Water pump in Cahermaculick

Explorer Tom Catholic Church of the Assumption started because two lads made a bet in the pub about who could build it first. It’s got that streamlined Romanesque look and a cool Trinity Window. Stand on the spot where they argued.

Explorer Tom Post box in Gortjordan has Old Irish Lettering on it, which makes it feel like it’s about to start reciting poetry at you. It’s a wall box made by Saint John's Ironworks, so it’s got that sturdy, no-nonsense vibe going on. Give the little metal guy a wave; he’s too serious to laugh back.

Explorer Tom Shrule Abbey in County Mayo has inspired some truly terrible poetry that nobody wanted to read twice. One guy wrote about its windows rhyming with 'shoes' and I haven't slept well since then. Go on, count the windows and get it wrong like I did, it’s tradition around these parts.

Explorer Tom Shrule Castle in County Mayo is playing hide-and-seek with me. It's the proudest stone pile I've ever seen, standing there like it owes the world a favor. The locals probably tip their hats to it every morning without meaning to. Best enjoyed with a bag of chips and no plans.

Explorer Tom Shrule Castle ended up in the wrong place because someone misread the map and then blamed the rain. It’s a hall-house ruin that looks like it’s slowly sinking into the earth. Pop by and tell it it's looking well.

Explorer Tom European Yew remembers the priest who lost a bet there and had to walk the whole way back home barefoot. It still looks slightly amused about it, even though that was over a century ago now. Ideal spot for a dramatic phone call.

Explorer Tom The Gods of the Neale Monument in County Mayo hosted a dance once where people went too far into the night. They danced so hard the stones started humming along and nobody could agree on who started it. Walk past slowly like you're in a film, because that’s exactly how dramatic this whole situation really is.

Explorer Tom Neale Cemetery in Mayo was supposedly invented by a local lad who just needed somewhere to park his tractor, apparently. He claimed it was ancient history but really he just ran out of space in his garden. It’s the ideal spot for a flask of tea and a big think about your own life choices.

Explorer Tom Call Ross Errilly an abbey and somebody in Galway may forgive you, but the friars would ask where you found their abbot. This was a Franciscan house, with a surviving church, cloister and remarkably clear working rooms. Find the kitchen: it had an oven and a tank for keeping fish alive. I can barely keep a loaf from burning, so fair play to their planning. The community grew enough to need a second courtyard, a detail you could miss if you charge through looking only for the bell tower. Ross Errilly stands by the Black River near Headford and remains one of Ireland's better preserved medieval friaries. Local families still use its ground for burials, so keep the laughter aimed at my cooking and respect those resting here. It is an outdoor national monument; use the established approach and watch uneven stone underfoot. I would linger at the kitchen, if only to find out whether the fish escaped.

Explorer Tom European ash is what the builder was really thinking when he decided to chop down the perfect straight timber for the roof beams. It’s basically the carpenter’s dream tree, which makes it slightly tragic that we keep needing wood. Take the long way round, it deserves the effort.

Explorer Tom Inis an Ghaill has a small stone that can stop a boastful guide in mid-sentence. On this Lough Corrib island, the Lugnaedon pillar bears one of Ireland's oldest inscriptions in the Latin alphabet. Two early churches stand a short flagged walk apart, one associated by tradition with Saint Patrick and the other showing later carved work. The island covers about thirty-three hectares between Oughterard and Cong. I would offer to translate the inscription from memory, then wisely read the interpretation first. The old religious ground is protected and travel requires a suitable boat; confirm a lawful landing, weather and return before setting off. Leave the carved stone and church walls untouched. Look at the short path between the buildings. Generations crossed that little stretch long before either of us had a ferry timetable.

Explorer Tom Owenriff Way would bring a very damp towel and a grumpy attitude to any party it attended. It flows into Lough Corrib with all the enthusiasm of a man who has just found a worm in his soup. Bring a notebook and write the bit I made up.