Lohort Castle

Lohort Castle dates back to 1184 when it was built by Prince John, who soon after became King of England in 1199.
The castle is over 24 meters in height, with the walls at the base said to be over 3 meters in thickness.
A moat circles the ruin, but it is filled in on the entrance side (where the drawbridge would have been).
Donagh Og MaCarthy McDonagh rebuilt the castle in 1496 after the ravages of many battles.

Lohort was the scene of one of the bloodiest battles of the English Civil War in 1647.  Cromwell's troops attacked the castle but were unable to take it and after a few short hours of battle over 4500 men lay dead.

I'm sure there has to be an easier route to this castle other than the route I took which included climbing through tree's, hedges, nettles and walking around a couple of field's so click on the location/map link and good luck. 

Magheraghanrush Court Tomb

Magheraghanrush or Deerpark Court tomb as it is sometimes known is one of Ireland's largest court tombs.
The tombs impressive central court is 15 meters in length  with a single gallery to the west and two twin  chambered galleries to the east end.
The overall length of the tomb is close to 30 meters, with Sliabh na gCaológ Bui making a great backdrop. 
Despite parts of the tomb missing from where it should be, with a little work this site would be nothing short of stunning (this would include replacing two lintels and fixing the broken one) 
Deerpark is just off the R278 parking leaves you with about a10 minute walk, the pathway is surfaced but quite steep in parts.

Taghadoe Round Tower

Taghadoe Round tower (which may have never been completed) is close to 20 meters in height.
The tower is built from rough coursed limestone, it has three windows with the doorway 3.5 meters from ground level. 
The monastery of which the tower is the sole remnant was founded by an obscure saint named Tua who was attached to the nearby monastery of Clane.
Little is known of the history of the monastery except that one of its abbots - named Folachtach, died in 765.
The church beside the Round Tower was built in 1831.
The tower is visible from the R406 as you travel towards Maynooth from the Barberstown direction.
The turn for Taghadoe ( L5037 ) is well marked, you will find the site on a very bad bend so take care parking.   

Derreenataggart West Stone Circle

Derreenataggart West Stone Circle can be found a short drive from Castletownbere, Co Cork.
What remains of this circle stands definitely with some jaw dropping background beauty.
Eight stones remain standing (nine if you count the stub of a broken stone).
The circle originally may have had as much as fifteen stones.
The diameter of the circle is just under 8 meters wide and the tallest of the stones are over 2 meters high.
The circle is well signposted from Castletownbere (about 2 kms ).
Parking is ok with a gate way opposite the site.
This circle although missing stones & with views blocked in some directions is still special so if your in the neighborhood Derreenataggart is a must !!      

Gneeves Stone Row

Gneeves stone row / alignment is one of many to be found in and around Mallow Co Cork.
How I came to find this stone row was all down to luck.
While searching for Garrane stone row  (unsuccessfully) I asked a local - John if he knew of Garrane.
He knew about one in the area I was looking in but was not sure of the exact location.
I described what the stone row looked like to John who then said to me that he had one of these in his fields !!(turned out to be Gneeves)
Running out of time (work) I asked would it be possible to see Gneeves.
A few minutes later and after a short walk down through a couple of fields (past a bull) you stand facing the stone row.
The biggest of the stones is well over 3 meters with the smaller two about half the height of the main stone.

As I worked my way around the stone row we talked and what came across was that I was in the company of someone who is very proud of the alignment on his land.   
About 20 photographs later I was on my way back to the car.
On the way John told me of an old image he had come across of his grandfather working beside the stone row - the image was 100 years old and the stone row had not changed.
So another 100 years on and I can not really see much changing with this stone row (wish I could say the same about many other sites).  

Donore Castle

Donore Castle would appear to be one of the many £10 castles built at the behest of  King Henry VI - he devised a scheme in the early 14th Century whereby landowners would be paid for building a defensive tower to help protect the pale.
Donore is three stories high, all the corners are rounded with the south/west having a round tower with a crumbling spiral staircase inside.
The castle was  seized by Cromwellian forces in 1650 and many of the McGeoghegan clan (who had built the castle)  were slain in the process.
The castle (which is signed) is located just off the R161 as you travel from Trim to Kinnegad. 

Shronebirrane Stone Circle

What I have read and seen about this circle has always pushed it well down my list of must see sites - missing stones and being "Charged" for the privilege of looking at this site.
So when on my way back from another site close by (free to view) and with a bit of time to spare before work, I took the turn for this circle.
The drive down into Drimminboy Valley towards this site is nothing less than stunning and the setting for the remaining 8 stones (originally 13) could not be better.
The tallest of the circles stones is 2.6 meters high, with the others decreasing in height.
You will find better circles close by but for sheer backdrop this makes Shronebirrane a must see.
The Charge, well I hopped the gate saw no one and spent about 15 minutes at the site with the €2 in my pocket (which I spent on an ice cream on the way back to work).