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Is situated on the southern tip of Ireland in Co.Cork. Situated eight miles from the town of Skibbereen, Baltimore has a permanent population of just over two hundred, although it grows every summer with visitors who cannot help but return and who are now very much part of the local life.
As you might well guess, fishing and the sea have always played an important part in the history and economy of Baltimore. Many of the ruined castles standing sentinel on lonely headlands are the ancient homes of the piratical O'Driscoll clan, who once held sway over a thousand square miles of south-west Ireland.
Although the quiet harbour may resemble the Aegean during the summer, in the winter violent storms blast in from the the Atlantic. We are protected from the worst of them by Carbery's farmed Hundred Isles, including Sherkin Island and Cape Clear.
Spring arrives earlier here than almost anywhere else in Ireland, owing to our extreme southerly position and warming influence of the Gulf Stream. Sharp frosts are rare, snow almost unheard of, and as you will see from nearby gardens many shrubs grow well all year round and there is no month when you can't find a somewhere for your enjoyment.
Because of its maritime tradition, Baltimore is well known as one of the best places in the country for watersports, including sailing, windsurfing and deep sea diving.
As you sit on the harbour wall watching the sun slip down over the local Islands, the distant screech of gulls at the horbours mouth may herald the return of some fishing trawlers returning after a hard days work at see.
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