♪ ♪ NARRATOR: We are a nation of islands.

PAT: Come on, you two.

NARRATOR: Over 4,000 are scattered along our coastlines, with hundreds more in our lakes, loughs, and rivers.

VIDURA: Being surrounded by water, it has a very calming effect on the mind.

NARRATOR: Many of these islands are tiny.

Many are remote.

AMIE: I love so much about island life.

NARRATOR: But over 200 are called home.

♪ ♪ ROC: I don't own it, because you don't own an island.

If anything, it owns me NARRATOR: With rugged cliffs and sandy shores, wildlife and family, and lives very different to most of our own-- IAIN: Going over the edge here is a bit cheeky.

Shall we?

NARRATOR: --these are the stories of our tiny islands.

AMIE: The fact that you just walk out your door and you're straight in to sea, that sense of freedom is amazing.

♪ ♪ [cheerful music] NARRATOR: This time a journey rich with growth in County Donegal.

A view from the top on Owey Island.

We're all at sea in North Uist.

And a slice of life in the inner Hebrides.

Off the West Coast of Scotland is the island of Iona.

Although just three miles in length and 2.4 miles wide, Iona is home to 170 people.

Ailidh moved to the island 16 years ago from Glasgow.

She came to Iona after having her son, seeking an antidote to city life and to give her young son the chance to grow up in one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

♪ ♪ AILIDH: It's a small island off of an island, which is an added particular vibe, really.

Everyone knows how to get along.

We're a very small little rock in the middle of the sea, so everyone has that in common.

NARRATOR: And the island move inspired more than just a change in scenery.

AILIDH: I'd always really liked cooking but at the time was a musician, I just kind of had enough, you know, of that whole business.

I was really getting into the island life of having a garden, growing vegetables, being all kind of like Earth Mother vibes.

NARRATOR: A friend of Ailidh's moved to the island to run one of the hotel kitchens shortly after.

AILIDH: I basically talked her into giving me a job.

[laughs] I'd never been in a commercial kitchen before.

I was a decent home cook, but God bless her, she created a part time job for me.

NARRATOR: Today on her commute, Ailidh has to make a quick detour to pick up fresh produce from Floortje, the gardener at the St.

Columba Hotel.

AILIDH: Hey.

FLOORTJA: Hi.

AILIDH: Oh, this is exciting.

Nice.

FLOORTJA: What do you think?

AILIDH: Oh, amazing.

Is this the first potatoes of the season?

FLOORTJA: Pretty much.

Got about 100 kilos of these.

She often has a surplus.

So she sends out a text with a list of what she's got available that week, and you just order what you want.

Are they purple all the way through?

FLOORTJA: I think they're supposed to keep their color.

So either purple all the way through or like a little bit sort of colored veins through them.

Oh.

It would look nice.

This is going to be lovely NARRATOR: Rather than being at the end of a long supply chain, the community's waste not, want not attitude allows Ailidh's food to be both seasonal and sustainable.

The joy for me in it is using things that are around about me.

FLOORTJA: Your courgettes.

I'll have millions of these for the next couple of weeks, so don't hold back.

And then your edible flowers.

AILIDH: Lovely.

FLOORTJA: So, calendula, cornflower.

I think that's it.

AILIDH: I basically get overexcited and just order loads of stuff.

And then, I suppose, when I go and pick them up, it's at that point I think about what I'm going to do with them.

[laughs] All right.

Cheers.

- I'll see you later.

See ya.

NARRATOR: This passion for local produce led Ailidh to set up the island's first and only takeaway three years ago, although it's probably more Michelin star than deep fried Mars bar.

You don't see many takeaways with little tweezers-- like, tweezing on an edible flower onto a takeaway thing.

It's a tiny little place.

It's like three meters by four meters.

It's got two little ovens Oh, no, no.

AILIDH: I'm using produce from the island, making quite simple things but using skills I've learned in restaurant kitchens.

NARRATOR: Ailidh is open six days a week for lunch and dinner.

And as it's peak tourist season, she expects to be busy.

I don't have a set menu, which really infuriates people.

I'll put cheese on it, then people will buy it.

[laughs] I just think about what I've got and put it together in a sensible fashion.

I mean, it's easy when you've got amazing ingredients.

We could have lobster, we could have crab.

We could have mackerel.

