i discovered skellig michael in the fall of 97 while taking a Xan celtic spirituality class at the GTU in berkeley CA...the island of liminality haunted me; i wrote my paper for this class on skellig; it is my "place of resurrection."..in aug 99 i visited skellig--it is so much more than any book can describe or even my fertile imagination! the isolation, the stark beauty, the darkness of a beehive cell, the tiny steps carved into and from the rock itself....connected. One...certainly a holy, sacred place....the rock face that once held "the spit" was not open to pilgrims, i am sad to say....it was a warm (for anywhere, but especially for ireland) day, so i could only imagine what skellig must feel like in cold, pouring irish rain in winter....it was very hard to leave such a magnificent place....i can only imagine what skellig is like under a full moon or a new moon with the sky filled with stars...i wonder how disorienting those steps are in fog and clouds.....i would love to be get permission to stay overnight on skellig...

be prepared if you go--to layer for warmth (it was so warm that, within ten minutes of being on the island, the german tourists and i had stripped down to next to nothing). also wear comfortable hiking boots...AND don't drink lots of water before or during the skellig experience; there is no toilet, loo, or bathroom! reclaim the hydration at the first pub when you return to land