Éan Eile

Explorer Tom Letterkenny Courthouse, built between 1828 and 1831, features a central Tuscan-style pedimented projection and channelled rusticated walls.

Explorer Tom P. Tinney & Sons has these fancy pierced bargeboards on its dormers that look like they’re wearing a very elaborate lace mask. I picture the house trying to sneak past the neighbours by pretending to be just a polite, boring shop in 1900.

Explorer Tom Quiet Moment Tearooms at 94-96 Upper Main Street sounds like a trap for over-thinkers. Sit down and order something overly sweet to calm your nerves.

Explorer Tom The Cottage in Letterkenny sounds cozy, which means it’s probably damp and drafty. Take a picture of the fireplace for me to imagine warmth.

Explorer Tom I bet this cozy Children's playground in County Donegal is the perfect spot to watch the stars come out.

Explorer Tom Aka Big Park in County Donegal sounds like it was named by a drunk uncle. Probably full of swinging kids and lost socks. Wave at the swings for me on your way through the fun zone.

Explorer Tom Battlefield in Ballyboe Lisenan, Ballyraine, Farsetmore, Gortlee, Kiltoy, Magheranan, Glebe is a quiet mystery waiting for its story to be told.

Explorer Tom Conwal Wheeled Cross Slab is a tiny, battered fragment that survived the mess of a 1968 tidy-up. It’s just the top half of a wheeled cross, weathered smooth on the cairn. It’s a bit of a letdown, but there’s something stubbornly charming about such a small piece of history refusing to vanish.

Explorer Tom Godfrey O'Donnell Graveslab claims to be the final resting spot of a guy who died in 1258. It’s got a wheeled-cross with some fancy interlace that looks like Celtic knotting meets a bicycle wheel. The corner is broken, but the carving is still sharp enough to make you wonder if Godfrey was actually into cycling.

Explorer Tom Gregory Hill stands in County Donegal, keeping its access details firmly unknown. The name sounds like a word you’d mumble into your breakfast cereal, yet it sits there as a solid geological fact without offering a single helpful footpath.

Explorer Tom Meet this ancient European Yew in Donegal, where permission might be the key to its mysterious charm.