We could have various lovely vegetables from Floortje.

We could have wild things that are in season.

We could have lamb from Val, the crofter.

It just depends what's available.

So that's quite a hydrated dough.

NARRATOR: Her menu always has dough at the heart of it.

And for lunch today, Ailidh is making the most of what the waters around the island have to offer with some crab caught by local fishermen Oh, great.

Hiya.

All right.

AILIDH: Crabs.

Basically, they came out of the water this morning.

It's not that comment up here because a lot of the fishing boats, their catch gets put straight onto lorries to Glasgow Airport to go to Spain.

So loads and loads of the shellfish from the Hebrides goes abroad.

[music playing] After I do some courgettes, I'll just make the crab butter, get the ovens on, and hopefully things will be OK.

[laughs] There'll be food for people.

NARRATOR: With 130,000 people visiting Iona each year, feeding the lunchtime rush is no easy feat for Ailidh, 46.

Thank you very much.

NARRATOR: And it's a tough crowd.

Did you enjoy your pizza?

Um, yeah, I did.

I actually thought I wasn't going to like it, but it was actually pretty good - Yeah.

What about you, Aaron?

Did you like the pizza?

Yeah.

Yeah.

AILIDH: It was great.

It was always a bit hectic.

Super busy.

Sold out of crab really quickly.

Had to actually close a wee bit early because we had sold out.

[music playing] NARRATOR: Many islands cast a spell over the human spirit.

Some are lured by empty beaches, quiet clifftops, or the sense of something ancient in the air.

For others, it's a calling away from the noise of the world.

♪ ♪ Scattered throughout Lough Derg in County Donegal are dozens of islands and islets, including Station Island.

Also known as St.

Patrick's Purgatory, or more simply just Lough Derg, the island is around 160 meters long and 145 meters wide.

It has no permanent population, but over 10,000 pairs of feet pass through the island each year thanks to the 1,500 year old tradition of pilgrimage, Joe, the island's passenger boat captain, has worked there for the past 22 years.

JOE: When I first applied for this job, it was an advert in a local newspaper.

After being interviewed, I thought, I'll take a run out and I'll go and have a look.

And I was surprised to see this big island with two, three, and four-story buildings.

I expected a little island with a cottage.

It was amazing to me.

NARRATOR: Joe has spent his life on the water.

JOE: My father was a fisherman and I was fisherman as well in the beginning.

And I went on to other boats, bigger boats, fished all around Ireland, below England, below Cornwall as well.

NARRATOR: Today, Joe's first task is one of his favorites, returning a boatload of pilgrims who've just completed three days on the island back to shore.

Joe's responsible for three vessels on the island, all named for patron saints of Ireland.

This boat requires two-- minimum of two crew, but you can have three if you want.

The St.

Bridgid you're allowed one.

And the St.

Dabheog, you need two as well.

Ladies and gentlemen, just your attention there for a second.

Interacting with pilgrims would be my favorite part now.

But years ago, it would have been the traipsing back and forth with the boats, driving the boats, taking them to the pier, and leaving the pier, and back and forth, you know?

Just a little reminder.

Please remain seated until the boat is safely tied up.

NARRATOR: And it's a good thing Joe enjoys the back and forth-- JOE: There you go now.

Thank you very much.

NARRATOR: --as he'll make the 10-minute journey to the mainland up to 20 times a day.

JOE: Pilgrims can come at any time during the day.

They don't have to book.

Some don't.

We don't know who's coming and who's not.

You're right.

Couldn't have enough.

Oh, I certainly couldn't.

NARRATOR: Over the years, Joe has come to know the lough well.

JOE: It is a sacred place up in the mountains here, and we're only about 700 from the shore.

But when you come out here, you do seem like you're removed from-- from all of technology, nearly.

So we don't have much traffic, like rowboats or canoes or jet skis.

None of that.

Just a little fishing club and our own boats.

Quiet and peaceful and just-- it's lovely.

Yeah.

Perception, St.

Columba.

We're on our way.

We have eight pilgrims, two crew, two staff.

[static] Just making our way towards the island.

We'll be there in about three or four minutes.

NARRATOR: And it's not just pilgrims.

Joe helps to make the passage.

Hello, hon.

[laughs] The ferry is for staff, as well.

We try and keep it as economical as we can.

