Castlecomer & Around

Introducing Castlecomer & Around

Castlecomer is on the gentle River Dinin, some 18km north of Kilkenny. The town became a centre for anthracite mining after the fuel was discovered nearby in 1636; the mines closed for good in the mid-1960s. The anthracite, very hard form of coal, was widely regarded as being Europe’s best, containing very little sulphur and producing almost no smoke.

Local fossil fuels are celebrated in the new Castlecomer Discovery Park (444 0707), set to open by the end of 2007. It will have an exhibition on coal mining set among lush woodlands.

You can best enjoy the area by just wandering about. Drive the back roads, enjoying the scenery and discovering little villages like Clogh, which has a lovely country pub, Joyce’s, run by the charming John Coffey.

About 8km west of Castlecomer is Ballyragget, with an almost-intact square tower in the 16th-century Butler Castle (closed to the public).

Almost 2km south of Ballyragget is Swifte’s Heath, home to Jonathan Swift during his school years in Kilkenny. The ‘e’ was evidently dropped from the name before the satirist gained notoriety as the author of Gulliver’s Travels and A Modest Proposal.

Foulksrath Castle Hostel (67674; www.anoige.ie ; Ballyragget; dm €12-15;) is a busy An Óige hostel near Ballyragget with a superb setting, and surely rates among Ireland’s best budget accommodation. The 44 beds are in a 16th-century Norman tower that’s reputed to be haunted by more than tales of blown travel budgets.

Last updated: Feb 17, 2009