The Irish Loop’s Living Echo

The name says it all — the Irish Loop is more than a scenic drive. It’s a journey through history.

From Bay Bulls all around to Salmonier, with all the capes and coves in between, this coastline carries the echoes of Ireland’s southeastern counties — Wexford, Waterford, and Cork — brought here centuries ago by fisherfolk and families who crossed the Atlantic in search of a life on these rugged shores.

In St. Shotts, those roots still run deep.

You can hear them in the lilt of a story shared over supper. You can taste them in the recipes passed from one kitchen to the next. And you can feel them in the quiet, sacred stillness of the windswept barrens.

Of Saints and Storms

Even the name St. Shotts hints at a spiritual legacy.

While there is no Saint of Shotts, the name reflects the strong Irish Catholic traditions that shaped communities along this coast. It was likely anglicized from a French name to align more closely with the surrounding Irish Catholic settlements — St. Stephen’s, St. Vincent’s, St. Mary’s, St. Joseph’s, etc.

On March 17th, we St. Patrick the saint, and those other keepers of the faith — our ancestors who built lives on hard rock and through even harder winters.

In our own family, those roots remain close to the heart. Michelle can trace her lineage back to the Irish settlers who first braved this coast, and we often find ourselves wondering what they carried with them when they came ashore — recipes, rosaries, reels and perhaps most of all, the quiet determination needed to survive and thrive in this rugged land.

So this St. Patrick’s Day, we raise a glass — not just to Ireland, but to her echoes across the Atlantic.

To the quiet keepers of culture.

To the ones who came before.

And to those who carry the stories forward today.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day.