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North Western Parts
Three generations of the Cunningham family have holidayed in the Dunfanaghy, Port na Blagh, Marble Hill area. It has been our summer playground for many years. The village lies on a tidal arm of Sheephaven Bay on the north coast of Donegal county.
The view here is from the lower slopes of Horn Head south across the bay to the village of Dunfanaghy and beyond to Muckish Mountain. The other mountains are topped with cloud especially Errigal over to the west. Dunfanaghy used to be a small port and fishing base but the amount of sand in the bay now stops any boat getting to the harbour at any time other than top spring tide. The deep channel on this side of the bay is a good safe and often sun warmed place to swim when the tide is out and a good place to go fishing when the tide is flooding into the bay. The group of dots on the beach to the left of the picture are horses and riders heading off along Killyhoey Beach. To the extreme right is the north east arm of the New Lake. I like this picture as it shows the area in it's more normal cloudy mood rather than the ideal sunny condition of the more conventional panorama.
In the picture below, which was taken just a few minutes previously, the view is south eastward from further out on the headland and shows the Killyhoey Beach with Port na Blagh beyond. Sessiagh Lake can be seen and in the background is the range of hills around Lough Salt.
To give an overview of the area, the spot from which those pictures were taken is just slightly below the centre of this aerial shot of the area. Dunfanaghy bay at low spring tide with the New Lake on the other side of the village. On the other side of the head is Tramore beach and beyond that the long strand at the mouth of the Ray river and Ballyness Bay. Looking at that expanse of sand it is surprising that Dunfanaghy was once a flourishing small port.