So if the boat is going in and out and out and in, staff will board this boat.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: The island may resemble a built up metropolis.

But for Joe, the 500-meter stretch from the shore has kept the island distinct.

JOE: So you are very isolated out here.

Like, there's very little in the way of houses.

Island life is fantastic.

NARRATOR: And Joe's own pilgrimages means he understands the island better than most.

JOE: I've done it three times.

I have good faith now.

And it's something that connects me to the island, definitely ♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Islands can be remote, cut off, at the mercy of the seasons and tides.

The environments created by their exposure to wild winds and stormy seas are resolute and unyielding.

The opportunity to explore these enduring landscapes is a siren's call to any adventurer.

Off the Northwest Coast of Ireland lies Owey.

At one mile long and 0.9 miles wide, Owey is uninhabited, bar a few families in the summer months.

♪ ♪ Exposed to the battering waves of the North Atlantic, Owey has a unique coastline that appeals to adventurers like Iain.

He grew up in Scotland and learned to climb cliffs and kayak in the waters of Orkney.

Iain moved to Donegal more than 20 years ago after meeting his wife, and now runs adventure holidays throughout the county.

Today, he has a well-earned day off.

We're on the pier on the north side of Critch Island.

We're just getting ready.

We're going to paddle out and have a wee climb and a play on the caves on Owey.

NARRATOR: Unfortunately, there are no ferries to Owey.

So Iain and his dog, Lochie, must forge their own path.

Luckily, conditions mean the short stretch of sea is perfect for one of Iain's favorite activities.

IAIN: For me, kayaking is a means to go places which are outrageously beautiful.

It's rarely visited, still has all its natural beauty.

It hasn't yet been tamed.

NARRATOR: Often throughout the year, Atlantic swells in the area popular with big wave surfers from around the world can make the short 800 meter journey impossible IAIN: Given the sea and tide conditions today, less than five minutes, we'll be on the island.

I'm just going to paddle to the beach.

I'm dropping him and the bag off.

NARRATOR: With Lochie and the climbing gear left safely ashore, Iain can head somewhere more exciting.

Along with Tasmania and the West Coast of Scotland, the West Coast of Ireland is one of the three capitals of the world for sea stacks.

These landforms are formed by the continual pounding of the ocean against headlands, and for adrenaline junkies like Iain, they offer the ultimate thrill.

IAIN: I've been through this canyon an awful lot of times.

There's lots of rock climbing on these sea stacks here.

So it's a means of entry to the sea stacks.

NARRATOR: The North Atlantic is funneled into this 30-meter deep ravine, in between the cliffs of Owey and smaller islets and stacks, making for a bumpy ride.

[laughs] It's sometimes what we call stage two or second-degree fun, which means it's only fun once it's finished.

[exciting music] You use all five of your senses when you're there because you caught sight of what you're seeing.

You've got the sound, you've got the birds, you've got the wind, and you've got the sea.

You've got the smell because the rock smells of birds.

The whole place smells very nautical.

And the fifth one, taste.

You can taste through your nose and through your mouth by breathing salt air.

It's a realm of the senses.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ NARRATOR: The name Owey is an anglicized version of the Irish uaigh, which means cave.

And dotted around this tiny island's coastline are around 20.

IAIN: The island's a bit like Swiss cheese in places.

There's a lot of land missing from under your feet when you're walking about on the clifftops.

[music playing] NARRATOR: Back on land and reunited with Lochie, Iain can now explore an empty island.

♪ ♪ Owey was last inhabited full time in the 1970s.

It was home to around 100 residents, until the lure of modern conveniences on the mainland led to a dwindling population, with the last remaining islanders leaving in 1977.

IAIN: For someone that's never visited Owey, visiting the island is, in many regards, stepping back in time.

♪ ♪ The island isn't agricultural.

There's no electricity.

There's no running water.

NARRATOR: Owey lay abandoned for 25 years before slowly, original Islanders began to return and renovate their family homes.

IAIN: The village itself is a summer-only inhabited village.

So there's a lot of people in the school holidays come across their holiday homes and their parents' houses, if you like.

And they stay here.

♪ ♪ Every time I arrive on Owey, I always get a sense of isolation.

In general, like, at the moment, we're on the island on our own.

[laughs] That's one of the main reasons why it's so nice here.

