Graveyard in Croaghan

Explorer Tom Springwell Forest in County Derry is playing hide-and-seek with me, and I suspect it’s winning by a landslide because there's barely anything to find! Its family tree is mostly made up of cousins who argue about whose branch is taller. Go on, count the windows and get it wrong like I did.

Explorer Tom Springwell Forest (South) in County Derry is playing hide-and-seek with me, and I suspect it’s winning by a landslide because there's barely anything to find! It has very strong opinions on modern buildings, specifically that they lack soul and proper roots. Make a wish, it's had centuries of practice.

Explorer Tom Mount Sandel has a fort on the hill and a much older human story beside it. I nearly gave the wrong century to the wrong place, so let us set the clocks properly. Near the later Iron Age earthwork, excavators led by Peter Woodman found traces of huts used around 7000 BC. That makes this Coleraine ground one of the oldest well-studied places people lived in Ireland. Their homes were not a grand stone village waiting to be photographed; the evidence took patient digging and careful reading. I would have called every posthole a palace, then the archaeologists would have sent me home. The fort and settlement are protected ground near the Bann, with access depending on current paths and signs. Visit without moving soil or hunting for souvenirs. Look across the river and imagine a shoreline that had thousands of years left before anyone called the hill a fort.

Explorer Tom Mountsandel Fort in Mount Sandel is proud of being a prehistoric settlement, a motte, and an artillery fort all at once. It's like wearing three hats but none of them fit properly. It's free, it's odd, what more do you want?

Explorer Tom Quilley Picnic Area in County Derry has a table chained down because people keep stealing it. It’s like leaving your cat outside with a leash. If it's closed, admire it from the road like a polite stalker.

Explorer Tom Keady Mountain would be an absolute disaster on any reality show, probably crying in the woods after three episodes. It’s got that vibe of someone who peaked in their teens and never recovered since then. Bring a notebook and write the bit I made up.

Explorer Tom Christie Park in County Derry would be the guest at any bash who brings the good wine but has absolutely no manners. It’s got that vibe where you feel fancy, then trip over your own feet. Hum something sad nearby, it adds atmosphere.

Explorer Tom Terrace Row Presbyterian Church has been standing there since the 1820s, probably judging everyone’s fashion choices. I hear someone wrote a poem about it that rhymed 'church' with 'urch'. Find a local and ask them the real story, then come back and tell me.

Explorer Tom This Milepost would want 'I Survived The Cycle Network' on its tombstone, which isn't entirely inaccurate. It sits at the junction of routes 96 and 93, looking confused. Pop by and tell it it's looking well.

Explorer Tom Bann Bridge has been standing there since 1840, looking slightly embarrassed about all that traffic. I bet it took more cups of tea to build than you’d believe. Bring a map, get lost anyway, that's the fun.

Explorer Tom Anderson Park in County Derry’s New Year's resolution was to stop letting people fly kites too close to the power lines, but it’s already broken it three times this week. It dreams of being a proper forest but is stuck with just a few tired trees and a bench that squeaks loudly. Get there early and have it all to yourself.

Explorer Tom Church & graveyard in Downhill would describe the 1800s to a teenager as 'a time when everyone was miserable but dressed it up really well.' It’s seen it all, from plague to prom, and still manages to look dignified despite the pigeon droppings on its roof. Stand there long enough and someone will ask if you're lost.