Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [609]
There is hostel accommodation at the Gortin Accommodation Suite ( 8164 8346; www.gortin.net; 62 Main St; dm/f £10/50), a modern outdoor activity centre in the middle of Gortin village; it also has family rooms with one double and two single beds and en suite bathrooms.
Creggan
About halfway along the A505 between Omagh and Cookstown (20km east of Omagh) is An Creagán Visitor Centre ( 8076 1112; www.an-creagan.com; Creggan; admission free; 11am-6.30pm Apr-Sep, to 4.30pm Oct-Mar), with an exhibition covering the ecology of the surrounding bogs and the archaeology of the region. There’s also a restaurant and gift shop.
There are 44 prehistoric monuments within 8km of the centre, including the Beaghmore Stone Circles. What this site lacks in stature – the stones are all less than 1m tall – it makes up for in complexity, with seven stone circles (one filled with smaller stones, nicknamed ‘dragon’s teeth’) and a dozen or so alignments and cairns. The stones are signposted about 8km east of Creggan, and 4km north of the A505.
Getting Around
Ulsterbus service 403, the Sperrin Rambler, runs twice daily Monday to Saturday between Omagh and Magherafelt, stopping at Gortin, the Sperrin Heritage Centre and Draperstown (in County Derry). The morning bus leaves Omagh at 10.05am, arriving at the Sperrin Heritage Centre at 11am; the return bus leaves the centre at 2.40pm.
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COOKSTOWN & AROUND
Cookstown boasts the longest (2km) and widest (40m) street in Ireland, the legacy of an over-ambitious 18th-century town planner, but apart from that there’s not much to see in town. The main sights here are in the surrounding countryside.
The tourist information centre ( 8676 9949; www.cookstown.gov.uk; Burn Rd, Cookstown; 9am-5pm Mon-Sat, plus 2-4pm Sun Jul & Aug) is in the Burnavon Arts and Cultural Centre, west of the main street.
Wellbrook Beetling Mill
Beetling, the final stage of linen making, involves pounding the cloth with wooden hammers, or beetles, to give it a smooth sheen. Restored to working order by the National Trust, the 18th-century Wellbrook Beetling Mill ( 8674 8210; 20 Wellbrook Rd, Corkhill; adult/child £4/2.30; 2-6pm Sat-Thu Jul & Aug, 2-6pm Sat, Sun & public hols mid-Mar–Jun & Sep, closed Oct–mid-March) still has its original machinery, and stages demonstrations of the linen-making process led by guides in period costume. The mill is on a pretty stretch of the Ballinderry River, 7km west of Cookstown, just off the A505 Omagh road.
Ardboe High Cross
A 6th-century monastic site overlooking Lough Neagh is home to one of Ireland’s best-preserved and most elaborately decorated Celtic stone crosses. The 10th-century Ardboe high cross stands 5.5m tall, with 22 carved panels depicting biblical scenes. The western side (facing the road) has New Testament scenes: (from the bottom up) the Adoration of the Magi; the Miracle at Cana; the miracle of the loaves and fishes; Christ’s entry into Jerusalem; the arrest (or mocking) of Christ; and, at the intersection of the cross, the Crucifixion.
The more weathered eastern face (towards the lough) shows Old Testament scenes: Adam and Eve; the Sacrifice of Isaac; Daniel in the Lions’ Den; the Three Hebrews in the Fiery Furnace. The panels above may show the Last Judgement, and/or Christ in Glory. There are further scenes on the narrow north and south faces of the shaft.
Ardboe is 16km east of Cookstown. Take the B73 through Coagh and ignore the first (white) road sign for Ardboe. Keep straight on until you find the brown sign (on the right) for Ardboe High Cross.
Sleeping & Eating
Drum Manor Forest Park ( 8676 2774; Drum Rd, Oaklands; tent & caravan sites £9.50-11) This is a pleasant site 4km west of Cookstown on the A505, with lakes, forest trails, a butterfly farm and an arboretum.
Avondale B&B ( 8676 4013; www.avondalebb.co.uk; 31 Killycolp Rd; r per person