The Sperrins
Something for everyone
The Sperrins are the largest and least
explored mountain range in Northern Ireland with dramatic
landscapes, rivers teeming with life, mountains, valleys, forests,
lakes, outdoor pursuits, indoor pursuits... something for
everyone!
The region is extremely
accessible. Belfast International Airport and George Best Belfast
City Airport and Belfast ferry ports, as well as Derry City Airport
are all within one hour of the Sperrins Region.
With some of Ireland's most
spectacular and stunning scenery as your backdrop and right on your
doorstep, this is the perfect location to get an extraordinary
experience, no matter what you’re looking for.
Literary Greats
The Sperrins has been home
to many literary figures, the hills and glens doubtless provided
the inspiration for much of their writing. The background of these
wordsmiths varies from Presbyterian minister to the wife of a
Church of Ireland bishop; labourer to scholar; nationalist to
unionist… but all inspired by the Sperrins muse.
Pat McErlean has recently
published a book called 'The Weaver's Path', which is a collection
of poems, stories and photographs of local interest. It aims
to create an understanding of the time, place, and situations in a
rural setting.
Born in Mountfield the
interests and achievements of Alice Milligan’s life were rooted in
factors already bubbling in the Irish cauldron at the time of her
birth in the 1860’s. Known primarily for her poetry, Alice wrote
stories, plays, letters, articles, and a biography.
Benedict Kiely was born in
1919 in Dromore, County Tyrone and raised in nearby Omagh. He is
the author of many novels including 'Land Without Stars', 'Call For
A Miracle', 'Nothing Happens in Carmincross', and 'God’s Own
Country';
and two
volumes of memoirs, 'Drink to the Bird' and 'The Waves Behind Us'.
His Collected Stories were published by Methuen in 2001.
Brian Friel was born in
Omagh, Co Tyrone in 1929, and in 1939 moved with his family to
Derry. He has published two collections of short stories, 'A Saucer
of Larks' and 'The Gold in the Sea.' His plays include; 'Dancing at
Lughnasa', 'Philadelphia Here I Come', 'The Loves of Cass Maguire',
'Lovers', 'Crystal and Fox', 'The Mundy Scheme'. He has also
adapted a number of plays, most notably by Chekov.
Born in the Bowling Green,
Strabane in 1911, the novelist Brian O’Nolan, wrote fiction as
Flann O’Brien and contributed a controversial weekly column,
‘Cruiskeen Lawn’, to the Irish Times, under the pseudonym Myles Na
Gopaleen, leading to Benedict Kiely describing him as ‘the three
headed man’.
Sample culture
Various centres throughout
the Sperrins region promote the Irish traditional culture through a
variety of entertainment sessions. An Creagan Visitor Centre gives
you the opportunity to step back in time. Dun Uladh 'Fort of
Ulster' is the provincial headquarters of Comhaltas Ceoltori
Eireann. Sion Mills, Conservation Area and Historic Model
Linen Village and Mill is the furthest west of the great mills of
the industrial revolution and was founded in 1835 by the Herdman
family.