In the 25 or so years that I've been visiting Owey, the island itself physically hasn't changed very much at all.

The land hasn't changed very much.

The ocean hasn't changed very much.

And the cliffs haven't changed.

The island itself, it's still very natural and very beautiful.

And it hasn't been spoiled by the march of time.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Picturesque and unspoilt, quiet and serene, the peace is what attracts many to visit our tiny islands.

There are, however, some that achieve this tranquility while being bustling and busy.

Less than two miles from the border with Northern Ireland, Station Island plays host to pilgrims from all over the world.

Maureen is the prior's PA and commutes each morning from March till September on Joe's boat to her island office.

MAUREEN: This is my 31st season full time.

I worked a few years before that during school holidays.

I love that it has such a rich history.

We are, like, just keepers of the island.

It's been a place of pilgrimage for over 1,500 years.

NARRATOR: Maureen grew up less than five miles from the lough shore.

MAUREEN: I first came onto the island as a Pilgrim when I was about 15 with my older sister.

It was curiosity on my part that brought me here initially.

We could always look across but never see actually what was going on here, so we were really curious to get here.

NARRATOR: Maureen has a busy morning ahead, making sure that the island is ready for the next batch of pilgrims.

We're never exactly sure how many we'll have, but we have a very good guide in that we look at how many pilgrims came this day last year, and it's always there or thereabouts.

NARRATOR: Knowing the island can accommodate up to 800 pilgrims at any given time, she has a big task on her hands.

MAUREEN: Hello, Briege.

How are you today?

BRIEGE: I'm very well.

Just come a long way.

Who's coming or going?

We have a lot of activity going on today.

Oh, did you meet Anne?

I've met Anne, yes.

Yeah, I told her I'm just going to take a wee while.

Oh, right.

OK.

MAUREEN: Staffing wise, there are 10 members, permanent staff, that work all year round.

So I'm gonna hold that for you.

- Lovely.

- Thank you.

Okey-doke.

Thanks, Briege.

Bye bye.

Staffing during our high season, we would have a part time staff coming in anywhere from 45 to 55.

The nature of the three-day pilgrimage in particular, it operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

We have two groups due in today.

There's this tradition that you don't actually have to make a booking.

You can simply arrive any day from the beginning of June to the 15th of August.

We would hope all in all to have maybe about 120, 130 today.

NARRATOR: Next up for Maureen is a final check of the pilgrims' accommodation, and it's a world away from the typical mini break.

MAUREEN: From the pilgrim arrives and goes to their dormitory, they remove their shoes and they're barefoot then for the duration of the three days.

They're also fasting.

So the fast begins at midnight before arrival and continues to midnight on the third day after they've left.

And they have one Lough Derg meal here each day of black tea or coffee and dry toast or wheaten bread and oatcakes.

It is tough.

There's no doubt about it.

But it's also very rewarding.

NARRATOR: It's an experience that impacts more than just the pilgrims.

MAUREEN: Obviously, we're not going to be eating in front of them.

We'll not have our phones visible to them.

We would always be conscious, you know, to have soft soled shoes on.

We're not going to be clip clopping up the island in our high heels or a hard toe boot.

Because there's that air of quietness, prayerfulness, reverence, and stillness.

NARRATOR: And for the one night they're allowed, she's keen the pilgrims have somewhere suitable to lay their weary heads.

So each pilgrim is assigned a cubicle on arrival.

Very basic accommodation.

They will probably never have experienced a bed as welcoming as this one will be by 10:00 on day two.

Having been on vigil for 24 hours, they'll have a glorious sleep from half 10 until 6 AM the following morning when they're up then for mass.

NARRATOR: Maureen is next due in the basilica, where today's new pilgrims are waiting.

I'll be available in Davog Coast, which is just across from the basilica here.

I'll be there this afternoon around about 2 o'clock.

And I'd love you to just pop in at that stage.

I'll get you your passport if you haven't already got one, and we'll stamp them.

Hello, ladies.

I'm good, thanks.

So just get your passport stamped.

NARRATOR: She often knows repeat pilgrims to the island well, like Lisa, I love coming back.

Lough Derg's a very special place.

[peaceful music] It's really a little gem in Donegal that not a lot of people probably know enough about.

Anybody who's looking for peace, anybody who's seeking spend time away from the hustle and bustle of the madness in the world today, definitely come to this island.

