Irish Holy Wells, part 2

(Irish holy wells, part 1.) After a few nights in some random little towns in Roscommon and Leitrim, I met up with my old friend Paddy in Sligo, and he took me to a holy well and grotto just outside town called Tobernault (tobar meaning "well" in Irish). As you can tell by the complexity and upkeep, this is quite a popular spot for prayer and reflection.    (More on my time with Paddy in another post.)After a couple nights each in Sligo, Mayo, and Galway, I arrived in Tipperary for a visit with Seanan's family. Bán (Seanan's mom) took me on an afternoon tour of three holy wells all within a few miles of their house.The first, St. Patrick's, I'd been to with Seanan before, but the past five years have not been kind to this little spot. The well is clogged with slurry. (You can't see it too well from the photo below, but really—was I going to take a picture of liquid cow poo to prove it to you? Sigh...)  The second well, St. Brigid's, was overgrown and tricky to find, but it smelled much better!:    Bán saved the loveliest well for last—I'll show you those photos next time.