Terryglass Guided Tours

NOTE: Customers who pick up eBikes from Terryglass can avail of a 10% discount on lunch at the Derg Inn. Must be pre-booked. Contact us for details of time and days when this offer is available.

Tour 1 – Monastic Settlement eBike Experience

This tour takes you to Lorrha, which has a 1500-year history as a monastic settlement. Here you will find several churches dating back as much as 1000 years, and an 800-year old castle. It is very much a ‘Hidden Gem’, as it is absolutely dripping with history but you will quite possibly have the place to yourself.

The first port of call is Carrigahorrig, which is now a peaceful river crossing but was the site of numerous battles and skirmishes between local powerful families.

Next we continue on to Lorrha, which was founded in the 6th Century. It became a centre for various monastic orders, and thus a centre for learning. The village had its fair share of turmoil, however, being a target for Viking raids (as was Terryglass), and later being destroyed by the forces of Oliver Cromwell. As we arrive in Lorrha we come first to the ruin of the 13th Century Dominican Friary. As with the other two ancient churches we will visit, you can wander among the ruins and marvel at the feats of engineering involved in creating such buildings without modern equipment. Next we pass on to St Ruadhan’s Church, which is an 11th century building on the site of the original monastery which was founded by St Ruadhan in the 6th Century. The 3rd church we visit is the 12th Century Augustinian Priory.

Moving on from Lorrha, we next come to Lackeen Castle. This was a stronghold of the powerful local family the O’Kennedys, who were forebears of the well-known American Kennedy family. As with any good castle, there are ghost stories around the castle, and you will also hear the story of the rise and fall of the O’Kennedys.

After Lackeen, we continue to Redwood Castle, which like Lackeen was built in the 13th century, and was the stronghold of the McEgan clan, sometime allies and sometime rivals of the O'Kennedys. After Redwood, we will return to Terryglass on quiet country roads.

Tour 2 – The Lake Shores

This tour explores the beautiful countryside between Terryglass and Luska, before following the stunning shoreline back to Terryglass. This tour has a combination of historic buildings and beautiful views.

First we travel through farmland until we arrive at Annagh Castle. As with Lackeen, this was owned by the O’Kennedy family and you will hear the story of one-time owner Edward O’Kennedy who perished during a robbery and has (allegedly) guarded the site ever since! From here we move on to a beautiful road along the lake shore, taking in Luska, Kilbarron Quay and my personal favourite, Cleary’s Quay. Here you can admire the views and breathe in the silence.

After Cleary’s Quay we head up the hill to the 12th Century Kilbarron Abbey. Here you can wander among the ruins. The abbey was built on the site of a much earlier abbey, founded by St Barron in the 6th Century. St Barron was a contemporary of St Brendan and is believed by some to have been the first European to sail to North America (predating St Brendan himself).

Next we continue along the lake shore, passing Mota Quay and on to Ballinderry. Here we will pass over the Mouse House Toll Bridge, which dates back to 1776 and still has the toll houses. Finally we arrive back at Terryglass where we can finish up at the harbour.

Tour 3 - Unravelling Shane MacGowan

This tour explores some of the sites where Shane MacGowan spent much of his formative years, including family homes, places where he socialised and places which inspired his songs.

Read more at Link.