NARRATOR: Kathryn, however, is visiting for the first time.

Definitely coming away from the mainland out to the island and having nowhere to go, nowhere to hide.

You're here.

I'm looking forward to just sitting out here and being near the water and enjoying the wind running through the plants and the water and the ripples.

It'll be lovely.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: After a busy day, Maureen's able to slip away to her favorite spot behind the Basilica to take in the view of Saint' Island.

MAUREEN: Saint's Island is where the original monastery was.

It just amazes me that that's the origins of what has grown to become Station Island.

It's just a peaceful view, completely void of any houses or infrastructure, really.

It's just a wee bit of solitude.

It's just so, so, so special.

And it's unique.

Like there isn't-- not that I'm aware of-- anywhere like this.

[exciting music] NARRATOR: While some islands lie marooned, cast far from the reach of the mainland, others defy approach, not by distance, but by treacherous waters or imposing coastlines.

Yet true isolation is rare.

Most islands are born not alone but in spectacular clusters, thanks to some of the Earth's most powerful geographical processes that form them.

♪ ♪ The Outer Hebrides are a chain of over 100 islands and skerries more than 40 miles from the coast of mainland Scotland.

Only 19 of these islands are inhabited, and one of these is North Uist.

Around 17 miles long and 13 miles wide, it is home to just 1,600 people.

ALEXANDER: Hey, guys.

NARRATOR: Alexander moved to the island from South London five years ago.

ALEXANDER: I do love London.

Don't get me wrong, I'll always big up anyone in London right now.

But I always say this, I wanted a bit more greenery on the scenery.

And that's why I'm in this space.

My work-life balance was awful.

So I had to wake up at the crack of dawn.

I was pretty much out of the house for like 12 hours a day.

But it was just like, I knew I could just have a better way of life and just have more time.

NARRATOR: Alexander moved to North Uist with his partner and young child.

Although his relationship ended, he chose to stay and has enjoyed life in the slow lane.

Today, his transportation needs a bit help.

His two boats, Sorrel and Luna, have become a key part of his life on North Uist.

Tides wait for nobody.

So, right now is what?

Two hours.

Almost two hours and a half past high tide.

So ideally, I would have done this at high tide, but it was pretty early.

So that's why now I've gotta rush.

[music playing] Before I moved to North Uist, I'd never-- I've been on ferries, but I've never been on a small boat like this with an outboard and manned it myself.

Getting my sea legs took time with me.

It's like a weird skateboard.

I never did skateboard.

But just have to just go with the waves, ride the waves, and just take your time.

NARRATOR: A gardener in his former London life, Alexander's discovered a passion for a different type of horticulture on the island.

So I started cutting seaweed in 2021 on this lough.

So I started off down there.

I remember it was a group of us.

We cut down a big bay.

We got 24 tons between us.

I fell in love with it because I was like, this suited me.

It's like, I'm outdoors, I'm working hard, like, my muscles are aching.

I was just like, this suits me.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Alexander farms part of the Little Minch known as Locky Port.

Each seaweed farmer's patch is allocated to them in order to prevent overharvesting.

There are over 120 species of seaweed found in the Outer Hebrides, but Alexander is on the lookout for one in particular.

Ascophyllum nodosum is very profitable.

Like, they sell it by the ton, and then they sell it for a good price.

They sell it in 25 kg bags.

NARRATOR: Also known as knotted wrack, the seaweed's found in the cold waters of the North Atlantic.

The plants grow slowly and can live to be decades old.

You can get about a good maybe 6, 7-- 6, 7 foot.

Quite heavy and weighty.

And you cut that off.

Starts off yellow.

Turns into brown and almost black almost.

The most I've ever gathered in a day is 9 tons.

It was a good spot.

I was out there for a while.

NARRATOR: Knotted wrack has fortified crops, livestock, and the lives of people in North Uist for centuries.

The method of harvest has changed little.

ALEXANDER: Quite a few ways of harvesting seaweed.

But the one way I use is-- well, it's using a sickle.

I'm leaving a good maybe, what, six inches, and it will grow back.

Hold it.

And then you put a bit of pressure on and you cut.

And I've got some seaweed and just drop it right back in the bucket right there.

NARRATOR: The seaweed is processed and sold as an additive, which is used in fertilizers, animal feeds, and even pharmaceuticals.

