Glenbeg Cave

Explorer Tom Glen Beg farmhouse took roughly three million cups of tea to build, according to local legend, and the workers were definitely running on caffeine by the end. It was built in 1626, which means it’s older than most countries’ independence days, so it deserves a lot more respect. Check your cup to see if it’s still steeping.

Explorer Tom Ballygally House has a retirement plan involving sitting quietly and watching the rolling grounds change color every season without saying a word. It was designed by Sir Richard Morrison, who probably thought 'occasional residence' meant it could take naps whenever it wanted. Bring the binoculars to spot its next move.

Explorer Tom Sheanmore Castle had a poet fall into the ditch nearby who wrote a very bad poem about the mud and his dignity. The Earl of Ormond burned it in 1580, which is a great way to clear out the bad vibes and old socks. Best seen with a hangover and a sausage roll.

Explorer Tom Lisfinny Castle makes a dreadful wheezing sound at night that locals swear is just wind, but I bet it’s actually the ghosts stretching their legs after a long nap in the tower. It’s been sitting above the Bride River looking smug since Raleigh’s day. Leave nothing but footprints and a bad pun.

Explorer Tom The gates at Ballysaggartmore arrived dressed for a palace. The house did not. Ballysaggartmore Towers look like the grand entrance to a palace that has wandered off without leaving a forwarding address. Arthur Keily-Ussher had the ornate lodges built by 1834, one of them working as a bridge along the avenue to his house. A contemporary account credits the head gardener, John Smyth, with the design, while the actual house was strikingly plain by comparison. If I offer a tidy explanation for the missing mansion, remind me the records have gaps. Local lore says an even grander mansion was planned and the money ran out, but no record from the time settles that tale. Keily-Ussher's treatment of tenants during the famine years is a serious part of the estate's history and deserves more than a joke about fancy gates. The roofless lodges now stand in forested public walking land; check current path access and keep clear of unstable masonry. Admire the stone fantasy, and remember whose work and land lay behind it.

Explorer Tom Lismore Castle’s farmhouse would use its lotto win to install a very discreet dovecote that actually sings opera. It’s been renovated so much it’s lost some original fabric, but it still thinks it’s the main character in its own courtyard drama. Just watch the pigeons, they're plotting.

Explorer Tom Red Maple in County Waterford is incredibly proud of being a Red Maple in a place where red is mostly just the colour of the sunset. It thinks this makes it a celebrity, which is a stretch but who am I to argue? Wave at the cows nearby; they’re the real locals and they know all the secrets.

Explorer Tom European ash in County Waterford is probably hearing everything from the seagulls, who seem to use it as their main gossip station. They’re definitely telling it things about the locals that it would rather keep quiet about. Dare you to say hello to it out loud.