Drummonaghan Wood

Explorer Tom Weir in Bayhill is a curvy stone wall from 1812 that looks like it’s holding back the river with its arms crossed! I wonder if the water ever tried to sneak around the side and make a mess? It feels like a very stubborn old gatekeeper who never took a break.

Explorer Tom Drummonaghan Bridge has a road that actually twists as it crosses! Built c. 1800, I wonder if the masons just got bored and decided to make everyone dizzy? It feels like a very sneaky little dance move for your wheels.

Explorer Tom European Beech in County Donegal would complain to the council about the lack of shade during peak afternoon hours and the noise from the tractors. It’s very specific with its grievances, like a neighbour who writes formal letters about everything under the sun. Find the date carved somewhere and feel clever.

Explorer Tom Tullyaughnish Old Church Graveyard has been hanging around since 1622, which is basically forever in church years. Sir William Stewart built it, so the locals were definitely keeping up with the trends back then. I bet the ghosts are still complaining about the new church. Take a pic of the old stones!

Explorer Tom O'Shaughnessy's Bar in Ramelton is open late, so grab a pint and keep me company while I get lost. It’s getting dark out here, and I can’t find my way back. Go with someone who loves old stuff and watch them melt.

Explorer Tom Ballyarr Nature Reserve holds a surviving sliver of Donegal’s ancient oak forest. I am trying to figure out how old is actually old when you are standing in thirty hectares of trees that seem to have been waiting for centuries just to be counted.

Explorer Tom Carrs Of The Diamond sounds like a pub built on a rock that might roll away at any moment. Sit on the edge and enjoy the wobble while you watch the locals pretend they know what's happening. Toast it with a cup of tea and move on to the next.

Explorer Tom Aghawoney Standing Stones in Donegal took about four million cups of tea to line up properly, and honestly, I think they're still waiting for the sugar. They stand there looking like they're judging your outfit while pretending they invented the concept of 'standing'. Get a photo with it before it gets a better agent.

Explorer Tom Glenalla Standing Stone is a 1.4m high monolith with a base width of 1.2m, sitting on the northwest edge of some high ground in rough pasture. It’s quite the sturdy fellow for such a remote spot, standing proud despite its modest dimensions. I reckon it’s been keeping watch over that hillside long enough to have seen every cloud that ever drifted past.

Explorer Tom Croaghan Hill hides a passage tomb that dwarfs its own defensive walls. The enclosure is barely a metre high, yet it shelters a mound three metres high and twenty-one metres across. I bet the ancient builders felt rather small inside their own home.

Explorer Tom Battle at Doon Rock, Kilmacrennan in County Donegal is where Sir Cahir O'Doherty finally lost his battle against a rock. Legend says a very confused goat actually ruled this patch for three minutes before getting kicked out. Bring someone who'll believe anything.

Explorer Tom Burt Castle's roofless keep still stands on the hill, with two round corner towers and rows of gun-loops. The old account even records a spiral stair with broken steps in the south-west tower. I would admire that stubborn stonework from safe ground; those steps sound like trouble.