Compared to the areas much further north of here, we pretty much escaped the extreme ravages of storm Éowyn. There was minor structural damage.

Looking at the trail of destruction it left in its wake much further north of us, it resembles the aftermath of both storm Darwin in February 2014 and Ophelia in October 2017.

During Darwin, a number of roofs on smaller sheds were blown off and a whole bay of the calving shed roof was carried out the field by the wind. I was in the shed when it happened and can still hear the rumble and crack as it began to lift.

One length of 6x3 timber from the roof had gone so deep into the earth that it needed the loader on the tractor to pull it out of the ground.

A sizeable hole on the roof in front of the house appeared where slates had been blown away, but all were eventually repaired.

Ophelia

The winds from Ophelia knocked trees and power lines across the region and we had no power for the best part of a week. They’re just memories now and were a taste of what people in the northwest and midlands have experienced over the last fortnight.

The evening before it struck, a friend mentioned that it might be a good thing that this storm mainly came during the hours of darkness.

There was less chance of someone trying to be a hero in order to save something that can’t be saved.

Sheds were rebuilt or re-roofed as required and the impact of future strong wind events are factored into building work since then.

There are a few buildings where a sliding door isn’t an option and a roller door would ordinarily make more sense, but the young stock yard is too exposed to go with that option.

Smaller split doors with a leg that goes into the floor are a better bet. It just means that when things get extra windy more planning is required for feeding there. You wouldn’t think consulting a weather app would be essential when feeding cattle indoors, but given the location, it’s a necessity. The view of west Cork from there is spectacular, but when a south-westerly blows, you know all about it.

It’s not confined to winds from that direction, but there’s a local saying that “January grass is rarely eaten” and the storm proved why that is the case.

Grass covers

There were often good covers of grass heading into the winter, but after a few gales and battering with salt-laden winds they get flattened and burnt away.

It took me a while to cop onto that and now those more exposed paddocks tend to be grazed later into the winter. If they’re on the yard side of the road, they tend to be the last ones got to in the grazing rotation.

Thoughts are beginning to swing around to calving now and I’m in the process of setting the yard up for it.

Minerals have been fed to the cows since the turn of the year, scour vaccinations have been completed and any cows not in good condition will be marked for a dose if required.

The young stock will also be weighed soon and a decision will be made on whether some of the lighter bulls will be converted to bullocks on the back of the weights.