After what many are calling "the worst storm in memory" here in Ireland, I took a stroll down to our beach here in Inverin to show the difference of the landscape on the beaches. The enormous swell we experienced here brought in not only smaller rocks where there previously were none, but also many gigantic boulders from God only knows where. When you see this, it's no longer a mystery why there are huge Connemara granite boulders along the beaches of the Aran Islands, even though the islands are made up of limestone. The massive storms that occur along Ireland's coast from time to time are more than capable of tossing massive boulders wherever they may please.

Notice all the nice grass and sand in the top photo, and how all that has all been washed away and replaced with smooth medium-size stones. Also, the rock walls you see in the top photo were completely demolished. These walls keep cattle and ponies penned in, and now the owners of these fields will be working to rebuild these walls as they'll need the land to keep their animals.

The complete "re-decoration" of Ireland's west coast is courtesy of a month-long series of gales, hurricane-force winds, and a colossal storm surge that brought the sea inland further than it has been in some time.