Irish America

Irish America

John Kernaghan

Northern Hikes, Bikes & Paddles

By Pam Martin and John Kernaghan

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Winding their way around Northern Ireland, a Canadian couple found unspoiled landscapes, historic ruins, beaches, and trails.The Ulster Way, conceived in 1946 by civil servant Wilfrid Capper as a 626-mile circuit connecting a string of youth hostels, has something of a mythical allure. “It’s a fantasy,” one guide noted, largely because a third of it is on connecting roads, with … [Read more...] about Northern Hikes, Bikes & Paddles

Sláinte! The Happy Pear

By John Kernaghan and Pam Martin

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Twins, Dave and Steve Flynn have created a community of well-being.The galloping gardener leapt over vegetable rows to offer fresh herbs for tasting. “Guess what that is,” asked Steve Flynn, one half of The Happy Pear, the Irish twins who have developed a huge following with their plant-based recipes and other health programming. “Mustard,” Flynn told the stumped visitor to one … [Read more...] about Sláinte! The Happy Pear

Salt Spring Island:
The Land of Fairies

By John Kernaghan, Contributor

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British Columbia’s oldest working farm, founded by Irishman Henry Ruckle in 1872, has turned into something of a fairy land. Between a visionary immigrant farmer and an unknown planter of “fairy doors,” Salt Spring Island has liberal lashings of Irish magic, and that’s not counting a coastline that would put you in mind of Ireland’s rugged west. Henry Ruckle, who left Ireland … [Read more...] about Salt Spring Island:
The Land of Fairies

150 Years: The Fenians and Canada

By John Kernaghan, Contributor
February / March 2017

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One hundred and fifty years ago, members of the Fenian Brotherhood sought to force Britain’s hand by creating disturbances along the Canadian border. The raids failed, but they led to an unexpected outcome in 1867. OTTAWA, Ontario – It was civil warfare, with some almost comic sidelights, and it might have been lost in the mists of time but for a discovery in the attic of … [Read more...] about 150 Years: The Fenians and Canada

The Celtic Heart
of North America

By John Kernaghan
December / January 2016

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For nine days in October, Cape Breton Island is home to a unique celebration of music and culture, with the finest of storytellers, musicians, and dancers from around the globe taking part in the festivities. John Kernaghan was there, awash in nostalgia.The estrangement ran for more than 45 years, but when a vagrant Irish heart landed on the shores of Cape Breton, love was … [Read more...] about The Celtic Heart
of North America