Mweenish Island (Muighnis as gaeilge) is an island within County Galway and is north of Duck Island, west of Finish Island and southeast of Ard.
Mweenish is well known for the building of traditional sailing boats, the most famous of which are the Galway Hookers. The "St. Patrick" pictured on the 1982 stamp was built by two brothers, Pat and Joe Casey. They laid the keel in 1909 and took two years in the building as they were building for themselves and in no hurry. In 1912 she carried Patrick Pearse, Thomas McDonagh and Joseph Mary Plunkett out to the Aran Islands where they attempting to organise the Irish Volunteers, with mediocre success it is said. In 1986 she sailed to the US and took part (along with over 200 ships and boats) in the 4th of July Parade of Sail in New York Harbour to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty. From there she went sailed to Greenland and on to other Arctic destinations including beyond the 80º latitude parallel off Spitzbergen in 1990.
Many an intrepid cacher seeking treasure on Mason Island has taken the boat across from Connemara, and there is a cache to be found at 'Ard West' and 'Ard East'. However, the boatman sent us to a third pier on Mweenish Island and we felt it deserved a cache too to help direct the next explorer! ;)
