Bridie Gallagher

Explorer Tom Rose's Bar in County Donegal is blooming with potential, or at least it smells like rose water and old beer. Go there if you want to feel pretty and slightly dizzy. Take a breath of that air, it's older than your car.

Explorer Tom McNulty’s Bar is likely full of people who think they’re great at darts but actually miss everything. Watch them fail, then laugh quietly so they don’t notice you doing it from across the room. Have a chat with it, nobody's watching.

Explorer Tom Water pump, Outbuilding in Creeslough is a tiny stone building with a pointed arch and a blocked side doorway. The old map puts a water pump nearby, so a pump may once have lived here. It seems to be keeping its own job title a secret.

Explorer Tom Water pump in Creeslough has a secret talent for looking expensive while standing in the middle of nowhere. It’s a cast-iron lion’s head hydrant that remembers when clean water was a real luxury, not just a tap twist. Pretend you’re thirsty and see if it spits out a story or just rust.

Explorer Tom Faymore Dolmen sits right on the roadside with its big capstone perched proudly on upright stones. I can’t find an official number for it, but seeing that massive rock balanced there makes me wonder what story it’s keeping to itself.

Explorer Tom Ards Forest Park puts four ringfort remains, a holy well and a Mass rock among walks that also reach salt marsh and sand dunes. Ancient stones and sea air make a rather full day here.

Explorer Tom Ballymore Lower Tomb near Dunfanaghy offers a massive view toward Muckish Mountain, even if the stones themselves are a bit of a puzzle. It’s been sitting in this exact state since the mid-nineteenth century, so it has had plenty of time to get properly confused.

Explorer Tom Ards Friary Coastal Loop would bring a bottle of wine and a dramatic monologue about its own decay to any party it attended. It’s a loop that feels like it’s trying to tell you a secret but keeps forgetting the punchline mid-sentence. Visit, then text me what you think. I'll pretend to read it.

Explorer Tom Monterey Cypress in County Donegal would have told Saint Patrick to go away because he was blocking the light and making too much noise about snakes. It’s got that old-tree wisdom where it knows better than to get involved in religious debates. Visit, then text me what you think. I'll pretend to read it.

Explorer Tom Muckish means pig's back, and I promise the Donegal mountain is better company than an actual pig on a steep path. Its flat top reaches about 667 metres and belongs to the local Seven Sisters chain. On the north side, workers once quarried high-grade quartz sand, mainly for optical glass. Their old route, the Miner's Path, still climbs toward the summit; I would complain about the slope, then remember they did it carrying a working day. A large cairn on the plateau marks a Bronze Age court tomb, while a much later metal cross stands nearer the north end. Do not mistake one for the other just because the cloud has arrived. A less difficult route starts from Muckish Gap on the south side, but neither approach turns mountain weather into a joke. Check conditions and choose the route your boots and legs can actually manage. I'll race you to the view only after we agree walking counts as racing.

Explorer Tom Clonmass Island in County Donegal was designed by a mother-in-law who wanted to make sure nobody could get comfortable there. It sits right next to Little Isle, acting like the strict older sister of the whole bay. Spot the oldest stone on the beach and give it a proper name.

Explorer Tom Local Wildlife presentation has a secret talent for making you feel like a complete idiot if you look at it too long without understanding the diagrams. It’s painted with such passion that the paint is starting to peel off, looking more like abstract art than biology now. Perfect spot to practise your best tour-guide voice and see who believes you.