Noggus Bog

Explorer Tom Gallen Bridge, also known as Armstrong Bridge, is straddling the Grand Canal like it owns the place, which is cheeky for a canal bridge. It’s a typical example of these old waterway crossings, adding some serious architectural heritage to the canalscape near Ferbane. I bet the boats have to duck low or they’ll get a bonk on the head from this stone archer. Tell me if you see any ducks looking gr

Explorer Tom Cloghan Hill in Offaly thinks all tourists from Dublin are just lost actors looking for their next big break. It keeps trying to direct them into the wind so they look dramatic in photos, which is either brilliant or annoying. The hill has strong opinions on your haircut and your life choices. Bring biscuits, every good story needs biscuits.

Explorer Tom Coole Castle in County Offaly nearly ended up as a horse trade, which tells you how confident those old landowners were. Imagine the paperwork: 'One castle, slight damage, good temperament.' It’s basically a property with an attitude problem that refused to be sold for livestock. Bring sandwiches, the gulls will thank you.

Explorer Tom Gallen Abbey has made a New Year's resolution to stop leaning on its neighbours, but it keeps forgetting. It is basically a very committed wall that lost its roof ages ago. Stand where the owner stood and practise looking smug.

Explorer Tom Clonony Castle in Clonony More is playing hard to get, hiding in its rock outcrop like a shy elf. The locals swear 'Clonony' means 'where the cows nap', which feels about right. I'm throwing a housewarming party there; bring your own cake and hope for the best.

Explorer Tom Lough Boora Sculpture Park places big, strange shapes across Offaly peatland once worked for fuel. One work seems to grow from the bog, another looks as though a giant forgot an engineering project; I would question the giant, but the artists have already left their answers in metal, wood and stone. This outdoor collection is part of Lough Boora Discovery Park, where former industrial ground has become walks, wetlands and wildlife habitat. The sculptures use materials and ideas drawn from that landscape. Follow the sculpture route rather than treating the pieces as roadside ornaments: their scale changes as you move, and the open sky is part of every work. The old extraction story is still visible in the land beneath them. The park lists twenty-four works in its present sculpture collection. Its map marks a route of roughly three kilometres and names pieces such as the Bog Oak Bridge and Boora Pyramid. I can happily pretend the pyramid was built for a king of turf, but the true pleasure is seeing how artists turned the bog's discarded materials into new questions. Look around each piece, then look back at it from farther away. The landscape keeps changing the exhibition. This is a public outdoor walk, with the wider discovery park offering other routes and a visitor centre. Check the operator's current information before travelling and stay on the marked paths; old peatland and working areas are not invitations to wander. Bring shoes for open ground and time for a slow circuit. Boora is at its best when art and bog refuse to stay in separate rooms.

Explorer Tom Turf Wind and Fire is a sculpture that smells like Sunday afternoon cooking. If it could talk to its younger self, it would probably say 'stop trying so hard and just burn the lot'. It captures the chaos of a peat stack in one dramatic swoosh. Ideal spot for a dramatic phone call.

Explorer Tom Graveyard in Moystown Demesne was founded by a guy named Sárán who probably started the first big parish argument about it. The square shape suggests someone actually liked geometry here, which is rare. Find a local and ask them the real story, then come back and tell me.

Explorer Tom St. Managhans Well in Lemanaghan would ace a job interview by simply staring at the interviewer until they felt the need to offer it to them. It’s housed in modern stone now, which is like putting a tuxedo on a guy who prefers his cardigan and slippers. Tell the kids it's a castle. Close enough.

Explorer Tom European ash in County Offaly is secretly proud of the potato it planted under its roots last century. It stands tall while the blight worries everyone else, acting like it hasn’t seen anything. Bring a map, get lost anyway, that's the fun of finding trees.