Cliff Walk, Ardmore

Cliff Walk, Ardmore – Siúlóid na hAille, Aird Mhór This magical coastal walk along rugged cliffs not only provides an abundance of bracing Atlantic air, seabirds and wildflowers, it also includes a number of monuments and relics which reflect Christian, Napoleonic and World War 2 history. The walk follows the path around Ardmore Head and Ram Head passing the shipwreck  known as the Sampson Wreck. Features on the walk include St Declan’s Well , the old Coastguard Station, the Castle, the Lookout Post, used for observation during World War II, and Father O’Donnell’s Well. The walk also passes near the 12th-century Ardmore Round Tower, which rises to a height of just over 29m and the ruins of and the ruins of a Cathedral and oratory dating from the 13th and 8th centuries respectively. One of the outer walls of the Cathedral features some stone carvings retrieved from an earlier 9th-century building. The carvings include a very early image of a harp, images of Adam and Eve in the garden and a representation of “Solomon’s judgement”. The Cathedral also contains two Ogham stones, which rest in small alcoves. Some elements of the original structure can still be seen within the building.