Crosshaven

Last Saturday I had the unique opportunity of bringing Niamh's Dad down to Crosshaven with the kids! On a previous occasion we were discussing how big an event the Cork week had become and he happened to mention that he had never been to Crosshaven in his life. I couldn't believe my ears ...to have never gone down to Crosshaven...this was an alien concept to me!! This place has been part of the Daly family expedition for years "Where will we go...Sure Crosshaven is grand and near and of course they have the merries!!.." A spin down to crosshaven on a Sunday afternoon was a cherished event of the Summer holidays when we were growing up. We'd all hop into the old cortina and make the journey down! The journey to Crosshaven has changed dramatically over the years since I was a young boy. The roads to Crosshaven were winding, long and narrow, which always seemed to take forever! It was so long that we almost invariably stopped off at Carrigaline for Ice Cream ....maybe my mother had a secret addiction to Ice Cream that I didn't know about. In the 80's if you were to get an ice cream one always had to get a few extra empty cones to divide between the gang of us.....seat blets and seats covered in ice cream...screaming and shouting in the back seat...if you saw it happening now you would probably duck or hide !!!!!
When we did eventually get to Crosshaven, we always headed to the merries....we probably got 50 p each and that had to last us for the duration.....mind you this was pre-pre celtic tiger so 50 p lasted a long time in those pre Euro days!!! We were left run around the merries for an hour or 2 and eventually we'd head off on another spin up to Myrteville or Fountainstown, anything to fill up the long day that was in it!!
When your younger like that you don't stop and think of the beauty of a place ...the way the sun shimmers on the water towards the end of a day.....the smell of the ocean as the tide rises, with the beauty of the boats and yachts on the water. Crosshaven has come a long way since I was a boy, what with all the extra infrastructure in place to take the growing population....crucial elements for a growing village...the stuff that helps people have a better quality of life!!!
But some elements that were there when I was a boy are still to be found....those little landmarks that I'll always remember in my minds eye.....the little things that make 'Crosser' a special place in my memories. And walking with my father-in-law through the little village of Crosshaven with my children reminded me of what a beautiful place it truly is.....only 15 minutes from Cork city!! Admittedly, there has been a lot of new houses built since the early 80s but the village still holds onto the charming quaintness that it always had....not an easy thing to do sometimes!! There must be an inherent love of the place amongst the locals and you can see that in the way people maintain their gardens and houses as you stroll out the little walk towards the boatyards and on through the little cul de sac that houses some of the most beautiful structures that I have seen in a long time....Can you imagine looking out from a view like that every day!!
All I can say is that my Father-in-law was very much impressed by the whole place, especially the newly built walkway from Carrigaline to Crosshaven with its wonderful array of flowers and fauna in some sections.... a truly great asset to the city of Cork. Lets hope that respect will continue throughout this century and on into the next!!!!!
It must be amazing for some people arriving in to the port of Cork to come across such an oasis....as they slowly drift into Crosshaven to find to their delight the untold beauty of the place .....drifting up the river to their mooring ....settling down in the calm waters....at peace after a long journey!!!