Just re-published Joyful Pilgrimage – In the wake of St. Columba by John Barry; Sailing writer Tom Cunliffe shares his own curragh story; and progress on the Stroma yole in Glasgow.
My uncle went to sea in a boat with a calico skin… opens the story of The Voyage of The Aegre. He really did. He was a key organiser and a participant in the 1963 re-enactment of St Columba’s 563 AD curragh voyage from the north of Ireland to Iona, off the west coast of Scotland. He wrote a book about it in 1964.
Now long out of print. This new edition is a facsimile copy of the original book, featuring a new Preface by the author’s son, Jonathan Barry, who was also a participant in the adventure.
Canon John Barry, the instigator of it all, tells the story with the dry humour of an Ulsterman, savouring the outlandish original idea and how a growing band of supporters shaped it into a grand adventure of faith and fraternity.
Feeling both a debt to my uncle for his example of how to live and a desire to share his story and something of the inspiration of St. Columba, I got together with my Aegre book publishing colleagues, Gene Carl Feldman in Washington and David Burnett in Ludlow, to explore publishing a facsimile edition of the 1964 book. John Barry’s eldest son, Jonathan (16 at the time of the voyage), gave his support, and we got to work. It’s now available on Amazon and will be in selected bookshops in November. See Advance Information about the book here.
Long before such re-enactment voyages became popular, the book will interest modern-day pilgrims who wish to learn more about St. Columba and his historic decision to leave Ireland for Scotland, as well as the path he and his followers took. But more than that, for those interested in ancient craft and the sea, the skipper, Wallace Clark, reflects on the decision to build a curragh. He tells us of the design, building, and her sailing performance and reflects on how the vessel might have been improved with hindsight.
Talking about the new book, sailing writer Tom Cunliffe recently told me about his own curragh experience, “I once had a lift in a curragh with the last pilot to use one in the Maharees outside Fenit. If you’ve never been there, it’s a wild place off the west coast of Ireland with the whole of the Atlantic biting at its shores… ” Tom will tell the full story in the January/February (2026) issue of Classic Boat magazine.
Meanwhile in Glasgow… Peter Matheson and his volunteer team are steadily progressing with the building of the Stroma Yole, American Lady. An engine has been installed, and he has the timber for the mast and spars. See the latest pictures here. A much more substantial craft than that of St Columba.
Thank you for your interest.
Nick Grainger
Visit the web page on this website about the curragh voyage here.
Visit The Voyage of The Aegre home page
