I’ve been considering writing about my photography for some time, and when the Aurora illuminated the Irish skies on the night of October 10th, 2024, it felt like the perfect moment to begin. In this first post, I’ll share the details of that dreamy night and how I captured the beauty of the Northern Lights.
Growing up in a mountain region in Italy, I always had a nice clear view of the stars. As part of a family tradition, every San Lorenzo’s night on August 10th, we’d take a late-night trip up into the mountains to see the darkest sky lit up by uncountable falling stars. I still look back on those nights as some of my best family memories. Now, living under the cloudy Irish sky, it’s harder to preserve that little tradition.
However the Irish sky had something very special and unexpected to offer.
On the night of the 10th of October 2024, I got the chance to see and experience the magnificence of the Aurora Borealis. Standing next to the ancient stones of Poulnabrone Dolmen in the Burren (county Clare), I became spectator of the most beautiful light show that nature creates for us. Immersed in the solemn silence of the ancient stones of this Irish mythic site, the northern lights loudly cut through the stillness of the sky.
I didn’t happen to be on location by chance. It all started the previous day when I heard from other photography enthusiasts about the possibility of the aurora being visible in Ireland. So I made sure batteries were fully charged and hoped for a clear sky while packing my backpack.
Where should I go to capture the aurora? Poulnabrone Dolmen immediately came to mind. I kept searching for other locations but the Dolmen kept lingering in my thoughts. So i simply stopped my research and set my destination to the Burren.
The Burren is a surreal beauty. The ground is composed by sharp flat stones scattered with deep cracks that vary in width and depth. Made slippery by the dew at night, it makes it an hazardous terrain to move around, especially in the dark with minimum lights to not interfere with night photography.
I drove to the location as soon as I could. As I was driving north, I could see the aurora from the car and when I finally arrived, it was already getting softer. I walked carefully to the Dolmen, I setup in the darkness, I walked around for a bit to study the place to be able to move faster if required and then I waited.
Suddenly, the sky lit up, and I found myself immersed in a solemn surreal environment
Many people have described them as “dancing lights” and that’s exactly what they were. Apparently still but always elegantly moving and changing shape through the sky.
As I paused from photography to live and fully absorb the moment, I found myself wondering: what could the people who built Poulnabrone Dolmen, a portal tomb, have thought of similar events in their time? Could our ancestors have seen it as the portal itself opening, offering a glimpse into the other world?
But never elsewhere in one sight
William Wordsworth,
Had I beheld so glorious a sight.
Eventually the enchantment faded away, and the night glided gracefully into its silent darkness.
