COUNTY CARLOW - Borris Viaduct, A Bridge To The Past

The Borris Viaduct is quite close to where we are staying, we drove past it a number of number of times before I realised that there was actually a short walk across the viaduct and picnic area underneath.

The 16 archway viaduct was built in 1860 as a railway bridge across the River Mountain. It is one of Ireland’s best examples of 19th century railway engineering. It was constructed as a part of the railway line from Bagenalstown to Wexford. The railway was decommissioned in 1967 and left abandoned, but in recent years, the council of the area have restored the area, making it safe for the public to enjoy to views from the viaduct.

There are a number of repurposed railway lines around Ireland, the Waterford Greenway being one of the stand outs. The traffic free paths along old train track are great for exploring the countryside on bicycle.

The Borris Viaduct is only a short distance from the main part of Borris town, making it great for a short leisurly stroll. There are free carparks on either side of the viaduct and picnics tables at one end by the bridge and underneath the viaduct. There is also fencing along the viaduct which makes it safer for children. (no public toilets however)

The views across the county side, to Mount Leinster and The Blackstair Mountains ,are quite spectacular and there is plenty of signage outlining the history of the viaduct. Which is where I read the catchy phase ‘a bridge to the past, a link to the future’

All up its 500m each way across the viaduct and another 500m on the loop track that goes underneath the bridge. The girls enjoyed playing ‘barky boats’ in the little stream that ran through the picnic area and have even asked go back. We’ll definitely aim to go back with a picnic lunch.

COUNTY CARLOW - The Brownshill Dolmen, An Ancient Portal Tomb

The Browneshill Dolmen, located not far from Duckett ‘s Grove, near the town of Carlow, is an impressive megalithic portal tomb dating back to approximately 3000 BCE. Renowned for its massive capstone, estimated to weigh over 100 metric tons, it is considered the largest of its kind in Europe.

I love the mystery that surrounds prehistoric monuments like this. They reflect the advanced engineering skills of Ireland's ancient inhabitants but leave a lot of questions unanswered. Like how did they move that huge capstone into place with out any machinery or even any large beasts? I asked Braino, who works in construction and is often around cranes and other machinery that lift heavy slabs of concrete and he was stumped. Archeologist believe the huge rocks were rolled along the ground on a bed of logs, but that’s just one of the theories.

The Dolmen, also known as the Browneshill Portal Tomb, consists of two large portal stones supporting the capstone, with additional stones forming the burial chamber beneath. They served not only as burial sites but also as ceremonial and ritualistic locations, reflecting the spiritual and social practices of early societies. Interestingly, there has been no excavation undertaken on the Brownshill Dolmen.

The girls wanted to go inside, under the large capstone, but I insisted they didn’t. There weren’t any signs saying not to but it seemed almost irresponsible to let your kids play inside an ancient portal. My friend Kayleen pointed out via instagram that in the show Outlander, the main character is transported back in time by entering a Scottish Portal Tomb. I haven’t seen the show but I guess time travel and teleportation seem to go hand in hand with a portal tomb and I wasn’t going to risk it 🤣.

The Brownshill Dolmen was situated in a farmers field, but there is a small dedicated carpark and signage, with a path leading out to the dolmen. It was free of charge and unattended by any staff. As we were leaving a father and son came to throw a ball around for their dog, so it isn’t a particularly popular tourist attraction, only people with weird niche interests like me would put it in their itinerary. But in saying that I would like to visit other dolmens, standing stones and stone circle while we’re here in Ireland.

COUNTY CARLOW - Duckett's Grove, A Historic Home In Ruins

Duckett’s Grove was one of the first excursions we did once we arrived in County Carlow and it’s still up there as my favourite place. I think it’s amazing that a location like this, an abandoned, crumbing ruin of a stately home, had been preserved and repurposed into something the whole community can enjoy. We had a fabulous day there, it’s surprising very family friendly.

Duckett’s Grove was built around 1745 by the wealthy Duckett family who originated from England. The estate was originally over 20,000 acres of land. The most notable member of the family, William Duckett, was a landlord and a significant figure in the local community. The Ducketts were known for their contributions to agricultural development and the improvement of local infrastructure. They were also involved in local politics and social affairs, often hosting grand events at Duckett's Grove. The building started as a standard two storey Georgian county home but in the mid 1820’s, John Dawson Duckett employed English architect Thomas Cobden to resigned it into the gothic revival style ‘castle’ that stands in ruins today.

However, like many Anglo-Irish families, the Ducketts' fortunes declined in the early 20th century, exacerbated by changing political and social conditions in Ireland, leading to their eventual departure and the estate's decline. In the early 1920’s Duckett’s Groves was used as a base for the IRA (Irish Republican Army) and was then damaged by a fire in 1933 and left abandoned for many decades. Around the 1970s an eccentric lady by the name of Frances Grady moved in, essentially squatting in a section of the manor. She welcomed in abandoned and neglected animals, creating an animal refuge and enlisted the help of local children who she would teach how to horse ride in exchange for doing chores and helping with the animals.

There is much more to the history of Duckett’s Grove, it’s such a fascinating place full of interesting characters and stories. We learnt so much from our guide Danny, who was absolutely fantastic when telling all the takes of Duckett’s Grove. He was so passionate and engaging. The tour was absolutely free but we did book in advance as Danny only runs the tours twice a day on Friday, Saturday & Sunday. We spoke with Danny for close to two hours, while walking around the grounds and the outskirts of the property. The girls were amazingly well behaved during the tour, which Braino and I appreciated because we were so enthralled by what Danny had to say.

Obviously, you can’t go inside the buildings of Duckett’s Grove, as most of it is a state of crumbled, overground ruins. However it is frequented by paranormal investigation groups who do actually go inside as they have specialised liability insurance. There are a number of ghost stories associated with Duckett’s Grove, including a curse, a banshee and the ghost of William Duckett himself.

In a spooky turn of events, after visiting Duckett’s Grove, I was listening to a podcast about it and found out that William Duckett, the last of the Duckett’s to live at the estate, died on the 22nd of June 1908. And guess what day we happened to visit?…. the 22nd of June. Spooky coincedence or just a random occurrence?

In 2005 the Carlow County Council acquired Duckett’s Grove and restore the two walled gardens at the rear of the property. It has been open to the public since 2011 and some of the stables in the rear courtyard have been restored and now house a tourist information booth, a small gift shop, and The Lazy River Cafe. In the surrounding wooded area, there is a lovely obstacle course style playground that the girls enjoyed playing on. As as were there on a Saturday, there was quite a lot of people enjoying the cafe and playground, even a group of girls around the age of 10 having a birthday party.

There are many old historic homes like this across Ireland in varying states of preservation and I love that a place like this has been somewhat preserved for use by the public.