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18th July 2016
09:17am BST

"We’ve lived here for four winters and three and a bit summers, we’ve spent two Christmases here, seen people come, and people go. We still feel as strongly now as ever that this magical island of craic and beauty and warm people is where we were always meant to end up."
Inishbofin, a tiny island – just 5.7km by 4 km – lies seven miles off the Connemara coast. It is a stunning place, an area of conservation with rare species of birds nesting there. There are also breathtaking hikes around the island, as well as scuba diving and sea angling; Bofin is also a mecca for trad musicians and fans. The island is believed to have been inhabited as early as 6000 BC. These days the island's main industries are farming, fishing and tourism and five small townships, West Quarter, Fawnmore, Middle Quarter, Cloonamore and Knock, are the hubs for the island's population of about 160. So what is life like on an island?
"Hughie works seasonally and keeps the kids in winter, as I work all year around. During the summer we have a community playgroup and a wide circle of friends and visiting family that help with the little ones. It’s easy going here; nobody gets too stressed out. I leave for work on my bike at five to nine and am home five minutes after I finish! Most evenings when the weather is fine we go and throw stones on the north beach – which is just outside our front gate. Some days after work, if it’s really nice, we’ll go over to Dumhach for a quick paddle and play before we get the little ones home for tea and the wind down to bedtime."
"Sometimes I think that it might be easier to move back to the mainland where we could earn more regular money, where family would be closer, and Chinese takeaways more plentiful but then you look at the amazing quality of life we have here."
"Our kids are growing up in a safe, close community where everyone looks out for each other. The ocean is their swimming pool and the whole island their playground. We are never more than five minutes away from them at any given time should they need us, we have no commute to work and seriously when the sun is shining, and the weather is calm, there is no more beautiful place on earth."
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Photo credits: Jane McGarrigle and Sarah PannaschExplore more on these topics: