The island identified

So - in my last post I figured I had found the miscreant island so today I confirmed it by cycling clockwise around the Kings river end of the lake (on roads - not the lake shore!). My first picture is the same as in my last post, as taken from the air by the Gardai.

The island is in the centre of my next picture taken from the highest point on the road past Valleymount, and the next is the same zoomed in so that some detail is visible.

Panorama from Blackditches

The homestead island identified

Looking back to our bridge: normally this would be all water

Taken from a bit further along this road

The next picture was taken from Johns town on what we call goat man's lane on the way home, so shows the island from a different perspective. The farm machinery that the Gardai managed to zoom into so well is just visible at the left end of the island in this picture. You can of course click on the pictures to enlarge them but I have saved you the bother in the next picture.

From Johns town

Digital zoom into the above shot

Finally here is the 25" 1888-1913 map of the area superimposed on current mapping from the OSI mapping portal, clearly showing the homestead just under the 'O' of "Monamuck". The area shaded blue is the modern normal lake level.
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courtesy of OSI

In quest of an island

The lake is still very low due to the summer drought, and many new islands have appeared. The lake was made when the Liffy and Kings river valleys were flooded back in 1940, submerging many homesteads one of which has reappeared. RTE news shared these pictures taken from the air by the Garda, but they did not give away their location...

...so of course I wanted to find this island for myself, for does not this lake belong to me?

Helped by a free lift to Blessington, I ran (barefoot) back the long way through Lacken where I took the road down to the school and Boden's well (although I could not find the well) and then followed the lake shore all the way to our bridge (near Valleymount). I didn't have my GPS with me because I was carrying my "proper" camera with zoom in case I should spy the island in question, but I did not.

I met several walkers along the lake shore. One near Lacken, a local, expressed surprise that I intended to go so far - I did not tell I had already run from Blessington!

1. Burgage Castle, Blessington

2. Baltyboys bridge

3. From a newly appeared spit opposite the bridge

4. The aforementioned spit

5. Avon Ri resort

6. Towards river Liffy end of lake from Blessington bridge

7. On the way to Lacken - towards Burgage and the spit

8. The spit zoomed in

My photo No.3 was taken from the left end of the island above - the crossing was only 18" deep and I felt somewhat obliged to explore the island...

Blessington Yacht club from Lacken 

Boden's well thereabouts

towards Blessington near Boden's well

Me

I had to share the lake shore

two granite posts - not far from Lacken

Blessington in the distance

towards Ballyknockan

Jonathan's bay (and me)

Submerged wall by old road from Valleymount to Ballyknocken

I posted recently about the many new islands at the Kings river end of the lake and, given that I could not find the homestead island in the main part of the lake, I checked the images I had posted and I reckon I had already found the island!  Here is a zoomed in version of the picture I posted then:

I reckon my vantage point is at bottom left of the Garda's picture. The tree stumps on the right of my picture are those at top right of the Garda picture. Sadly I cannot locate the farm machinery. Next time I run around the Kings river end of the lake I'll take a camera with zoom with me.