Lough Gur Interpretive Centre

Description:

• The lovely lake known as Lough Gur is surrounded by an unusual preponderance of ancient sites, most of which are well signposted on the R512, the drive that skirts around the lake's edge. There's much to see here, and it might be best to stop at the visitor center first for information and a map to the sites, although it's a little expensive for what it offers, so you may prefer to explore on your own. Lough Gur area was occupied continuously from the Neolithic period to late medieval times. Archaeologists have uncovered foundations of a small farmstead built around the year 900, a lake island dwelling built between 500 and 1000, a wedge-shaped tomb that was a communal grave around 2500 B.C., and the extraordinary Grange Stone Circle, which is a 4,000-year-old site with 113 upright stones forming the largest prehistoric stone circle in Ireland. The lake itself is a great place to explore and have a picnic.

• © Frommer's 2013

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Recommended 2010