephen King book,” I mused, imagining hidden faces peering at us from behind the safety of dark windows and only emerging as a clawing mist descends at dusk.
“Hmm, can you shut up now?” The other half, not a great fan of Mr King was not amused.