St Columkille's stone is near these stepping stones, but the latter are not given billing on the archaeology.ie map, and yes perhaps they're natural. But they're part of the story and they're stoney and folklorish so I'm squeezing them in here. They're at the end of Bridge Isle point. Columba and Columkille, it's all the same by the way.Across Gartan Lough there is a row of stones still to be seen. These are called Saint Columba's steps. One morning as Saint Columba was putting on his boots, his enemies came and he had to run away having only one boot on. It is said that he crossed here to the other side out of his enemies' reach.
He said that, after that a curse would rest on the man that laced one boot before he put on the other. Most people of this district try to avoid the curse by putting on both boots before lacing one.
I often heard my parents talk about this when I was quite young and I still remember it. From the Schools Collection of the 1930s, now being digitised at duchas.ie.
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Posted by Rhiannon
5th April 2016ce
Edited 20th April 2016ce
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