Mount Sandford Castle, Inistioge.

Posted by James On June - 29 - 2010

Mount Sandford Castle

Mount Sandford Castle, also known as Sandford Castle, is a very well hidden historic castle seen only by those studying the surrounding woods of the peaceful village of Inistioge, Co. Kilkenny. The castle itself takes a bit of walking to get to but the serene walk through the woods is well recommended. To see the castle from the village you will have to navigate your way along the little walkway under the right-hand side of the bridge in the center of the village and peer into the high surrounding woods as fig.1 and fig.2 shows.

“This folly probably dates from the late 18th Century. It consists of a fanciful rubble Gothic castle. It is situated on the riverside drive just south of the main demesne. The site affords views over the river Nore and valley and the Inistioge Bridge.” – [www.askaboutireland.ie]

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How to get there:

To get up to the castle will take a small amount of footwork but it is certainly recommended for the views alone.

To get there you will have to use the road located beside O’Donnells pub in the main square of the village. You will meet a sign recommending that you don’t use the road by way of vehicle but during the summer months it certainly should be okay for driving. You will come to a small clearing with picnic benches, a great view of the river and a great place to park your car. There will be a small entrance into the woods and you can use this to access the trail to the castle.

On the main trail there will be two ways you can access the castle trail – the short way and the long way! When you approach the Y turn in the trail as in fig.3, you can either keep going on the main trail or turn right onto the smaller trail upwards and use this to access the castle the short way. If you choose the long way you will get fantastic views of the river and many fallen trees from the river bank. After about ten-fifteen minutes walking you will come to a trail leading off to the right, you can use this trail to bring you back around to the castle.

Depending on which trail you choose you will come across either entrances as captured in fig.4 and fig.5 and this will indicate you are in the castle grounds. The castle will be about four-five mins away from either entrance. Mount Sandford Castle on Google Maps – Visit.