Alexander also uses it on his 9 and 1/2 acre croft.

So today I'm not harvesting for pennies.

I'm just going to harvest this bucket here.

Like, I'm not going to break my back today.

But what I'm going to do is I've got a bunch of buddleia cuttings, which need a good growth, because they're starting to take.

But seaweed promotes good root systems and strong immune systems.

So that's why I'm going to use some of this seaweed and sprinkle it around my new cuttings and stuff.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: On days like this, Alexander truly feels the difference between his old and new life.

ALEXANDER: In London, there's always constant noise, whether a train or a plane or a siren or something.

Whereas here, like, there'll be days you walk up a hill and you'd be by yourself and then you stop and it's quiet.

When you hear like, what's that, and it's you.

You could hear your heart beating.

You can hear yourself breathing.

Big culture shock.

Like, it was just a big, massive change.

That's enough for me today.

NARRATOR: Although the change from London to North Uist couldn't be more dramatic, Alexander has found his feet on this tiny island.

ALEXANDER: It's odd to be by yourself.

It's like you can't really bounce off anyone.

Like, you find yourself talking to cormorants and seals and, like, jellyfish and stuff like that.

I'm happy being by myself.

It was tough at first, but I'm very happy in my own space.

So it took about four years for me to be in Uist for it to feel like home to me.

♪ ♪ I feel like that's when I felt like this is my space.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Many of our islands have shared monastic roots.

Although for some Christianity still looms large, others are forging new identities.

Less than a mile off the coast of the large Isle of Mull is the Hebridean island of Iona.

Ailidh is hard at work prepping for her dinner service and has a helping hand from fellow islander Freya.

♪ ♪ AILIDH: Tonight I'm going to char these spring onions.

These are from Floortje.

They're going to go on a pizza with some mushrooms and ricotta.

I've got these amazing potatoes.

They're kind of purple and pink potatoes.

I'm going to do a kind of a pizza with olive oil, garlic, rosemary.

NARRATOR: Menu set, it's time to prep, and showcasing Floortje's Iona-grown purple potatoes is the priority.

I will blanch some a wee bit.

Hope that they keep their color.

Sign of the cross.

If they do lose their color, I'm going to take them back to Floortje and say I want my money back, because she said they didn't change.

NARRATOR: In peak summer season, the ferry can bring up to 250 passengers every 30 minutes to the island, many of whom land at Ailidh's Hatch.

It's just a lot.

It's a lot of plates to spin at once.

And also, because it's such a busy island, we have a lot of visitors just coming up for a nosy and a chat, which is lovely when you have time for a chat.

But when you're hectically trying to like get things set up for service and someone's just asking you, so what do you do in the winter?

It can be a bit much.

NARRATOR: And although demand is high, Ailidh knows she can depend on the camaraderie of island life.

AILIDH: Me and the other food businesses all work together.

We try and complement each other in that kind of island way.

And we help each other out.

If you run out of something, you can phone up the cafe and ask to borrow this or that.

So it's just having a food business in the context of a really supportive small island community, I think it just really works like that.

NARRATOR: And luckily, Ailidh can depend on a familiar face for an opinion on her test pizza.

Hi.

FLOORTJE: How are your potatoes?

Um, I did say they were colored all through, but they're not, are they?

[laughs] AILIDH: Oh, they're-- some of them are.

It was a wee bit nail biting though like to see if it will just keep their color when I blanch them.

And I was actually thinking, if these lose their color, we're going to take them back to Floortje and ask for my money back.

What's it like?

Very, very good.

Love it.

NARRATOR: And it's reviews like that which help Ailidh stand the heat of the kitchen.

AILIDH: That's really what I love doing.

You know, I love cooking for people.

Everybody's just so lovely, you know?

I think they really appreciate that it takes extra effort to do something decent on an island, off an island.

AILIDH: Can you taste the purple?

I don't know.

Yes.

AILIDH: Wrong answer.

I'm going to say yes.

[music playing] And after a hard day's slog, Iona has a reward to offer Ailidh in its turquoise waters.

AILIDH: Well, my favorite sport when I'm going in for a quick dip when I'm working is at the post office beach.

St.

Ronan's Bay it's called.

♪ ♪ Two minutes down from work.

It's just perfect.

