TD 1
the knack now and great encouragement from everyb
ody else that’s doing it.’’ Gerry reckons that, “rather than pulling like a dog you let your weight do the work and I’ve plenty of weight on me, so I fall back on the oars and let that do the work.’’ The association of the currach with the Aran Islands had happened long before Flaherty’s cameras captured them, but it was his film which firmly bonded the two together forever. Now the currach, no longer a working boat, has seen its role slip into being a part of the commodification of Ireland’s past that the tourist industry has pushed. For Brendan, currachs on the Liffey once seemed alien. “Originally I was hostile to the concept of currachs on the River Liffey going through the centre of Dublin City, because it didn’t fit in with the pretty pictures from the West of Ireland. From the Paul Henry paintings and the postcards.’’ Since Dave put his first currach in the Liffey 15 years ago he and those who have come, gone and remained have done their bit to marry the visions of the Burren with those of the boardwalk. Port We make for Port and home. As we row back under the Tom Clarke Bridge the gothic silhouette of a Cormorant greets us. Perched on a buoy with wings stretched out like a ’90s Mancunian it seems to be greeting our safe arrival rather than attempting to dry out its non-waterproof feathers, a strange evolutionary glitch for a bird that dives for fish. The Draíocht na life crew tie up their currachs and head for tea. Later on, alone, Dave will bring the currachs back out into the Marina and tie them to their moorings. 22 If it wasn’t for the Draíocht na life collective on the river that Saturday morning, the water would have flowed down from the bog and out to the Irish Sea without a ripple having been made. As we rethink all aspects of our city our perception of what the Liffey is and isn’t should also come into the conversation. It is a resource, just like our parks, that can and should be utilised for the public good. We can’t just leave it to the likes of Dave to show us what can be. Actually, maybe we can. ● “Originally I was hostile to the concept of currachs on the River Liffey going through the centre of Dublin City, because it didn’t fit in with the pretty pictures from the West of Ireland.”