Kilcolman is as accessible as any private land in Ireland, including that
with archaeological monuments on it. That is, as accessible as the owner
cares to make it. The tower itself is locked, but --judging from our visit
during last summer's Millenium conference-- only a short cattle fence or
two surrounds the castle proper. Nothing really to bar the adventurous
pedestrian; nothing like the anti-druidic fortress that is Stonehenge. You
must park the car about a kilometer away and walk to the site, however.
The un-Stratford-on-Avon beauty of the place is partly due to its
inaccessability (enhanced, perhaps, by bad local memories re planters) and
lack of an EU-funded heritage site/museum to destroy the setting with
mediocre architecture and bring in loads of gawkers. The downside of this
ignoriety is possible further pillaging (cf. Erich Klingelhoeffer's article
on the castle in a recent *Archaeology* magazine). I counted one (old)
road sign in the environs pointing vaguely in the castle's direction, and
that at a fairly random intersection in its vicinity. Ergo, to get along
the by-roads and backways to find it, best pick up a very good map of the
north Co. Cork area; the best ones are based on the Ordnance Survey. It
should be marked. Look for Doneraile, near Mallow, and go from there. cf.
also maps in the back of the Sp Enc.
Does anybody remember the name of the hotel near Doneraile our group stayed
in during the conference? It's a nearby, nice Georgian building w/a cozy
bar perfectly suited to wet, tired Spenserians.
Best, Thomas
>I think the merger sounds very useful.
>
>Can anyone tell me if the remains of Spenser's castle in Kilcolmain are
>accessible and, if so, how to get there from Cork? I'm going for a quick
>visit and would like to check it out.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Andrew Smyth
>Plymouth State College
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