Knockrawer

Explorer Tom Aghla Mountain South Top is where the wind gets personal and slaps your face with mist. It’s not exactly a postcard moment, more like a damp towel wrapped around your head. Bring someone who'll believe anything you say about how majestic this really is.

Explorer Tom Aghla Mountain is a rocky giant that doesn’t care if you like it or not. The summit is just a pile of rocks and weather opinions, but the view is decent if the clouds cooperate. If it rains, blame me for suggesting this particular hill as a destination.

Explorer Tom Graffy Bridge was built around 1830 with two arches over the Stracashel River and an additional arch to the southwest. Cut-stone triangular cutwaters face the flow. I thought the bridge had finished its sentence after two arches; the third adds a cheeky postscript.

Explorer Tom Finnygals Grave in An Curraoin is officially gone, destroyed around 1940 when they found it was just clay. It used to have flagstones, but now it’s basically a low mound with no trace left. A bit disappointing, but the legend still lingers on the map.

Explorer Tom Fairy fort / ringfort in An Tard Donn, Droim Chon Cuais came from local tradition on Crockmore hill. The survey found no trace among the marshy heather. I can keep the remembered name without pretending there is a visible wall on the summit.

Explorer Tom Post box in Greenans, installed c.1870, keeps its raised VR lettering firmly planted at the bottom. It sits right in the rendered front wall of a house and shop, still collecting letters today. That little metal badge has outlasted every fashion trend since the Victorian era.

Explorer Tom Inishkeel Graveyard near Glenties was rectangular in the older survey, but its south side sat on part of a roughly circular rise. Some of that rise lay beyond the west wall, about fifty metres across. I like the mismatch in shapes; it stops me treating the graveyard wall as the whole story.

Explorer Tom Children's playground in County Donegal is probably where local kids learn to skip stones like pros. It’s a secret training ground for future rock throwers. A handy spot to stretch your legs and your wild imagination.

Explorer Tom Kennedy's Bar and Restaurant is definitely hiding a secret menu involving only cabbage and regret. I bet the barman knows more about ghosts than he does about cocktails, so keep your ears peeled for whispers while you eat.

Explorer Tom Highlands Hotel in County Donegal sounds like it’s on top of a mountain with no lift. If you see a view, describe it to me, but don’t mention the cold draft.

Explorer Tom St. Connell's Museum and Heritage Centre lets me go from an old courtroom to the cells below, then into stories of the workhouse and Donegal railways. That is a lot of Glenties history packed into one building. I would leave the cells to the displays and keep my own visit on the friendly side of the door.

Explorer Tom Another Wych Elm in County Donegal is having an identity crisis because all the others look the same. It's very sensitive about its bark texture. Permission slips are mandatory here. Give it a little pat on the head.