The water is beautiful.

I mean, it's renowned for its crystal clear, beautiful waters.

♪ ♪ It just like, resets you.

Even just a quick couple of minutes swim in the sea and then you feel like a new woman.

It's cold, but you acclimatize to that pretty quickly.

Your body's like, tingly.

So you get the massive endorphin hit.

It's a healthy way to thrill seek.

[laughs] [music playing] NARRATOR: In Celtic Christianity, there are places where the separation between the physical and spiritual worlds is less distinct, rare locales where the distances between heaven and Earth collapses, and connection to the divine is easier.

These thin places aren't just historical or religious but the scene of profound, out of the ordinary experiences.

Just 500 meters from the County Donegal shoreline lies one of them.

Father La has been the prior on Station Island for the past eight years and is tasked with the continuation of its ancient traditions.

FATHER LA: The story is that God, in answer to St.

Patrick's prayer, showed him this place that Patrick could use in his missionary work.

♪ ♪ At that time, of course, Ireland was on the edge of the known world.

And when you get to Lough Derg, this cave or place of purgatory begins to be imagined perhaps as an entrance to the other world.

NARRATOR: Worship on the island has evolved from St.

Patrick's time, and for Father La and the pilgrims, that means daily mass at 6:30 AM.

Almighty God, have mercy.

Forgive you your sins.

I'm an early riser anyway.

So that's not a penance for me.

It will take two boat crossings to get rid of you all this morning.

You wouldn't want any of you to be left behind now, would we?

Oh, yes.

NARRATOR: With close to 200 pilgrims leaving today and the weather not cooperating, keeping spirits up is high on Father La's agenda.

Did you get it in the eye?

[laughter] NARRATOR: With the returning pilgrims safely on their way, Father La can turn his attention to the pilgrims still on the island.

I love the people who come, and I suppose that's one of the things that's very precious to me here, is the connection.

NARRATOR: This interaction is a key part of Father La's daily role, and he wants to make sure the pilgrims are well supported.

The penitential beds are the heart of the island.

It's that part of the island rises a little bit towards where the bell tower now stands on the site of the original purgatory cave.

You meet the beds in your bare feet.

NARRATOR: Father Le knows the hard rocks and uneven ground make the penitential beds a physical challenge, especially while fasting and without sleep.

FATHER LA: I was 17 when I first made the pilgrimage myself.

I would have come back over my years as a seminarian.

I've made the pilgrimage more years than not over all my life.

In some sense, being on the island here is also something that helps the pilgrim through the challenge.

And the challenge, of course, it's not always the physical thing.

It may be where it leads you emotionally and spiritually.

Are you then going to continue, or are you then going to opt out?

NARRATOR: Along with the penitential beds, the pilgrims pray at St.

Patrick's Cross and while walking around the lake edge and basilica.

The original island here was about the size of the playing surface of a football pitch, and the present island is at least three times that size.

NARRATOR: When the basilica was commissioned in the 1920s, two thirds of the current island were reclaimed from the lough and the basilica built on stilts.

You think this was a tiny island.

You should have seen it when we started.

[music playing] NARRATOR: St.

Patrick's Basilica has been at the center of island life since its inception and is a special place for Father La.

FATHER LA: Construction began in 1926, and the Basilica was first opened for prayer in 1929.

There are a number of times during the day when the pilgrims are maybe at their own prayers or devotions, and I have time to get my own time of quiet and can draw my breath there and just have some quiet time to myself.

NARRATOR: No detail has been spared here, from chandeliers depicting the stories of St.

Patrick to Italian book fold marble paneling.

The stained glass windows by renowned Irish artist and Illustrator Harry Clarke have a special hold over Father La on his daily rounds.

FATHER LA: The figures themselves are very contemplative, very still, marvelously robed.

Sometimes I wonder if he had a fetish about shoes, because the shoes are marvelous in themselves.

But in the roundels then of the Way of the Cross, the detail is fantastic.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: For Father La, however, the sign of a job well done is how his pilgrims leave the island.

It's a little piece of heaven, you know.

It's so beautiful.

I've been on many pilgrimages across the world with youth groups, and I don't think anywhere compares with Lough Derg.

You're just away from the mainland, away from, I suppose, reality.

And now we're all waiting to get back on the boat again to go back, I suppose, to the real world or to life again.

