The Bottomless Lakes of Offaly County, Ireland

Crouched down under a crown of thorny bushes and trying to control our breathing, the eyes continued to peer back at us. We were out of breath from darting through the field and hopping the barbed wire fence, desperately trying to escape the monsters.

The monsters, however, were not the ones that we expected. It was a beautiful spring day in Offaly County, Ireland and for the first time in nearly two weeks I didn’t require a jacket. Taking advantage of the sunshine, Matt and I set off down the heavily weeded path in search of the famed (at least in our current Workaway house) bottomless lakes.

The History of the Bottomless Lakes

Between 1845 and 1849, Ireland suffered through the Potato Famine which brought with it mass starvation, disease, and ultimately death. During this time, Ireland suffered the loss of millions of its population through both death and forced mass emigration.

With the incredible number of bodies piling up, something needed to be done with the remains. One solution was to dispose of them in a group of lakes in Offaly County. The lakes are said to be bottomless, leaving much room for the diseased bodies to safely disappear. In the years since, the lakes have been considered to be haunted by the souls that were long ago dumped in their murky depths.

**Years after the Potato Famine ended, a British man came to visit Ireland with the intent to study the lakes. During his visit he was staying in the exact same house that Matt and I have ended up in for our latest Workaway placement. It is rumored that the day he went to the lakes he dove in and saw something that startled him beyond comprehension. He returned to the house as white as a ghost. When his wife questioned him about what was wrong, he turned and shot her dead. He followed this murderous act by taking his own life. Nobody knows for sure what this man saw that day in the bottomless lakes with so much history, but we can only assume it was enough to make him go mad.

**This information was given around the table by our host family with the disclosure that it may be loosely based on the facts. That being said, they may or may not have discovered the blood stained walls where the murder took place.

Our Own Trek To The Lakes of Offaly County

It was over a leisurely lunch that we heard the tale of the madman and his quest to explore the lakes. Naturally we felt the immediate need to go inspect the location ourselves. So off we went with nothing more than our own curiosity and a loose set of directions. About twenty minutes into our walk we came to a gated pasture which we needed to cross in order to stay on the path that was described to us.

The problem was that beyond the gate was a herd of cows. The expanse of the field was wide and hilly and the cows were taking up residence in what felt like a few miles away. They were at least a distance that seemed safe enough for us to complete the crossing. Matt hopped the fence into the pasture first. When I followed suit I must have landed a bit too harshly. All that morning bread I’ve been consuming was finally starting to work against me. As my feet hit the ground, he lifted his head and locked his eyes on us. The bull of the group was now aware that we were in his territory.

With the distance between us we thought it would be okay to continue onward, so we did. The bull kept his eyes on us until we crested the peak of the first hill. When he disappeared from our sight we just kept on walking until we saw it – the first of the bottomless lakes! It was hard to imagine this scenic view in Offaly county was once the dumping grounds for the remains of so many unfortunate people.

While I was busy snapping a few photos and Matt was secretly praying we did not experience a Bird Box moment, the bull crept up behind us. And he didn’t come alone. The entire herd was on our heels and moving at lightning speed. Maybe it was just a case of curiosity but they certainly didn’t seem happy to see us.

In a bout of panic, Matt and I took off running. Dodging one cow pie at a time we finally made it to the barbed wire fence. The fence was backed up to the woods and closed us in. We couldn’t escape, so we waited. Tucked into the thorns, bent over, backs aching, we waited. Eventually the herd lost interest in us so we hopped back over the fence and quickly made our way to the edge of the pasture where we originally entered. Trekking alongside the hill, we envisioned a stampede of cows lining the peak of the hills, guns strapped to their backs ala Planet of the Apes style.

Out of breath and nearly on the verge of a stroke, we made it back to safety. At least from the bull and his gang of killer cows. Our escape route was leading us straight back to the house where the murder/homicide took place.

Would the bottomless lakes of Offaly County have the same effect on us? We still have a few days left in the old haunted house to find out!

Have you ever stayed in a haunted location? Let us know about your experiences in the comments section.

Cheers friends,

Megan & Matt