Achill Island

Achill Island is Ireland's largest island, situated off of its west coast. There are 2,700 people currently living on this island that is attached to the mainland by the Michael Davitt Bridge.

The island's main villages include Keel, Dooagh, Dooega and Dugort. It is believed that this island began being populated at the end of the Neolithic Period. Until then the island had been mostly forest. Then during the Iron Age settlement of the island increased. However, it was not until the 17th and 18th centuries that most of the migration to this island actually took place. This migration was motivated by the country's political and religious turmoil at that time.

Over the course of time, there have been many famous people who have come from this Irish island.

These included:

1. Paul Henry was an artist who stayed on the island for many years throughout the early 1900s. Some of his most famous paintings are of the island's dramatic landscape.

2. Heinrich Böll is a Nobel Prize winning author who visited the island and wrote of his experience in his "Irish Journal." His family actually bought a cottage near Dugort where they lived off and on until 2001, at which time they donated it to be used as an artists' residence.

3. The English playwright, novelist, short story writer, travel writer and critic Graham Greene also spent a lot of time on Achill Island. This is just a small sampling of the many great things that this island has going for it. While there was also some some unsympathetic development, this island is still quite beautiful as well. The cliffs on the northern coast of the island are Europe's highest sea cliffs even though they are inaccessible by road. Then on the western tip of the island is located Keem Bay and Keel Beach. These places are quite popular with tourists who enjoy surfing. If you do not want to go into the water, then you could go visit the Slievemore mountain, which is located in the center of the island. This can be accessed by the Atlantic drive, which has some dramatically beautiful views.

For those who enjoy history, you may enjoy visiting the slopes of Slievemore where there is an abandoned village that is known as "The Deserted Village." This village is traditionally believed to have been a remnant village from An Gorta Mór. However, recent archaeological research suggests that the village was actually occupied year around beginning in the 19th century. By the first half of the 20th century it began serving as a seasonally occupied booley village (a village that is occupied only during part of the year, like a resort community). Located just west of the deserted village is an old Martello tower that was built by the British to warn of French invasion. There is also a 5000-year-old Neolithic tomb there. So, as you can see, this island really does have something available for everyone. No matter if you like nature, history or culture it is worth a day to visit this grand island.