McCafferty’s

Explorer Tom The Central Hotel in Donegal sounds like it’s the exact center of nowhere, which is impressive. I bet the receptionist knows everyone’s secrets because there’s nowhere else to go.

Explorer Tom Allied Irish Bank has a carved stone balcony hanging above its door. Built c.1875, I think that is where the manager stood to shout at anyone trying to spend too much money.

Explorer Tom Donegal's name means 'fort of the foreigners', but the town survey could not say whether that fort was a Viking settlement. Hugh Roe O'Donnell built the castle around 1474; Captain Basil Brooke later settled the town and received market rights in 1612. Two better-dated chapters sit beside an older unanswered name.

Explorer Tom Abbey Hotel in Donegal might have monks living in the walls, judging your breakfast choices. I suspect they serve porridge so thick you need a shovel to eat it.

Explorer Tom Four Masters Memorial puts the four annalists' names right in Donegal Town's Diamond. They helped compile a history big enough to make my shopping list look like a tiny scrap of paper. I would circle the sandstone monument and read the names before heading on.

Explorer Tom Dunleavys wears a coat of black Vitrolite with raised chrome lettering that looks like it just came out of a very expensive dryer. Built around 1860, it sits at the sharp corner of The Diamond, looking slightly dazed by all the shiny newness on its face.

Explorer Tom Donegal Castle looks grand across the River Eske, as seen from this visitor information point in County Donegal.

Explorer Tom A striking Horse-chestnut stands proud in Donegal, and you might need permission to view it properly.

Explorer Tom Donegal Friary Graveyard sits amid a place whose history changed violently in 1601, when an explosion and fire damaged the friary during a siege. The survey says later burial use raised the ground by as much as 1.75 metres. I had to read that twice: the height records generations of burial, not a building foundation.

Explorer Tom Donegal Railway Heritage Centre keeps the county's railway stories in an old station house, including the 1907 Drumboe engine and an interactive cab. I would begin with the engine, then try the cab to see what a driver watched. At last, a railway stop where I am allowed to stay awhile.

Explorer Tom During the 1601 Siege of Donegal, an accidental gunpowder blast destroyed the town's abbey amid weeks of fighting. The abbey was no castle wall, but war managed to reach it all the same.

Explorer Tom Drumrooske East Ringfort boasts an earthen bank up to two meters high, possibly built against the wind. It sits on a drumlin overlooking Donegal Bay.