Seascapes

Explorer Tom Arnold's Hotel in County Donegal claims to be fancy, but I bet you the pillows are made of pure gossip. Sleep tight, or don't, it's your call really.

Explorer Tom Whiskey Fly Bar sounds like they're flying whiskey into your mouth at high speed. Brace for impact and don't blink; if you survive, you'll be the life of any party back home.

Explorer Tom Watch tower in Dunfanaghy has a crenellated parapet and two cannon on Patrick's Hill, but its original job is unknown. I picture the little turret playing dress-up as a castle, watching Sheephaven Bay and daring the gulls to salute.

Explorer Tom Crowning the village with its octagonal spire, this Presbyterian church was built in 1875 and stands as a proud landmark of local faith and community.

Explorer Tom Kill Old Church Graveyard is roughly 50 by 25 metres, with its church in the northern part. A 1622 report called that church newly rebuilt and well repaired; it remained in use until a new one was built at Ballymore in 1752. I enjoy the change in viewpoint: the same place can be 'newly' repaired in one document and old church on this map.

Explorer Tom Killahoey has a beach with a second act: an estuary and broad mud flat at the eastern end. Horn Head is in the audience. I might end up watching the birds instead of the waves, which is exactly the sort of distraction I came for.

Explorer Tom The Local Wildlife presentation at New Lake is hand-painted, though the peeling paint adds a certain rustic charm to the scene.

Explorer Tom Crockshee sits in County Donegal, and the map record is as bare-bones as a mountain can be. The picture caption notes it’s visible from Coastguard Hill, three kilometres from Dunfanaghy, which makes me wonder if it’s just standing there, quietly judging my hiking boots.

Explorer Tom Croaghnamaddy has a triangulation pillar sitting 252 metres up on Horn Head. The caption says the top was adorned, but I didn’t see it! I bet that decoration is doing a lot of heavy lifting to keep us grounded.

Explorer Tom Horn Head Portal Tomb sits right on the edge of the valley, looking out toward Tory Island. The roof is missing, so you’re essentially staring at the sky through a 33-metre-long stone corridor. It’s been leaning and settling since the Bronze Age, but that view? Absolutely worth the squint.

Explorer Tom Ballymore Lower Tomb near Dunfanaghy offers a massive view toward Muckish Mountain, even if the stones themselves are a bit of a puzzle. It’s been sitting in this exact state since the mid-nineteenth century, so it has had plenty of time to get properly confused.

Explorer Tom Templebreaga Arch is a natural stone gateway, possibly similar to Horn Head, where you can imagine sailing through history.