NARRATOR: Sharing the island and all that entails defines Father La's life and his faith.

I can't imagine myself ever tiring of Lough Derg.

For how much longer I'll have the energy to be part of it is another matter.

I made the pilgrimage myself just about 10 days ago.

I certainly wasn't getting up and getting down with the alacrity that I used to have.

But I went in one end and I came out the other, and I certainly was no worse for it, either physically, mentally, or spiritually.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Less than 40 miles away on Owey island, Iain and his dog, Lochie, are taking stock of the climbing options.

Owey's exposed position and changeable weather means it can be difficult to know which routes are safe to ascend, and Iain must complete an on the ground inspection.

IAIN: We're continually just checking the rocks around us.

You can hear the ground crunching under us, which means the turf is quite dry, and all the rock we can see, both north facing, south facing, is all dry.

NARRATOR: When he moved to Donegal, Iain dedicated himself to plotting new climbing routes on the island, literally writing the book on the matter.

IAIN: Owey Island is one of a few locations that I regularly visit.

And how it's affected me as a climber is that every time I come out here, I find something new.

♪ ♪ Keeps me having an open mind that around the next corner, under the next cliff might be something very interesting.

NARRATOR: Today, however, Iain is checking how dry the rock is on a few old favorites.

So at the moment, we're looking across at the Holy Jesus Wall, an 80-meter, 90-meter high, slightly overhanging wall.

It's got a lot of iron content, which gives it that reddish orange tilt.

NARRATOR: Iain's hoping to climb the Black Spink.

IAIN: I can't believe the sun came out.

Look at this.

It's like the world's been Photoshopped.

NARRATOR: A spink, also known as a zawn or a geo, is a deep, narrow sea inlet cut into the cliffs by erosion with near-vertical sides.

The Black Spink is so named for the lichen that grows on its walls.

IAIN: What I'm seeing is an ocean that's a little bit bouncy but not too aggressive.

I'm seeing dry rock.

The sun's been on it for about 2.5 hours, two hours now.

It's just, conditions couldn't be better.

NARRATOR: Meeting Iain is his climbing partner, Neil.

Neil has all the right attributes.

He's not reckless.

He understands fear.

He understands caution.

And what we'd say in climbing circles, he's solid.

And that covers a multitude of bases.

NARRATOR: On Owey, what wants to go up must first go down.

Iain's going to abseil down in first.

I'm going to abseil down in behind him.

And he's going to climb the route and place in some protection in the cracks along the way.

And I'm going to take all the equipment out.

NARRATOR: No trace climbing is an important part of Iain's philosophy and desire to leave Owey untouched.

So I'm rigging three-- three monster anchors.

Really good anchors for the abseil.

So we go over the edge, we're 100% reliant on the rope, stopping us from falling into the sea.

So we placed three anchors.

And for this area here, it's big slings around these huge glacial erratics.

So we're going nowhere.

NARRATOR: With nothing but the crashing waves of the North Atlantic below them, safety is paramount.

Going over the edge here is a bit cheeky.

[laughs] Once you're over the edge, you're fine.

But the first-- You'll see when you're doing it.

Shall we?

♪ ♪ When you're in a climb at your ability.

You're on a tight rope.

You're a fine balance between your flow state and you're moving effortlessly and everything is just working for you.

And then once you get to see the top or the summit of whatever it is, and you know that danger is over for this particular climb, you feel a pop in the back of your head.

And once you feel that pop, there's a flood to the front of your brain.

It's easily one of the best feelings in the world.

I've not found any other way to replicate it.

NARRATOR: It's another successful summit for Iain on Owey, where many of the routes have only been climbed once.

Eh, it just went nice.

Just good dry rock, good moves, good gear.

Just flowed away to the top.

No drama.

Nice one.

Good job.

[laughs] That was good.

[music playing] NARRATOR: For Iain, the island is on a par with some of the great climbing spots in the world.

What I'm grateful for is what Owey Island represents in terms of the natural world and the unspoiled nature of it.

That's what we're grateful for.

[laughs] You've got an equal balance of remoteness stroke solitude, potential danger, and beautiful surroundings.

It's like the trifecta, the three things we need in life to make us smile.

Now, there's lots of places in the world where these things live.

But for me, this is on my doorstep.

I'd rather be here.

[music playing]