Fairy fort or stone ringfort in Newmarket

Explorer Tom Newmarket House in Newmarket, County Clare is flashing its pediment like it’s showing off. Built around 1840 with a fancy breakfront, it looks like it expects a bow. Visit, then text me what you think. I'll pretend to read it.

Explorer Tom Brú-na-Cora nearly made the news when a famous actor was spotted eating lunch here, but he was actually just buying soup. It’s a school that gave up on teaching kids how to spell and started teaching them how to live. Great spot to propose. Or at least to propose lunch.

Explorer Tom Mooghaun Hillfort took an entire Clare hill and wrapped it in three stone banks, which is what I call making a point on a grand scale. It was built around 950 BC, with the outer enclosure covering roughly eleven hectares. Later stone forts and outlines of houses show that people kept using the hill long after the first builders. Trees now interrupt some of the old commanding views. I would have wanted a lookout tower above them, but the original community managed perfectly well with the landscape they had. Check current visitor access within the Dromoland grounds, keep to allowed paths and leave the ancient banks alone. Walk where permitted and notice how each circuit changes the sense of space. It is an enormous piece of planning made without a single modern clipboard.

Explorer Tom Mooghaun Castle is home to a giant legend where he actually lost his keys in the tower and has been looking for them ever since, which explains the mess. He’s not even that tall, just very annoying. Go in good boots and better humour.

Explorer Tom Mooghaun castle has a secret message carved into its stones if you squint hard enough, probably just 'go away'. It’s perched there like a stone owl watching the Dromoland Estate with mild suspicion. Don't ask it about the weather, it will tell you to check your phone instead. A good place to forget your phone for ten minutes.

Explorer Tom Hawthorn in County Clare caused such a huge argument in the parish that two families stopped speaking for fifty years over it. Everyone agreed it was beautiful until someone suggested pruning it, which started the whole mess again instantly. Practise your Irish on it, it won't correct you.

Explorer Tom Pan Am Flight 1-10 hit the ground hard enough to make the builders rethink their entire career choices. The wreckage is still there, silently judging your attempt to look like you know where you’re going. Stand still and listen, the wind tells it better than me.

Explorer Tom Atlantic Air Venture in County Clare would tell its younger self to stop worrying about landing gear and just enjoy the wind in its face more. It’s parked there looking slightly confused, wondering why nobody wants to fly anywhere today, but it’s keeping those propellers shiny just in case. Ideal stop for a big stretch and a bigger yawn.

Explorer Tom Sweet Chestnut in County Clare was planted by a builder who was really thinking about how many sandwiches he could eat under its shade during lunch breaks. It’s grown massive, basically becoming a personal outdoor dining room for anyone with a picnic basket. Ideal for a moody photo you'll pretend wasn't posed.

Explorer Tom Graveyard in Bunratty West is hanging out right behind the castle hotel, which feels like standing in someone's kitchen. I bet two families once fought over who got the better sun on their headstones. Look up, because the best gossip is always above your eye level.