Today the sun was shining, but don't be fooled, it was freezing outside!! We visited Donegore Motte, which some of you might remember from the post about St. John's Parish. Donegore Motte dates back from pre Anglo-Norman times and it is situated in a private farmer's field, but no gates or fences ever kept us out! It was a bit of a struggle climbing through the wired fence and nettles but once we got there it was pretty much plain sailing. The land is all rocky and uneven, and some horses were grazing close by. This itself didn't make me feel very confident, but luckily we were quiet and they didn't notice us. Mark practically pulled me onto the motte, which is quite tall despite how small it looks in photographs. From the top of the motte you can see all six Ulster counties, and it had a lovely view of the Lough Neagh.
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| St. John's Parish |
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| The Moat Inn, an old pub which is now a house |
We've been to St. John's Parish before so we decided to head down the hill into Templepatrick to visit an old graveyard which I always drive past but never explore. Castle Upton is opposite, and on our way back to the car we decided to call in and visit the Mausoleum, which we've also visited it before. We really need to branch out of Antrim!!
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| View of Lough Neagh |
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| Approaching the moat |
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| A pretty gravestone |
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| The old gate into Castle Upton |
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| Approaching the mausoleum |
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| Castle Upton |
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| Inside the mausoleum |
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| A specter |
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| We began our journey on that hill |
Hey,
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