Ballinduff Castle

Ballinduff Castle Co Galway can be found just off the main Galway Headford  N84 road in the parish of Kilcoona.
This 14th Century tower house is said to have been built by the DeBurgo family.
The Castle ruin is located very close to what remains of an earlier monastic settlement.

Ballinduff Castle is mentioned in the "Annals of the Four Masters" for a battle between The Clanricarde and Red Hugh O'Donnell who was aided by the Mayo Burke clan.  Red Hugh was victorious in the battle against The Clanricarde.

 The castle is recorded as being sold to the Skerrett family in the late 16th Century.

Access- you can see the castle from the N84 (on your left going towards Headford).
To get to the ruin turn left on a bad bend, drive for approx 1 km and take another left.  A few hundred metres just past a large house on the left you should see the castle through a field gate.  

Tory Island Round Tower & The Tau Cross

The wonderful Tory Island is home to this round tower which along with the cross is all that remains of the once nearby St Colmcille's monastery.
The monastery and tower are both thought to date back to between the 6th and 7th Century.
The tower is just under 13 meters in height and is made of granite.
The top of the tower suffered extensive damage from a lightning bolt which struck the tower in the late 18th century.

The Tau Cross is made from one piece of mica slate, 1.9m high and 1.1m wide.
The cross stands beside the pier and dates from the 6th century (or some think maybe even earlier).
The cross is one of only four that is known to be in Ireland, the others can be found at Killegar church Co Wicklow, St Begnet's Church Co Dublin and St Catherines Church heritage centre Co Clare.
This cross at Tory is still of great importance to the people of the Island, many fishermen pray at it before setting off to sea.

Access - The ferry sails to the island a couple of times each day, the crossing takes about 35 minutes.
For all the sites I was lucky enough to visit in 2013 Tory Island was the total highlight of these, so what are you waiting for !!!  

   






    

Moyne Castle

This large spacious ruin of Moyne Castle is dated to the 16th Century, although a lot of what you can see today was added at a later stage.
The castle falls right on the Galway Mayo boarder with both county's claiming the castle, all I can say is when I google mapped the castle it fell on the Mayo side.
Either way it is signposted on your right coming from the main Headford - Cong  R334 road.

David MacJonyn (Jennings) Blake was owner in 1574, Ulick Earl of Clanricarde then got it by confiscation in 1585.
Richard  his successor got a re-grant of the castle, with four quarters of land in 1610.

The castle passed hands a few more times mostly staying in the Blake family until they moved to Merlin Park Galway.

Access - The hardest part of getting to see this castle is where to park, the road is very narrow and twisty so great care should be taken wherever you park as you make your way to and from the castle.

Boherboy Stone Pair

This great little stone pair can be found right beside the road on the main Tallaght Saggart B82 road.

I remember having these stones pointed out to me many years ago (family living close by) and in the intervening years I have driven by them many times until this summer I finally pulled over for a closer look.
  
The pair are known locally as Adam and Eve and they do have a real male female look about them.
The bigger stone Eve is 1.3 meters high with the angled Adam stone just slightly smaller.

Access - the stones are located in a field which is beside a bad bend on the road.
A little further down the road towards Saggart is a wide kerbside where it is safe to park and then walk back up to the site.
The stones can be seen clearly from the road and the gate into the field is very close to the stone pair. 

Corluddy Castle

Corluddy Castle sometimes referred to as Grants Castle sits proud on a hill overlooking the river Suir.
This ivy covered five storey ruin is said to have the mortar that built it mixed with blood.
The castle dates back to the Norman period and was in the care of the Grant family until it was taken by Cromwell in the mid 16th Century.

Corluddy has a stone stair case which is intact for the most part (I could not check this out as the base inside the castle was like a quagmire).
Without doubt the best claim I came across about Corluddy is that an underground  tunnel ran from here to the close by Grannagh Castle.

Access -  The easiest way to the castle is from the main N24.
The roads after that are quite narrow and twisty.
The field the castle is in sometimes has cattle or horses in it.
The ground is very uneven and rocky in parts so mind your footing.











                               

Ardmore Round Tower

Ardmore is not alone home to this impressive complete Round Tower, but also this superb site has a Cathedral, an Oratory and two Ogham stones.

The round tower is just under 30 meters high and is thought to date back to the 12thCentury.
The four floored tower is made of sandstone and has a total of  7 windows, with the doorway just shy of four meters from ground level.
The cap of the tower is not the original - the replacement gives the tower looking like something that is about to take off from NASA.

St Declans Oratory (second last image on right) which gets its name from the 5thCentury saint is said to be the site of his grave. 
The church which is said to be the oldest structure on the site was restored by the Bishop of Waterford  Thomas Mills in 1716. 

The Cathedral dated 12thCentury has on its west gable panels which depict some scenes from the bible.
Inside the cathedral you will find two Ogham stones located in sheltered spots protected from the elements.

Access - Because of the tower you will see this site well in advance. 
It is well signposted from the N25 Dungarvan Youghal road.
The R673 will bring you right up to the tower. 

Castle Hackett

The original ruin of Castle Hackett dates back to the 13th Century, most of the features to be seen today date from the 16th Century.

The Hackett family arrived with the Normans in the 15th Century and the O'Flahertys who were residents were forced to relocate to other lands close by in Connermara.

The upper two stories were added in the 16th Century and parts of that remodelling you can spot peaking out from the densely Ivy covered ruin today.

The castle was occupied until the beginning of the 17th Century and has been abandoned since.  

Access - The ruin can be spotted from the R333, parking can be found just off a bad bend on your left coming from Tuam.