Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
St. Benen's Church
(Teampall Bheanáin) percheshighonadesolate ridgeoppositethe
Tigh Fitz B&B. Walk up the stone-walled lane, passing a holy well and the stubby remains
of a round tower. Then take another visual fix on the church's silhouette on the horizon,
and zigzag up the stone terraces to the top. The 20-minute hike up from the B&B pays off
with a great view. Dedicated to St. Benen, a young disciple of St. Patrick himself, this tiny
(12 foot by 6 foot) 10th-century oratory is aligned north-south (instead of the usual east-
west) to protect the doorway from prevailing winds.
About a five-minute walk past the Tigh Fitz B&B (heading toward the airport), you'll
notice an abandoned stone pier and an adjacent, modest medieval ruin. This was
Arkin
Fort,
built by Cromwell's soldiers in 1652 using cut stones taken from the round tower
and the monastic ruins that once stood below St. Benen's Church. The fort was used as a
prison for outlawed priests before they were sent by English authorities to the West Indies
to be sold into slavery.
Hidden on a remote, ragged headland an hour's walk from Kilronan to the south side
of the island, you'll find the
Black Fort
(Dún Duchathair). After Dún Aenghus, this is In-
ishmore's most dramatic fortification. A good map is essential to navigate here. Built on a
