The turf fire was the main source of heating and cooking in this part of Ireland prior to the introduction of oil and electricity, and many families either owned turf banks or had traditional “turbary rights” in relation to certain areas of bog land – and thus held a right to cut / harvest turf from the bog land.
The bogs in this area around County Kildare probably took 10,000 or more years to form and have a wide variety and diverse range of plants including colourful wildflowers, bog cottons, heather’s, orchids, reeds and many more. Birdsong coming from the trees and the undergrowth on the Hawkfield Bog signified a healthy bird population, and a few frogs were observed hopping through the undergrowth.
What surprised me was the lack of butterflies, and other than the occasional bumble bee among the heather’s and visiting the flowers along the roadside there was however little evidence of bees in the area. Birds of prey hovered overhead.
In the 1930’s the Turf Development Board (Bord um Forbairt Móna) commenced work developing the bogs, this development board eventually became Bord na Mona – who are now involved in conservation of some bog lands as well as developing modern sustainable method of generating energy such as harvesting the power of wind.1
The Bogs have yielded more than a turf harvest over the years, and because the bog has the conditions required for excellent preservation of once living tissue – containers of butter, hidden valuables, an old dug-out canoe (which I remember seeing in the then museum in Bord na Móna many years ago) have been found in bogs around the country.
Of particular interest to anthropologists and historians – a number of ancient human remains have also been found – examples in the National Museum include Old Croghan Man dated to between around 400 BC and 200 BC 2 and Cashel Man who died in the Early Bronze Age around 2000BC.3
The nearby Bog of Allen is the largest raised peat bog in Ireland stretching over an area of 950 Sq. KM, 4 the bog we visited is located between Newbridge and Milltown, and can be accessed from a number of roads – which loop around the bog and provide vantage points from which the bog with its wonderful flora and fauna can be viewed. We followed local road L7039 off the “Milltown Road” (R416) in Hawkfield which leads to a bog land bordered by the townlands of Hawkfield, Baronstown, Clongownagh, Grangehiggin, Clongorey, Barrettstown, Tankardsgarden and Roseberry and can be followed all the way around back to the R4165.
The bogs can be severely damaged by fire, and this can have irreparable damage to the wildlife on the bogs – birds and larger animals such as the Fox can probably out-run fire, but smaller animals and insects such as frogs could succumb to the smoke and flames – therefore it is inadvisable to smoke or use exposed flame on or near the bog lands.
It was disappointing to see some evidence of dumping in the area, why would someone travel so far off the “beaten track” to dump an item like a battery which can be easily (and safely) recycled in your local hardware store….
There is a wide variety of plants and wildlife visible along the sides of the road / path which loops around the bog.
Useful Websites and Sources
2 The National Museum of Ireland Website
3 The National Museum of Ireland Website
4 Irish Peatland Conservation Council Website
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