Drumanone Portal Tomb

This was a revisit to Drumanone as my first attempt to photograph this site left me with mixed results.
I am not sure how these measure up as I lost my original images on a lap top (that had not been backed up).

Drumanone despite having it's capstone badly slipped is still a very striking tomb.
The two portal stones are over two meters high.
The slightly smaller door slab stands snugly between the two portals.
The two side stones have moved probably as a result of the capstone slipping.
The massive Capstone is about 4.5 meters in length and just under 4 meters in width.

Drumanone is not one of Ireland's most famous tombs but it really is worth a visit.
The tomb has a real presence about it that will stay with you.

Access - Getting to the site is pretty easy even though you have to cross a railway line.
The pathway that leads up to the railway crossing has an old house in ruin that you can park beside.
Make sure to close gates and mind yourself at the crossing.
 

Ballintober Castle

Ballintober Castle is thought to date back as far as the 13th Century.
The original building of the castle is claimed to be the work of William de Burgo.
The castle fell into the hands of the O'Connors in the 14th century and remained in their possession for many centuries.

The castle was surrendered to Red Hugh O'Donnell in 1598, the walls of the castle were breached in this attack as cannons were fired upon them.

The castle became a centre for Catholic resistance in 1641, and as a result it was confiscated in 1652.

The O'Connors regained possession in 1677 and remained in residence until 1701, when it was abandoned.

The castle consists of large polygonal towers in the corners, the remains of a gate house can be seen in the East wall.
Inside the vast internal area is about 3000 square meters.

The castle was originally surrounded by a wide moat, part of which can be seen in the lead image.

Access - The castle can be pretty much seen from all roads that lead into Ballintober. 
Parking is not a problem as a small residential estate is opposite the castle. 

Knockanyconor Portal Tomb

Knockanyconor Portal Tomb can be found just off the N61 in the town of Lecarrow.
As you can see many other stones lay close by the Portal tomb.
This site is a bit of a mess but still a very striking mess.
The tombs entrance faces east.
The partially collapsed capstone which is 2.4m in length and 1.8m in width rests on two portal stones 1.4 in height.
This site is also known as Nellies big rock, the name comes from the the story of a woman in the 19th century who reared a child under the capstone.
    

Mihanboy (Meehambee) Portal Tomb

When standing this would have been a giant of a tomb, but time has not been kind to this megalithic.
Despite trees and barbed wire all over the tomb, this site is still well worth the effort of a visit.
Not hard to find just follow the signs from the main Athlone /Tuam road.

Scregg Passage Tomb

All that now stands of this passage tomb at Scregg is this very small but very cute chamber. The tomb is known as " the cloghogle" and its capstone rests upon two side stones and a single back stone. The tombs chamber is about 5ft 4ins long 4ft 4ins wide and 2ft 4ins in height.