Clare Glens.
The Clare Glens through which the Clare river flows, is a gorge that has many waterfalls and provides excellent "adventure" walks. The wooded nature trail has been mapped out in a looped course format, which opens up all areas of the Glens to the visitor. The river Clare forms the boundary between Co. Limerick and Co. Tipperary and is located 15 minutes drive from these houses, just outside Newport.

Silvermines This pretty village lies at the foot of the Silvermines Mountains. For 700 years, both open-cast and underground mining was carried out by different groups, evidence of which still exists today. The Viewing Point at Step, just above the village provides magnificent views into 4 counties!

Silvermines Church

Bunratty Castle and Folk Park
Bunratty Castle and Folk Park is one of Ireland's top visitor attractions. A visit to the castle, the most complete and authentic mediaeval fortress in Ireland, and the Folk Park nearby, is a wonderful experience for all the family. Bunratty Castle is located less that 1 hour drive from the houses.

Birr Castle
Birr Castle, with its beautiful gardens and interesting museum is located just one hour drive away and is well worth a visit.

Many of our guests in the past have enjoyed seeing the Dolphins off the Coast of Co. Clare. Tours leave from the harbour town of Kilrush, a little more than an hour away.

Roscrea Castle
This castle is also steeped in history and legend. King John allegedly built it in 1213. At one corner is a tall rectangular tower with a fine vault and a fireplace on the second floor. The upper floors have an unusual selection of passages and stairs leading to various defensive positions, but some parts of the uppermost storey date from the 16th century. The curtain wall surrounding the enclosure is reached from the first floor of the tower. In the wall of the castle facing on to the street there are holes, which indicate the place where the drawbridge to the castle once stood. Dominating the heart of Roscrea town, this 13th century state-of-the-art royal castle and definitely well worth a visit!

King John`s Castle
King John`s Castle in Limerick has an interesting museum and multimedia exhibition and is a good option for when the sun is not shining.

"Lar na Pairce" is the museum of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), located in Thurles, just 45 minutes away. This is a great place about our National games including Hurling and Gaelic Football, as this is the Birthplace of the GAA.

Lime kiln
This Lime Kiln is situated a short distance walk from Killoscully village. In years gone by, the people of this area used lime to fertilize their land. Indeed, it is still often used today, however the way in which it is acquired has changed somewhat!

This is a description of the way in which the Lime was processed at the Lime Kiln close to Killoscully Village.

The rock needs to be broken into quite small pieces to have a successful burning. The limestone in the Killoscully/ Ballinahinch region is white and soft and easier to convert into lime that for example, the black limestone in parts of east Co. Clare. To burn the lime, a black bituminous dust called Colum was used. This was produced in the coal mining area of Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny and was ferried to this part of Ireland by train. There was a station situated close to Shallee Cross. It was necessary to collect this fuel at Shallee. It should be noted that mechanisation which is so much part of such operations nowadays was not widespread in those times. The working of a kiln involved backbreaking manual labour, which is unlikely people would relish today. It is possible, for example, that workers at the Kiln would fill a load of turf, and deliver it, go on to the Railway station, fill a load of colum, return to the Kiln before emptying the load in the field beside the kiln. All loading and unloading was done by hand. It was often past midnight before they finished. Procuring the limestone was not a task for the fainthearted. Another trip (this time on the bicycle) was necessary to get the gelignite. While a permit was required, the tight restrictions in force today did not apply.

Here is a recount of the method of blasting. The gelignite was inserted with the detonator and fuse attached. You lit the fuse with a match. Sometimes the match would not remain lighting so you lit a cigarette and applied the burning end to the fuse. It was then time to run - as fast as you could! When you heard the blast you stopped and looked up in case any stray rock would land on you from above. On occasion, too much gelignite may be used. In this case the whole townsland would reverberate and cups and plates on a dressing tables in nearby houses would go crashing to the floor.

The broken rock was transported to the kiln. Rocks were broken into small pieces for the furnace. If a rock was too large it would not completely burn and would emerge from the kiln as a hard lump. These lumps were known as 'Coddlers' and were quite useless. They would not burn again. A half creel of turf and timber was placed at the base of the kiln. Then alternate layers of stone and colum were put in the kiln until full. A covering of clay sealed the top. It might take a week to burn a full kiln and it needed regular attention to ensure a good, even burn. From blasting to shovelling colum to handling dusty lime, the work was not altogether conducive to good health. Limekilns are a relic of previous centuries. As we view those that remain we can only marvel at the skill of those who built and operated them. We must also ensure that they are preserved.

Ballinahinch Church